Survey Finds More Than 40 Percent of CEOs Plan to Cut Junior Roles

More than 40 percent of CEOs plan to cut junior roles over the next one to two years and shift the composition of their workforce toward mid-level or senior positions, according to a global survey by Oliver Wyman. Only 17 percent plan to make junior roles a bigger part of the mix. The numbers are essentially flipped from just a year ago.

Romeo, who leads the consulting firm’s research arm, the Oliver Wyman Forum, said the junior level is finding it harder now to enter the workforce. He added that CEOs are now looking at mid- and senior-level employees to drive productivity. The survey results build on findings from a Harvard University study showing that firms adopting generative AI have significantly reduced junior-level positions while keeping senior employment largely stable.

A Stanford University study from November found that young workers were 16 percent more likely to lose their jobs in the most AI-exposed fields. Helen Leis, global head of leadership and change at Oliver Wyman, said companies need mid-level people who can manage an agentic workforce and learn the company and the job.

International Business Machines Corp. said in February that it plans to triple entry-level hiring in the U.S. this year and will rewrite job descriptions for the AI era. Teresa Ghilarducci, a labor economist at the New School, said firms’ commitment to workers is weaker and weaker.