The social networking and metaverse company is going through a process that has been referred to as “flattening”. In view of this, a plan is being generated for the managers of each sector to do things beyond non-stop meetings. The U.S. company uncovered one of the most uncomfortable truths, where the focus has been placed on management’s attitude and lack of activity.
The concept of “flattening” means that those in management positions attend meetings and just go to sit down. It was pointed out that they only do what others tell them to do and, sometimes, they tend to put out an internal fire. Added to this is the criticism of the good money they earn for their activity and inaction. The configuration, which is something that exists in all sectors of the economy, from media to technology to vehicle sales, is not the fault of any one manager.
It is presumed that many of these people, today in management positions, knew how to be good at something that surely was not to manage. This generated a better salary for the new activity. Of course, with a managerial position, they don’t do what they are known for. In addition, the backlog of meetings is a characteristic of the new position within the company.
Combat flattening
The biggest problem that appears on the horizon is that we are facing a pattern that has been happening very frequently. This has resulted in many bosses, mainly in the United States, not doing things of value. In 2016, a Harvard Business School study posited a $3 trillion cost of “management excesses.”
The same work led to the recognition that there was one manager for every almost 5 workers. From this it was concluded that managers and administrators constituted, at that date, a little more than 17 percent of the workforce. In addition, they earned almost a third of all compensation.
For a different future
For several decades there was a demonization of the stereotype of government bureaucrats. This path only ended up masking, for a long time, the problem of those corporate bureaucrats who do nothing. The unexpected arrival of the pandemic, in late 2019, taught to execute the work from homes. This resulted in professional attendees having fewer meetings or spending hours in front of a screen watching muted people on virtual meeting platforms.
“To survive, managers … will have to start demonstrating that they actually do something,” Ed Zitron wrote in The Atlantic, during 2021. The article noted that good managers will have no disadvantages and will be able to improve the quality of the work of the rest. However, “it is the bad managers who are in trouble,” said Zitron.
Meta has had its eye on the kind of management it has in its offices and, in the face of repeated criticism, the “axe” could fall on them. Facebook’s parent company has been aiming for the “Year of Efficiency” and, to this end, acknowledged that it has a bloated and ineffective management structure.
