As part of her Citi turnaround, Jane Fraser cut management layers from 13 to 8. But the ‘great flattening’ doesn’t always work as intended
Citi CEO Jane Fraser has successfully restructured the bank by reducing management layers from 13 to 8, a move that has coincided with significant revenue growth and a stock price increase. This organizational flattening, also observed at tech companies like Meta and Coinbase, is theorized to improve agility and employee engagement. However, research suggests that the effectiveness of flatter structures can be mixed, potentially leading to issues for less experienced employees or overwhelmed managers if not implemented with clear strategic goals. AI
IMPACT AI is accelerating the trend towards flatter organizational structures by enabling leaders to manage larger teams and automate middle-management tasks.