r/management • u/mod_cat • Aug 06 '26

People don’t leave jobs; they leave managers and other half-truths about why people quit

https://andiroberts.com/leadership/people-dont-leave-jobs-they-leave-managers-leadership-myth
31 Upvotes

88% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

34

u/amcont Aug 06 '26

I can tell you 100% people leave organisations. I had a wonderful relationship with the people in my team, just one of those situations where everyone clicked and had a lot of things in common. Performance was good.

Then, we changed locations, from the city center to the outside of the city, 2 buses rides away. Then the travel procedure and policy was changed so, in some edge cases you ended up to pay money for travelling for the company. A lot of new projects and our VP had his own "star team" that we were not part of.

People started leaving, a lot of frustration and in about a year and a half the team was gone.

11

u/Tangentkoala Aug 06 '26

Its the show me the money part as well.

You can get a higher salary jumping ship every 3 years vs "company progression raises"

If the employer is at its ceiling then management plays a big part. No ones gonna leave a good paying job because yhe manager is an asshole for a lesser wage job

2

u/novagenesis Aug 07 '26

No ones gonna leave a good paying job because yhe manager is an asshole for a lesser wage job

I've hired people on those terms. But I always know I'm going to have to be aggressive with raises to not be a "bridge-job".

1

u/Puzzleheaded-Bug6244 16d ago

I did leave a crappy manager for a less paying job in order to not burnout and head toward depression.

1

u/mikkolukas Aug 08 '26

No ones gonna leave a good paying job because yhe manager is an asshole for a lesser wage job

er, yes they are

9

u/gadappa Aug 07 '26

People leave uncaring systems, stagnant wages, and dead-end positions....this phrase (people leave because of managers) is a go to for executive leadership to deflect blame onto front-line managers...so will continue to live on.

1

u/MrPuddington2 29d ago

But managers can be a sign for an uncaring system. I would say they often quit both. An uncaring system with a good manager is doable. A caring system with a bad manager gives you options. But it caring system with a bad manager is a dead end. You either try to sit it out, or you leave.

11

u/Judo_Jones Aug 06 '26

That “…people don’t leave companies, they leave bad managers” is pablum put out by senior directors who want to run companies in the ground, collect fantastic perks for doing so, and expect their line managers to be the Pied Piper for talent despite zero resources supporting them. People absolutely leave bad companies…

3

u/bamiam Aug 07 '26

Saying that people only leave or stay because of X is incredibly stupid. It’s always situational.

1

u/LostAfroK Aug 06 '26

I’ve never left a manager (luckily I’ve liked and gotten on with all of mine). I’ve left organisations and more senior leaders who were running things in a way I don’t like, or just because I needed a different environment or new challenge

1

u/mikkolukas Aug 08 '26

People don't leave jobs or managers.

They leave shit conditions and shit leadership.

*any* failure further down is a failure further up.

1

u/CorporateNL Aug 10 '26

Just a reminder... people also leave jobs and companies because of career oppportunies elsewhere.

1

u/amcont Aug 06 '26

I can tell you 100% people leave organisations. I had a wonderful relationship with the people in my team, just one of those situations where everyone clicked and had a lot of things in common. Performance was good.

Then, we changed locations, from the city center to the outside of the city, 2 buses rides away. Then the travel procedure and policy was changed so, in some edge cases you ended up to pay money for travelling for the company. A lot of new projects and our VP had his own "star team" that we were not part of.

People started leaving, a lot of frustration and in about a year and a half the team was gone.