US Companies Losing Thousands Per Manager Annually

Each front-line middle manager in the U.S. loses more than six working weeks, or 33 days, per year to low-value tasks including pointless meetings, duplicating data entry, email overload, managing staff schedule and administrative busywork, according to a SafetyCulture analysis.

That lost work time equates to an estimated US$6,400 in wasted salary per manager annually. Nationwide, this adds up to $59.9 billion in lost productivity.

Of the sectors studied, construction and manufacturing contribute the most, costing an estimated $16.7 billion and $17.3 billion annually, respectively, followed by retail ($14.3 billion), distribution and transport ($7.7 billion), and hospitality ($3.8 billion).

Key findings from SafetyCulture’s latest report include:

• Middle managers spend, on average, an estimated 5.13 hours per week on unnecessary, low-value tasks.
• 85% of middle managers have presented improvement ideas, yet only 54% saw them implemented.
• Of those impacted by idea dismissal, 51% report inefficient processes persist, 35% feel disempowered, and 28% lose trust in senior leadership.
• Continuous improvement initiatives often create extra workload without clear benefits for 36% of middle managers whose organization have improvement programs.

“Middle managers are the glue holding workplaces together,” said Tom Murdock, SafetyCulture managing director Americas. “Organizations that listen and act on manager feedback don’t just save money, they unlock potential, improve operations, and turn wasted time into real profit.”

Companies that streamline meetings and administrative workflows, implement better workflow tools, and empower managers with more decision-making authority could recover millions in lost productivity each year, boost employee morale, and improve customer outcomes, the SafetyCulture analysis found.