Since 2025, millennials have for the first time become the majority of executives, bringing a new leadership style into the workplace. However, this change also brings new challenges.
Millennials, defined as people aged between about 30 and 45, have made up the majority of managers in the USA since June 2025. This is shown by the current Worklife Trends Report by Glassdoor, a platform for employer ratings that regularly publishes reports on the job market based on its user data.
The generational shift has been long anticipated: millennials have been the largest age group in the job market for years, many baby boomers are retiring, and Generation X is slowly stepping back from leadership positions. This automatically elevates millennials into executive roles.
The speed at which closeness and trust can tilt today is illustrated by an AI experiment conducted by students. Watch this video to see how they spy on strangers in seconds.
Leadership on the Edge of Burnout
What is changing? With the rise of millennials in executive roles, not only the tone of leadership changes, but also the fundamental attitude towards work, according to the results of a survey by Deloitte, one of the world’s largest audit firms. Trust replaces control, rigid structures are replaced by flexibility, and the question of why is more important than how. Where previous generations often prioritized authority above all, millennials seek participation, meaning, and balance, it further states.
This is also reflected in the expectations of companies: remote work is no longer a perk, but a standard, reports Fortune. Offers for mental health, feedback at eye level, and recognition of individual life realities have become essential for good leadership.
What problem does the change bring? Millennials want to do many things differently than their predecessors: they emphasize empathy and flat hierarchies. But this very demand becomes a burden for many. According to the current Worklife Trends Report by Glassdoor, mentions of burnout in employee reviews have increased by 73% compared to the previous year, a clear indication of growing pressure.
Glassdoor economist Daniel Zhao speaks in an interview with Fortune about a “persistent crisis.” The psychological challenges in the workforce are not diminishing. Particularly alarming: Zhao warns of a possible “manager crash” – a situation where overwhelmed leaders collapse themselves due to accumulated stress, overtime, staff shortages, and responsibilities over the years.
Millennials often lead on equal footing, want to be approachable and build trust. But when clear instructions are lacking, it quickly leads to conflicts. Reports are increasing on social networks about so-called “cool bosses”: leaders who act friendly but fail to make decisions in serious situations – or suddenly enforce strict authority.
How did this situation arise? The change is not solely self-chosen; it is also a result of external circumstances. Many millennials have taken on their leadership roles not through targeted preparation but through the departure of older generations. Additionally, the number of directly supervised employees has nearly doubled in recent years.
At the same time, many millennial managers are under pressure in their private lives as well. Daniel Zhao, Chief Economist at Glassdoor, refers in an interview with Fortune to the “sandwich model”: the generation is caught between career, family responsibilities, and an unstable economic situation while leading a team that also has demands.
What needs to change? Many companies leave their new leaders to navigate the change alone. There is a lack of concrete leadership training, clear role models, and resources. According to the Global Millennial Survey by Deloitte, millennials desire more feedback, mentoring, and development opportunities for themselves as well as for their teams.
What is often overlooked in this process: those who want to lead empathetically need support. Only those who are stable themselves can pay attention to others. Instead of constantly switching between buddy and boss, clear frameworks and support from above are needed.
As millennials learn to cope with the responsibilities of leadership, Gen Z is stepping in with its own unique challenges. One of these is that many young employees avoid phone calls out of uncertainty or overwhelm. Google now plans to commercialize this fear of phone calls to make money.
