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The most-endangered species in corporate America today might be the manager overseeing a tiny team.
The latest broadside against small-team bosses comes from Uber. The ride-sharing giant said it would reduce the number of “micro-teams”—those with only one or two direct reports—by nearly half.
The move is part of a broader plan to cut 10% of its staff, about 3,300 people. Ultimately, the company will have 20% fewer managers, a spokesman said.
The cuts highlight a larger shift afoot: CEOs want managers overseeing bigger groups, with fewer layers between individual workers and executives at the top of companies. Many employers now expect managers to do less coordinating between departments, and to spend more time in the trenches building products or generating revenue themselves.
For the supervisors still standing, that often means doing a job that is bigger, and more complicated, than ever. Workers, meanwhile, say it can often be tough to get time with bosses overseeing evermore people.
Watching the burdens on bosses grow, many junior employees say they have no interest in pursuing the management track.