Summary of Key Points
In 2026, leading global technology companies such as ByteDance are making significant changes to their middle management: either laying off employees, reorganizing their responsibilities, or transferring them to other roles. The underlying reason is that in the age of AI, the traditional role of middle managers in transmitting information and filtering data has diminished. Companies are redefining the value of middle management—those who merely act as messengers will be eliminated, while those who can break down strategies, lead teams, and implement growth using AI will remain. However, this transformation also carries risks: if middle managers are overly reduced in number, there may be a gap in the training of new employees, potentially leaving no one capable of taking on leadership roles in the future.
I. Not Just ByteDance: Global Tech Companies Are Re-evaluating the Value of Middle Management
The mid-management adjustments seen in 2026 are not unique to ByteDance; leading companies in Silicon Valley and China are also making similar moves, though with different approaches:
- Amazon's Direct Cuts: The company eliminated 30,000 positions, 78% of which were at the middle management level (L5-L7), citing the need to streamline processes due to excessive bureaucracy created during the pandemic, as AI can now perform these tasks more efficiently.
- Meituan's Reorganization: Wang Xing emphasized reducing formalism and established an AI transformation department to allow business executives to manage directly, shifting some of middle management's responsibilities to AI.
- Google's Role Transfers: Google cut 35% of middle managers overseeing teams of fewer than three people, transforming them from managers to team members. However, this leaves no one to train new employees or coordinate team activities.
Whether it's layoffs, reorganizations, or role transfers, the goal is the same: middle managers who can only pass on information without independent judgment are becoming increasingly less valuable.
II. The Arrival of AI and the Decline of Middle Management as Messengers
Why were middle managers important in the past? They acted as information hubs, conveying strategies from above to below and summarizing feedback from below, as well as coordinating cross-departmental efforts. But with AI, these tasks can be completed faster and more cost-effectively:
- AI can automatically generate meeting minutes and organize data reports, eliminating the need for middle managers to work late into the night.
- AI can break down high-level strategies into actionable tasks, reducing the burden on middle managers.
- AI can even find the most efficient ways to allocate resources across departments through data analysis.
The situation has worsened for middle managers, as they now also have to verify the accuracy of AI-generated content, train teams on how to use AI, and maintain performance targets. Research from Harvard Business Review indicates that the dedication of middle managers has dropped significantly (from 30% in 2023 to 22% in 2025), indicating that AI has increased their workload rather than reducing it.
III. ByteDance's New Approach: Replacing Traditional Managers with Growth-Oriented Ones
ByteDance's changes are not just about replacing personnel but also about changing the evaluation criteria for middle managers:
- Personnel Changes: Qian Jing, who was responsible for live streaming at Douyin, was a traditional "infrastructure builder." Now that the business has entered a phase of refined growth, ByteDance has replaced him with Jin Huanglong from Toma Novel, who successfully increased Toma Novel's monthly active users from 20 million to 240 million using data-driven strategies.
- Performance Changes: The incentive for high-performing middle managers has shifted from all cash to a combination of 25% cash and 75% stock options. While the cash portion is reduced, the benefits are tied to the company's future performance (which may not be realized until it goes public), and the stock options require several years to vest, potentially increasing the risk to middle managers' income.
- New Leadership Principles: Liang Rubo emphasizes the importance of sharing information and reducing hierarchical control. However, this only works if the company's knowledge can be distributed quickly through AI; otherwise, frontline employees may become overwhelmed with information, and middle managers may revert to their traditional management roles.
IV. The Dangerous Trap: What If There Are No More Middle Managers to Train New Leaders?
The biggest risk of these changes is the potential disruption in training new leaders:
- In the past, new employees learned from middle managers how to solve problems, lead teams, and make strategic decisions. With AI handling basic tasks, new employees can achieve results quickly but lack the opportunity to develop judgment skills.
- Excessive layoffs of middle managers can also disrupt cross-departmental coordination and lead to a focus on short-term performance (since stock options are tied to short-term metrics).
In the long run, it's not that middle management will disappear, but rather that their role will evolve: future middle managers will need to understand strategy, implement AI effectively, and lead teams—a combination of skills that goes beyond mere communication.
Conclusion: The True Test of These Changes Lies Ahead
ByteDance's new policies will be put to the test in the second half of 2026. The real challenge will emerge in three to five years: not who is eliminated but whether new types of managers can be trained to take on leadership roles. No matter how advanced AI becomes, it cannot replace human judgment and team leadership skills. Liang Rubo's statement that "these changes are just the beginning" is apt; true success lies in how well these new practices are implemented.