This many professionals would refuse a promotion over managing people
If the next title puts you in charge of other people, the scary part may be the conversations, not the work.
By Maria Lee·
In 2026, 34% of 4,400 professionals would turn down a promotion if it meant managing other employees. The Globe and Mail / JobAssist reported the finding on Nov. 1, 2026, from professionals in Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Australia. But the catch is sharper for workers who want to grow: the obstacle may be the people conversations, the voice and the confidence required after the title changes.
34% would reject the people-management promotion
The offer sounds flattering from the outside. A bigger title can signal trust, seniority and a next step. The survey puts a limit on that story: when the move required managing other employees, 34% said they would turn it down.
Another figure shows why the answer is not simple anti-ambition. The same report said 39% of professionals want higher pay, greater seniority or more influence without managing a team. In other words, many workers want advancement while trying to avoid the direct-report layer.
The first hard sentence may come before the job
The most awkward speaking moment may arrive before anyone gets promoted. Among respondents who wanted to advance without managing people, 47% had avoided expressing that preference because they worried it would make them appear less ambitious.
That is a career conversation where the words can feel risky. You may need to say you want influence, pay or seniority, while also saying you do not want direct reports. For many professionals, that kind of clear, high-stakes conversation resembles everyday public speaking challenges without a podium.
44% pointed to responsibility for performance
The report also separated the downsides named by people who preferred individual-contributor roles. Among that group, 44% cited responsibility for other employees’ performance as a major downside to taking on a management role.
That responsibility changes the emotional job. A project can miss a target. A direct report can struggle. A manager may have to explain expectations, document performance and keep the relationship workable. The 44% figure shows that the burden is not only scheduling or administration.
What makes management feel costly?
Conflict is the other named pressure point. Among respondents who preferred individual-contributor roles, 38% pointed to difficult conversations or workplace conflict as a major downside to taking on a management role.
Take a professional offered a promotion that would include direct reports. The comparison set is crowded: 34% would turn down that kind of promotion, 39% want advancement without a team, 44% of individual-contributor-preferring respondents worry about responsibility for others’ performance, and 38% point to conflict or difficult conversations. If the worker stays quiet about the preference, they are close to the 47% who avoided saying it.
Every group behind the promotion trade-off
The figures in the report do not all apply to the same group of people. Some describe all professionals surveyed. Others describe respondents who preferred individual-contributor roles, or respondents who wanted to advance without managing people.
| Finding | Share | Who it applied to |
|---|---|---|
| Would turn down a promotion if it required managing other employees | 34% | Professionals in Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Australia |
| Want higher pay, greater seniority or more influence without managing a team | 39% | Professionals in Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Australia |
| Cited responsibility for other employees’ performance as a major downside | 44% | Respondents who preferred individual-contributor roles |
| Pointed to difficult conversations or workplace conflict as a major downside | 38% | Respondents who preferred individual-contributor roles |
| Avoided expressing the preference because they worried it would make them appear less ambitious | 47% | Respondents who wanted to advance without managing people |
How professionals described promotion, management and advancement preferences
What this means for you
If a promotion would put you in charge of other people, separate the job you want from the conversations you fear. The survey gives you useful benchmarks: 34% would reject the management-required promotion, while 39% want advancement without managing a team.
Before a promotion talk, prepare a sentence that states ambition and a sentence that states the management question plainly. If conflict or performance conversations worry you, name that concern without treating it as a character flaw. The 38% and 44% figures show that those responsibilities are real downsides for many individual-contributor-preferring workers.
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