can the position of supervisor nonetheless entice? | EUROtoday
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“Pby no means learn! » that is what Sarah solutions after we ask her if she may, at some point, take up a administration place. She tried, although. After years of working in operational positions that hardly offered her with a good lifestyle, the account supervisor stated to herself that at 30, this was maybe the logical subsequent step. A option to take a step ahead, to earn a greater dwelling, to weigh somewhat extra. But nothing went as deliberate.
Just a few days after taking workplace, his N + 1 went on paternity depart. The crew of 12 individuals she needed to supervise had simply come out of a painful episode. The earlier supervisor had damaged ties, undermined belief, erased benchmarks. Without relay, with no framework, with out anybody explaining to her what had occurred earlier than her arrival, she needed to cope. Impossible to be in every single place directly.
In the night, she caught up on what she had not been in a position to end in the course of the day. On weekends, she collapsed. “In four months, I was completely burnt out,” she says. At the top of her trial interval, she admitted that it was an excessive amount of for her and most popular to slam the door. Since then, she has change into self-employed. And even in a dialogue between pals, the phrase supervisor nonetheless provides him a chilly sweat.
Demands too nice
Not so way back, turning into a supervisor meant tasting success: a barely wider chair, enterprise playing cards, a title that folks might be pleased with. Today, this development has misplaced all its luster, to the purpose of now not arousing need. This disaffection is so widespread that it now has a reputation: aware unbossing, an assumed renunciation of profession development whose setbacks we already know.
According to a research by Robert Walters, 52% of younger British professionals don’t wish to handle a crew. Even extra stunning: 16% decline any supply involving subordinates. And France will not be not noted. In 2023, a research by the Association for Executive Employment (Apec) indicated that solely 56% of younger executives deliberate to change into managers at some point, seven factors lower than the earlier 12 months.
These administration timids usually are not fleeing energy, however what it calls for each day: the administration of egos, the damage and tear of latent conflicts, the solitude of choices. Managing, for a lot of staff, now not means transferring ahead, it means navigating by troubled waters, caught between unreasonable calls for from the highest and the frustrations of the groups. It additionally means having to handle people of their most tough expressions: toxicity, demotivation, hostility, with out ever having been ready to tackle this position.
“Young employees do the math very quickly,” observes Christophe Nguyen, occupational psychologist and president of the Empreinte humaine agency. When they weigh the benefits of turning into a supervisor – reminiscent of wage or recognition – towards the constraints, the calculation is rapidly made and it’s typically damaging. Even with a rise, the shortage of time and human sources in organizations pushes them to surrender. »
Everywhere round them, operational groups see overwhelmed native managers, at all times on the transfer, typically prevented from finishing up their work correctly. According to the Apec “Staying a Manager” research printed in 2023, 61% of executives typically or generally really feel “the feeling of an insurmountable workload”. “No wonder many prefer to stay at a distance, preserve their balance and not lose their skin,” observes the occupational psychologist.
“The workload has intensified”
“Personally, what makes me laugh the most is the gap between what we promise managers on job descriptions and the reality on the ground. We talk to them about room for maneuver, about strategic decisions, when that is never the case,” says Julien, a 47-year-old videographer, who has at all times declined administration positions. In his case, main a crew would imply giving up the artistic half that offers his work its full that means. “What I like is making images, not wasting my time on reporting, planning, human psychology or endless meetings,” he explains.
Same commentary for Félix, 34 years outdated, developer in a start-up: “For me, managing means becoming a sort of project manager responsible for passing on management’s instructions, even when you don’t believe in them or don’t adhere to them. » Julien and Félix are nevertheless aware of it: climbing the ladder would allow them to earn a better living. But they are surprised that it is still the only recognized route in France.
“In our country, we value technical know-how too little even though it is essential,” regrets Félix. The latter evokes the United States, the place specialists are generally higher paid than the individuals who supervise them. A mannequin that he considers fairer. “Without an expert, we produce less and less well. And above all, not everyone is made to supervise or manage people. Personally, I know I could easily get lost there. »
It must be said that, since 2023, the fragile economic context has changed priorities. Where we promised to give power back to middle managers and offer them the means to flourish, it is now the search for results which imposes its rules, reshaping work as it sees fit. “Faced with this paradigm shift, the workload has intensified, the boundaries between professional and personal life have become increasingly difficult to maintain, and tensions have exploded in the services,” observes Christophe Nguyen.
More than ever, the corporate requires managers to realize their goals, to observe the efficiency indicators of every worker and to handle a everlasting emergency. On the opposite hand, groups weakened by Covid anticipate extra presence, listening and assist, significantly on psychological well being points.
Faced with these irreconcilable injunctions, managers are discovering it more and more tough to remain heading in the right direction. “We must not forget that absenteeism has increased by more than 40% in five years among private sector employees, mainly due to long-term sick leave,” remembers the specialist in psychological well being points at work. Managers additionally compensate for positions not changed and tackle extra workload. »
A scenario that doesn’t solely have an effect on younger individuals
Can work survive if the position of supervisor loses all attractiveness? What to do when staff desert this position? “What is worrying is that this situation is likely to last. And it reflects much more than a simple renunciation. For me, it is a sign of deep unease, that of a weakening link between employees and their company,” analyzes Christophe Nguyen. The numbers do not lie. According to Gallup’s 2023 State of the Global Workplace survey, solely 7% of French staff say they’re nonetheless engaged at work, in comparison with 13% on common in Europe. A transparent sign of large disengagement.
This commentary is echoed by Gaël Bouron, deputy head of research at Apec, who emphasizes that “this evolution of the relationship with work does not only affect the younger generations, but all employees and all categories of staff”. He significantly emphasizes the stability between skilled and private life, time administration, and the place that work occupies in a single’s life.
These main points maybe weigh much more closely on managers, “often the first to face these tensions, particularly in small structures which have neither a structured managerial collective nor large programs dedicated to managerial effort”. This may pose an issue, warns Christophe Nguyen: “As lengthy as corporations don’t give managers the means to tackle these new challenges, reminiscent of taking good care of people, strengthening social cohesion or integrating the upheavals of synthetic intelligence, the scenario will stay frozen, with out actual progress. »
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Kangaroo of the day
Answer
When Julien is requested what may make him change his thoughts, he believes that concentrating all tasks on one particular person is condemning them to exhaustion. Rather, he imagines a transparent separation of the managerial operate between two dimensions: on the one hand, human administration too uncared for by human sources, targeted on assist and assist; on the opposite, the group of labor, with its constraints, its schedules and its goals.
“This distribution,” he believes, “may supply higher circumstances for everybody. It would lighten the load, restore coherence to the work and let everybody give attention to what they do finest. »And maybe the need to oversee will return, not below the burden of an obligation, however carried by a aware choice.
https://www.lepoint.fr/societe/en-quatre-mois-j-etais-completement-cramee-le-role-de-manageur-peut-il-encore-attirer-08-12-2025-2604891_23.php