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Bayer attacked bureaucracy by firing some 5,000 managers and asking teams to 'self-organize.' Here's how it's going after one year


Published on 2025-01-06 08:40:47 - MSN
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  • Whether ahead of their time, truly bizarre, or just plain doomed, it's certainly interesting to see companies go completely off-script. (The Zappos experiment with "Holocracy" memorably comes to mind.

Bayer, a German pharmaceutical and life sciences company, implemented a significant organizational overhaul by eliminating approximately 5,000 managerial positions, which was about 10% of its workforce, to combat bureaucratic inefficiencies. This initiative, part of a broader restructuring plan announced in 2023, aimed to foster a more agile and innovative environment by encouraging teams to self-organize. One year into this transformation, the results have been mixed. While some teams have thrived with increased autonomy, others have struggled with the lack of traditional management structures, leading to challenges in decision-making and project management. The company has noted improvements in speed and innovation in certain sectors, but there's also been an increase in workload for remaining staff and concerns about maintaining quality and compliance in a less structured environment. Bayer continues to monitor and adjust its approach to ensure the long-term success of this radical shift in corporate culture.

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[ https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/careersandeducation/bayer-attacked-bureaucracy-by-firing-some-5-000-managers-and-asking-teams-to-self-organize-here-s-how-it-s-going-after-one-year/ar-AA1x2CNa ]
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