More and more companies are putting managers on the chopping block.

Between May 2022 and May 2025, the number of managers and executives at public companies fell by 6.1% and 4.6%, respectively, according to data from Live Data Technologies, reported on by the Wall Street Journal. Google, for instance, reduced its management headcount by 35% between 2024 and 2025, CNBC reported. Microsoft, Intel, and Amazon have also flattened their corporate structures.

“What they’ve done is taken a hard look at that middle layer of management and are trying to determine what is more efficient for their business models and make cuts there,” said Karan Ferrell-Rhodes, CEO and founder of consulting firm Shockingly Different Leadership. “That was an area that…over the last three to four years, has been ripe for reevaluation for companies.”………………