Quantitative Working Hours of Leaders Today

Leaders are expected to work as long as necessary to get the job done. No cap, all in. Sounds simple, right?

Quantitative measures & surveys show that many leaders work 60–80 hours per week – or more. Forget weekends, holidays or illness – it’s all part of the schedule. Aha – who still wants to be a leader these days?

In “high-performance” cultures, longer working hours often equal commitment and excellence. The more hours, the better the leader? Pfff.

Middle management is often overwhelmed – squeezed between visionary company strategies from the top and growing workload, expectations and team challenges. Just think of Covid regulations, process changes, unplannable uncertainties, illness and higher fluctuation in the past 2–3 years.

Generation Z leaders (born 1995–2010), however, prioritize proper work-life balance. Their leadership role models are agile and digital natives who value „flexible freedom“ – working 40–50 hours max. Anything more appears outdated.

Clearly, leadership time expectations vary widely across generations – and are lived side-by-side in today’s companies, from SMEs to large enterprises.

Quantitative Breakdown of Leadership Time

• 50–60%: Operational management & coordination (20–25 hrs/week) → shrinking
• 20–25%: Technical or own factual tasks (10–12 hrs/week) → rising
• 10–15%: Strategy development & execution
• 10–15%: Added-value leadership (direct contact with managers, teams, employees – only 5–8 hrs/week?)
• 5–10%: Own learning, development, or recovery – if time remains at all

2023 leadership studies show alarming trends:

• Massive increase in leadership working time (+20–60%), often creating toxic cultures
• Rising demand for real leadership interaction & time with employees
• Germany’s post-1950 record illness rate: from 5.5% (2022) to nearly 6% (2023) → productivity down

How to Improve Qualitative Leadership-Time

1. Focus on Leadership Essentials – First

• Observe, collect data, calm down
• Innovate only where needed
• Align teams, agree on goals, delegate
• Reduce uncertainty, give feedback, motivate
• Stabilize & adapt the organization

2. Prioritize High-Performers and Critical Staff

• Retain essential talent with ownership, innovation and development tasks
• Support and empower your wider team with care and clarity

3. Be the Leader People Observe

• Set examples through action and empathy
• Resolve issues actively and visibly
• Offer continuous recognition and feedback based on real KPIs

4. Reduce Mechanical Leadership Patterns

• Avoid getting lost in methodical and digitized routines
• Don’t become a mere executor of strategy
• Listen more, inspire more, and focus on real people issues

5. Reinvest TIME – in Yourself and in Your People

• Take quality time for YOU
• Recover before reinvesting in others
• Lead sustainably – not at burnout speed

Leadership TIME – Redefined After Covid

Leadership training tries to prepare you for the obvious challenges. But true leadership is always tested in unexpected ways. Covid-19 and its aftermath have fundamentally reshaped how we view Leadership TIME – both professionally and privately.

Every successful future leader will need these capabilities.

As CANTOR and Founding Partner of the CFR Global Executive Search Network, we’ve been passionate about Headhunting and Executive Consulting for over 25 years. We support business growth by attracting hybrid leaders and high-performing talent in the German-speaking region – and through our CFR network, in over 20 countries worldwide.

Challenge us with your hybrid leader or expert needs – we’re ready to listen and understand more.

Marc Steuer
Managing Director, CANTOR / Germany
Board Member, CFR Global Executive Search