One in four managers regularly thinks about quitting their job due to people management pressures

Managers may like their jobs and enjoy managing their teams but that doesn’t mean they don’t feel stressed, overworked, and ready to quit at times, according to new research by HR software provider Ciphr.

Ciphr’s survey of 500 managers, with people management responsibilities, found that the majority like (52%) or love (32%) the work they do, and most (85%) like being a people manager.

The average manager is confident in their capabilities to manage their team (80% of those polled feel this way most or all of the time) and is confident that they have a high performing team (75%). They are generally positive about many aspects of their role, and find their job meaningful (74%) and engaging (72%).

But many are also overstretched by their management duties and find certain aspects, such as having ‘difficult’ conversations, increased stress, and managing disciplinaries and grievances, challenging (32%, 30% and 25% respectively dislike this about being a manager).

Nearly one in three (31%) managers thinks their workload is unmanageable most or all of the time, and one in four (26%) feels stressed most or all of the time.

In the last six months, well over half (60%) of the surveyed managers have worked out of hours during evenings or at weekends, two-fifths (40%) have worked through illness instead of taking the time off to recover, and a third (33%) have felt that work has negatively affected their health or wellbeing.

One in four (25%) surveyed managers reports thinking about leaving their jobs most or all of the time because of the pressure or stress of managing people. While one in three (31%) says they intend to leave their organisation in the next 12 months (a further 15% may join them but are currently undecided).

What could convince managers to stay?

There are many things that employers can do to help support their people managers and give them more reasons to stay. Ciphr’s research highlights some of the key practical improvements that UK managers would most like to see.

Top of the list of biggest impediments to their job enjoyment is unnecessary bureaucracy. Around one in four (24%) people managers believe they’d like being a manager more if there was a reduction in ‘red tape’, or excessive bureaucratic procedures, slowing down their decision-making and productivity.

Around one in five think that higher wages (22%), management and leadership training (20%), and more effective support from leadership (20%) should be more of a priority – and would improve their day to day working.

They’d also like fewer and shorter meetings (19%), less unrealistic targets (19%), and less admin and low-value busywork (18%), complemented by more health and wellbeing support tailored for managers (17%).

Claire Hawes, chief people and operations officer at Ciphr, says:

“The message to employers is clear: They need to ensure more manageable workloads and provide further support and training for their managers, or risk losing them to other organisations that will.

“Managers are often being asked to achieve more with less budget and resources. They need to support their team’s development and wellbeing, while being accountable for their performance and productivity. The time and energy involved in balancing the people management side of their jobs with their other duties isn’t always acknowledged. And that can lead to increased stress too.

“Line managers have a crucial role to play in helping to ensure a great employee experience. If they are frequently overworking, and aren’t taking the downtime they need, then it’s going to have a knock-on impact on their team, and across the business, down the line – presenting through absence, low productivity and morale, and higher turnover. You can have the best strategy, products, or technology but if you don’t look after your people then success simply isn’t sustainable.

“It’s in an employer’s interest to understand how their managers are feeling. Ciphr’s research identified a significant sentiment gap between junior managers, middle managers and senior managers. Encouraging regular and ongoing feedback from employees of different ages and seniority levels helps organisations see what they are doing right and what they may need to improve. Whether it’s introducing no meeting days, or investing more in people management software, or a complete overhaul of outdated processes – it all lightens the administrative load on your managers.”

Ciphr’s new research, based on a survey of 500 UK managers with people management responsibilities, is available to view here.