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New Glassdoor data suggests Gen Z isn’t ditching management roles after all, despite talk of “conscious unbossing” and shifting workplace values.
Mark Zuckerberg’s 2023 “year of efficiency” may have sparked what some are calling the “great flattening,” but it’s far from the end of traditional management structures.
So far in 2025, 80,000 tech jobs have been eliminated, including 15,000 at Microsoft. The majority of those roles have been middle management positions, and many impacted are millennials, now the dominant group in those roles.
In parallel, Gen Z workers have taken a stance that some have suddenly started describing as “conscious unbossing,” a term given new life in the wake of the viral workplace scandal involving Coldplay, an IT company called Astronomer, and Gwyneth Paltrow’s PR rescue play. But despite the narrative, current workplace data tells a different story.
Daniel Zhao, lead economist at Glassdoor, spoke to Fortune about the company’s semi-annual Worklife Trends report, and said: “You don’t really see any evidence” of conscious unbossing. Gen Z is entering management at the same rates that millennials and other generations did."
In fact, the cohort is on track to account for one in ten managers by 2025.
Burnout is up, but Gen Z wants in
Glassdoor data indicates that Gen Z is stepping into managerial roles at a pace consistent with previous generations, despite a workforce climate where “burnout” mentions have surged 73% year over year in employee reviews as of May 2025.
At the same time, flexible work options and mental health benefits have stagnated or declined. Access to reduced or flexible hours fell by 2.2%, and work-from-home availability dipped 1.7%. Since 2019, though, those benefits are still up 20.4% and 17.9%, respectively.
Zhao pointed to the persistent attraction of management as a path to financial and professional growth. “In 2025, workers transitioning from individual contributor roles to management positions saw an average salary increase of 11% - significantly higher than the 7% raise secured by peers who remained individual contributors.”
Despite calls for dismantling hierarchy, data suggests Gen Z has recognized the trade-offs and is “voting with their feet.” Zhao added that management “is still seen as the best path for climbing the career ladder.”
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Pragmatic ideals meet established structures
While Gen Z workers entered a workforce shaped by economic crises, digital transformation, and social upheaval, they are described by EY as a “pragmatic generation,” and surveys reveal they value purpose, flexibility, and well-being more than promotion. Yet 52% report not wanting middle management roles, and 16% reject any position with authority over others.
Even so, the data reveals Gen Z is not stepping away from leadership opportunities. Zhao noted that “things haven’t necessarily deteriorated” for workers since January, but “they still don’t feel like they’re in a great situation.”
Leadership may not look the same in the future, but Gen Z’s path into management appears just as steady as the generations before them. “Management is not for everybody, and that’s okay,” Zhao said, “but it is still seen as the best path for climbing the career ladder.”
