If you’ve been worried your staff secretly think, “I could do a better job than you”, we’re happy to prove you wrong (just this once!) Only 115 (19.3%) said yes, versus 481 (80.7%) who said no, when asked: "Could you do a better job than your boss?" in a recent GroupTogether survey.
This cuts against the age-old idea that everyone secretly thinks they could run the place better than their boss. Turns out, it’s a trope that no longer holds true.
What the Data Shows
According to Pew Research Center, 55% of workers say their direct manager or supervisor is “excellent or very good” at their job, with only 20% rating them as fair or poor.
When asked what earned their managers those high ratings, 63% of U.S. adults pointed to work flexibility, 56% said getting credit for their work, 56% said staying calm under pressure, and 52% said setting high standards.
In the same study, gender didn’t affect ratings, but female bosses or managers received slightly higher “excellent or very good” ratings for giving employees credit where it’s due.
Why Employees Leave Bad Bosses, Not Bad Jobs
The data shows that employees don’t leave bad jobs; they leave bad bosses. BambooHR found that nearly half (47%) of employees who quit within a year say they liked their job but didn’t like their manager. The “boss effect”. Of those, 58% say they quit because of their boss’s management style, and 88% cite negative boss behavior (like taking credit for their work or poor communication) as their reason for quitting.
How to Continue Being a Good Boss
Offer feedback and constructive criticism at regular intervals
In the same BambooHR poll, 54% of respondents said consistent, constructive feedback is the trait they value most in a boss. Supporting staff as they learn, perform tasks, and take on new roles or deliver projects often means learning on the job, which they shouldn’t be penalized for.
Managers can keep morale up and engagement high with regular, constructive feedback that makes their life and job easier, not harder.
What does that look like in practice? Feedback that’s direct, specific, and actionable.
“Clear, caring feedback is one of the kindest things you can give someone for their growth and career,” says Jennie Rogerson, Chief People Officer at Canva. “How it lands,” she says, “usually comes down to intent: when someone feels you're on their side, even the hardest messages can be received as care rather than criticism.”
Jessica Davis, Head of People & Workforce Technology at Hopper, sees the anxiety come from a different place. “Feedback creates anxiety when the employee is left trying to interpret what the message means for their standing, performance, or future.” Her fix is to remove that ambiguity. She is specific about what she observed, why it matters, and what better looks like, while keeping the person separate from the behavior being discussed.
"The goal is not to soften the truth," Davis says, "but to make the feedback useful enough that someone knows exactly what to do with it."
Offer flexible work options
Many employees want work that offers better work-life balance. In the same BambooHR survey, 56% of employees said they value this type of flexibility in a boss.
It’s easy to extrapolate from there: employees like and trust bosses more when those bosses trust them to do their job and get their work done on time, regardless of whether they’re working on- or off-site.
Staff should have buy-in on work flexibility options, and if leadership wants employees at the office on certain days, make it easier with low-cost incentives. These can include a catered lunch or a sweet treat day. It doesn’t guarantee turnout, but it sweetens the pot.
What This Means for Managers and Employees
The data shows a pretty clear story: most employees don’t think they could do a better job than their boss, and many are counting on you to be a good one.
Small, consistent efforts like clear feedback, offering flexible work options, and knowing what’s happening with your team can go a lot further than a new job title ever could.
Say Thanks In a Way That Counts on Boss’s Day
Boss’s Day is a great chance to flip the script on how we view bosses. If 88% of employees who quit can cite a specific “bad boss behavior”, that means the opposite is also true. A boss who shows up well and is a good boss deserves to know it. So does yours.
Use a GroupTogether Boss’s Day card to say thanks, and don’t be surprised if the gift-giving spirit makes its way around the office.
A GroupTogether group card lets your whole team sign one card online, wherever they are. Skip the awkward Hallmark card and the scramble to wrangle the whole office into signing it, only to realize later that Mark from accounting wasn’t in that day.
GroupTogether started in Australia in 2015 and has since expanded into the U.S., including a growing footprint in Austin, along with the UK and Canada. Co-founders Ali Linz and Julie Tylman built the platform to make it simple for a group, no matter how large or how spread out, to celebrate someone with a heartfelt group card.
