Gen Z, leadership ambition, and the changing realities of modern management.
Bristol, UK – 21st January 2026 – Earlier this week, Sponge’s Chief Marketing Officer, Olivia Haywood, sat down with Quartz to discuss a growing shift in how younger workers think about leadership, career progression, and the realities of management in today’s workplace.
In particular, the discussion centred on Quartz’s coverage of Gen Z professionals increasingly choosing not to pursue traditional management roles. Rather than seeing leadership as a natural next step, many younger workers are reassessing whether people management - as it is currently designed - aligns with their values, wellbeing, and long-term aspirations.
The article situates this shift within a broader context of sustained uncertainty. Gen Z has entered the workforce amid economic volatility, rapid technological change, and visible burnout at senior levels - experiences that have shaped a more cautious and considered approach to leadership.
For Haywood, this reflects a deeper signal organisations need to pay attention to.
“It would be overly simplistic to say ambition is the issue,” she explains. “Management roles have always required accepting increased pressure and emotional load, but the accompanying promise of career stability and increased affluence are much less convincing nowadays. Workers – not just Gen Z - are questioning whether the investment is worth it.”
This perspective was explored against a backdrop of changing expectations around work and success. While organisations continue to rely on traditional career ladders, younger employees are increasingly seeking impact, autonomy, and growth without stepping into roles that appear unsustainable.
Throughout the coverage, a clear challenge emerged for organisations: if fewer people aspire to manage others, businesses must rethink how leadership is defined, supported, and developed. Traditional, hierarchy-driven models - built around endurance and constant availability - are increasingly at odds with what people are willing to sustain – despite recent ‘corporate-bro’ leadership trends we’re reading about in the news.
For Haywood, this creates both risk and opportunity.
“If leadership roles are going to be attractive again, they need to be redesigned with humans in mind,” she adds. “That means creating space for boundaries, creativity, learning, and genuine support, not just expecting resilience to carry the load.”
As workplaces continue to evolve, the Quartz article reinforces a simple but powerful idea: leadership can no longer be assumed as the default aspiration. To remain sustainable, it must be intentional, human-centred, and worth the employee's time.
Read the full Quartz article here:
https://qz.com/gen-z-bosses-managers-careers-leadership
Download the Generation Numb whitepaper here: https://www.spongelearning.com...