Britain is in a management crisis as a study shows that over half of British workers don’t view management as aspiring career path and actively avoid it
Investors in People, an accreditation body, released a new report this week that found more than half of British workers in middle management roles and below do not see management as a career path they are interested in. Some even actively avoid the field.
YouGov’s representative research, which surveyed over 2,000 employees, revealed that only 32% of them saw management in a positive light, 40% of them saw it as necessary, but not appealing, and the remaining 12% saw it as an overwhelming task, one they actively avoided.
The research was conducted as part of Investors In People’s Whitepaper, The Broken Ladder. The goal of this study was to gain a better understanding of attitudes of British workers towards managerial roles, and what senior leaders could do to resolve the issue of reluctant managers.
British employee attitude to management
Over half of those who did not want to be managers (54%) believed that management was too stressful. Other leading reasons included not liking managing people (42%), feeling that the salary is not enough to justify the position (30%), and a preference of technical and specialist jobs (25%).
This group is also more likely to feel that the pay doesn’t justify the role (38% compared to an average of 30%) and to say that they don’t enjoy managing people (59% compared to an average of 42%). The group also feels that the salary does not justify the job (38%, compared with the average 30%) and they do not enjoy managing people (59%, compared to 42 %).
For 42% of managers, extra pay is the main reason for becoming managers. Then, 28% cite career growth.
What do managers think about their role?
It’s no surprise that people are put off by perceived stress. According to the survey 74% of respondents described middle management as stressful. Just over half (51%) view middle management as high-stress, low-reward.
What can leaders, organisations and other stakeholders do?
Investors in People surveyed 500 leaders of business to get their perspective on how to improve management roles. They asked them what they thought would make these roles more appealing to employees.
Over half of senior leaders (52%) believed that improved financial and non-financial rewards would make management roles attractive to employees. 40% said greater access to professional growth, 37% said reduced administrative burden, and 36% said stronger career advancement pathways.
This is similar to the responses of British employees when asked the same question. They cited incentives like good training and preparation for the new role (55%), rewards and recognitions for good managers (52%), realistic work loads and fewer administrative duties (49%) as well as a clearer pathway to senior leadership (35%).
Other reasons given by employees included better mental health and well-being support for managers (30%), and the opportunity for managers to provide feedback on their roles (29%).
Paul Devoy is the CEO of Investors In People. He says: “Our whitepaper research shows that Great Britain has an unwilling manager problem. There are too many managers who do not want to manage other people or should not be doing so (perhaps because they never received support to learn to do it). We risk deterring a whole generation from ever becoming managers.”
Anne Francke is the Chief Executive Officer of the Chartered Management Institute. She says, “We have a real problem because management is not seen as an aspirational career.” People are discouraged from taking on management positions by the rapidity of boom-bust cycles and layoffs. Management is important at all levels. You get better results for your organisation and employee engagement when you train managers. This is not going to happen by accident: You’ve got work to do.”
To view the full whitepaper with further research, insights, and expert advice visit https://www.investorsinpeople.com/knowledge/the-broken-ladder/?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=Press+Release&utm_campaign=May+25+Press+Release
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