Industry insights – uncovering which sector has the best boss-employee relationships
Amid recent reports stating that as many as two in five employees have quit their jobs due to bad management, understanding the correlation between positive management and different industries is crucial.
The results from a recent UK survey found that employees working in the creative arts and design and charity and voluntary industries have the most positive attitude towards their bosses. On the other hand, employees in retail, healthcare and sales report being the unhappiest with their managers, most commonly attributing their dissatisfaction to low pay, micromanagement and a lack of communication.
The UK industries that dislike their boss the least
| Rank | Industry | % who dislike their boss |
| 1. | Creative Arts and Design | 10% |
| 2. | Charity and Voluntary Work | 11% |
| 3. | Information Technology | 12% |
| 4. | Science and Pharmaceuticals | 14% |
| 5. | Media and Internet | 15% |
| Why UK employees dislike their boss | Percentage |
| Being underpaid | 66% |
| Micromanagement | 46% |
| Lack of communication | 43% |
| Ungrateful | 27% |
| Bullying | 24% |
To delve deeper into this matter, Casino Hawks sought to uncover which industry has the most employees that like their bosses and what factors contribute to these flourishing relationships.
The experts analysed survey data to gain insights into employee perceptions of their managers and the underlying factors influencing these sentiments in the US.
The US industries that love their boss the most
| Rank | Industry | % who like their boss | Main reason |
| 1. | Media and Internet | 84.4% | Good Management |
| 2. | Charity and Voluntary | 82.9% | Good Management |
| 3. | Information technology | 78.3% | Good Management |
| 4. | Consulting and Management | 78.0% | Good Management |
| 5. | Government and Defence | 73.9% | Good Communication |
| 6. | Property and Construction | 73.2% | Good Management |
| 7. | Leisure | 72.3% | Good Management |
| 8. | Public Service and Administration | 70.1% | Good Management |
| 9. | Environment and Agriculture | 68.9% | Good Environment |
| 10. | Teaching and Education | 31.8% | Good Management |
Media and Internet employees like their boss the most
Casino Hawks can reveal that the media and internet industry has the highest level of employee satisfaction with their managers, with over four-fifths of employees (84.4%) expressing a positive opinion. This percentage is similar to our UK data, where only 15% of employees disliked their boss within the same industry. Among all age groups in the industry, those aged between 18-34 are the most fond of their bosses, with a staggering 9 out of 10 (95.2%) admitting to liking their management. This is 26% higher than 50-69 year olds. The results in the media and internet industry show a gender disparity, with 86.8% of females stating they like their boss compared to 75% of males. Good management is cited as the primary reason for employees in this industry liking their boss.
The charity and voluntary sector ranks as the second most satisfied industry with their bosses, as an impressive 82.9% of respondents express a positive view. This is almost two thirds-higher (58.2%) than the industry in 15th place — sales — where less than a quarter of employees (24.7%) reported having a positive relationship with their boss. Employees in the charity and voluntary sector also rank second in the UK, with only 11% of employees having a negative opinion of their boss. In the US, boss satisfaction is fairly evenly distributed among all age groups in this sector, with 82% reporting positive relationships. However, individuals aged 30-49 working in the charity sector are over three times more satisfied with their boss compared to 35-49 year olds working in retail (25.4%). Males working in charity and volunteer organisations exhibit the highest fondness for their bosses compared to any other industry analysed (81.4%).
Bosses in the information technology (IT) sector secured third place, with 78.3% of employees admitting to liking their boss, and citing good management skills as the primary reason. Interestingly, this is 46.5% higher than the 10th place industry, teaching and education. Notably, the IT industry in the UK outperforms the US, with only 12% of UK employees having a negative opinion of their managers, showcasing a higher satisfaction rate. Just six in 10 employees aged 50-69 in the IT sector like their boss (63.2%), in comparison to almost 9 in 10 18-34 year olds (86.5%). It was also found that women in the IT industry report the most positive employee-manager relationships compared to any other industry analysed (94.1%).
Employees in the Sales industry like their boss the least
Casino Hawks can reveal that employees within the sales industry are the least fond of their bosses. Less than a quarter of employees (24.7%) admit to liking their boss, which is over three times less than the number of employees in the media and internet industry (84.4%). Furthermore, retail employees in the US are much more dissatisfied with their bosses compared to the employees in the UK, where 47% expressed negative opinions about their managers. Among employees aged 50-69 years old, those working in sales are the least satisfied with their boss relationships (23.4%), closely followed by 35-49 year olds working in retail (25.4%). In sales, females dislike their boss the most with only 22.6% having positive feelings towards their manager, compared to 26.3% of men.
