--- url: 'https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/founder-the-manager-who-stays/' title: More Than Half of Manufacturing Plants Rarely or Never Move an Underperforming Manager author: name: Samantha Lankford url: 'https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/author/sam/' date: '2026-10-11T10:30:00-04:00' modified: '2026-10-11T10:30:00-04:00' type: post summary: 'In Census''s 2021 management survey, 55.1% of manufacturing plants rarely or never moved an underperforming manager. For other staff: 44.6%.' categories: - Blog Post image: 'https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/founder-the-manager-who-stays-hero.webp' published: true --- # More Than Half of Manufacturing Plants Rarely or Never Move an Underperforming Manager ![The Lonely Entrepreneur](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/TLE_Logo_mobile-490W-26-26.png)Founder Data Report ![More Than Half of Manufacturing Plants Rarely or Never Move an Underperforming Manager](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/founder-the-manager-who-stays-hero.webp) Founder Data Report # More Than Half of Manufacturing Plants Rarely or Never Move an Underperforming Manager By Michael Dermer • Updated October 11, 2026 You can’t afford to risk your business without a Sidekick at your side. [Book a Call →](https://lp.lonelyentrepreneur.com/meetings/victoria-sherman/sidekick-call) Census asked manufacturing plants how they handle the people who underperform. The answer depends on who it is — and managers get the softer deal. Quick Answer In the Census Bureau’s 2021 Management and Organizational Practices Survey, **55.1%** of U.S. manufacturing plants said underperforming managers were rarely or never reassigned or dismissed. For underperforming non-managers the figure was **44.6%**. Within six months, 39.9% of plants acted on an underperforming non-manager, against 27.2% for a manager — yet plants were more likely to pay managers a performance bonus. Across plant sizes, Census’s structured-management score rises from 0.402 at 1 to 4 employees to 0.742 at 2,500 or more, with the steepest climb between 20 and 250 employees. Plant age makes no measurable difference. The 30-second version - Underperformers rarely or never moved: managers 55.1%, non-managers 44.6%. - Acted on within six months: non-managers 39.9%, managers 27.2%. - No performance bonuses: non-managers 50.1%, managers 38.6%. - Structured management rises with plant size, fastest from 20 to 250 employees. Under 20, the bands are level; plant age does not separate at all. - The survey covers manufacturing plants of multi-plant companies and large single-plant companies. It records practices, not reasons. ## Two standards for the same problem MOPS asks each plant in its sample a set of plain questions about how the site is run. Two of them are the same question asked twice: when a non-manager is identified as underperforming, how soon are they reassigned or dismissed — and the same for a manager. The answers do not match. For non-managers, 39.9% of plants act within six months and 44.6% rarely or never act. For managers, 27.2% act within six months and 55.1% rarely or never do. Every one of these gaps is many times its margin of error. The difference runs the other way on rewards: 50.1% of plants pay non-managers no performance bonus, against 38.6% for managers. Managers are more likely to be paid for results and less likely to be moved when the results are not there. The Data How plants treat managers and non-managers, share of manufacturing plants Underperformers rarely or never reassigned or dismissed Managers55.1% Non-managers44.6% Underperformers reassigned or dismissed within six months Managers27.2% Non-managers39.9% No performance bonuses at all Managers38.6% Non-managers50.1% Promotions based solely on performance and ability Managers64.9% Non-managers67.9% Orange is managers, slate is non-managers. Each bar is drawn on a 0% to 100% scale. Every pair differs by more than its combined margin of error. The bonus row is one answer to a select-all-that-apply question. U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS), survey tables 3, 4 and 6 (mops_survey_tables_2021.xlsx, published April 2023, the most recent MOPS release), retrieved from census.gov on October 9, 2026. Manufacturing plants only. > Managers were more likely to be paid for results, and less likely to be moved when the results were not there. ## Where structure arrives as a plant grows Census turns sixteen of the survey’s questions into one structured-management score, from 0 for the least structured answers to 1 for the most. Across all plants it is 0.532. By size it climbs from 0.402 at 1 to 4 employees to 0.742 at 2,500 or more, but not evenly. The three bands under 20 employees sit within 0.036 of each other and do not separate on their margins of error. From 20 to 49 upward, every band is clearly above the one before it. The score gains 0.207 between the 10-to-19 band and the 100-to-249 band, more than twice the 0.097 it gains from there to the largest plants. The single biggest step is from 20-to-49 employees to 50-to-99. The Data Structured management score by plant size, 2021 1 to 4 employees0.4025 to 90.40710 to 190.43820 to 490.50150 to 990.582100 to 2490.645250 to 4990.685500 to 9990.7041,000 to 2,4990.7202,500 or more0.742 Score from 0 (least structured) to 1 (most), drawn on a 0 to 1 scale. Slate marks the three bands under 20 employees, which are level with each other within their margins of error. U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS), survey tables 3, 4 and 6 (mops_survey_tables_2021.xlsx, published April 2023, the most recent MOPS release), retrieved from census.gov on October 9, 2026. Manufacturing plants only. ## What does not matter: how old the plant is It would be natural to expect older plants to have settled into more structured habits. The survey finds no sign of it. Plants up to five years old score 0.539 and plants 26 years or older score 0.531. The four age bands span 0.013, and no two of them differ by more than their margins of error. In this data, structure follows headcount, not years. The Data Structured management score by plant age, 2021 0 to 5 years old0.5396 to 15 years0.53416 to 25 years0.52626 years or more0.531 Score from 0 to 1, drawn on a 0 to 1 scale. Plant age is measured from the first year the site appears in Census’s business register. No two bands differ beyond their margins of error. U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS), survey tables 3, 4 and 6 (mops_survey_tables_2021.xlsx, published April 2023, the most recent MOPS release), retrieved from census.gov on October 9, 2026. Manufacturing plants only. ## What to take from this if you are building a team If you run a company that is heading past 20 people, this is the stretch where the structured-management score climbs fastest — and the score is built from questions about targets, the measures someone reviews, and what happens when someone falls short. The manager question is the one to settle early. Decide before you promote or hire your first manager how long an underperforming manager gets, and make it the same clock you use for everyone else. In this data, underperforming managers are left in place more often than the people they manage. Four limits worth holding. MOPS covers **manufacturing plants only**, and its frame is multi-plant companies plus large single-plant companies, so small single-plant shops are outside it. The figures are **estimates from a sample** and are treated as different only when the gap clears both margins of error. The manager-versus-non-manager answers are **national**; Census does not publish them by plant size. And the survey records **practice, not reasons**: nothing in it says why managers are moved less often. The Data Where the numbers land 55.1% plants that rarely or never move an underperforming manager 44.6% plants that rarely or never move an underperforming non-manager 0.402 → 0.742 structured-management score, smallest plants to largest 0.539 / 0.531 score for plants up to 5 years old and 26 or older — no difference U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 Management and Organizational Practices Survey. ## Frequently Asked Questions How often are underperforming managers moved or let go? In the Census Bureau's 2021 Management and Organizational Practices Survey, 55.1% of manufacturing plants said underperforming managers were rarely or never reassigned or dismissed, and 27.2% acted within six months. Are non-managers treated differently? Yes. For non-managers, 44.6% of plants rarely or never act and 39.9% act within six months. Both gaps are many times their margins of error. Do managers get performance bonuses more often? Yes. 50.1% of plants pay non-managers no performance bonus, against 38.6% for managers. Does management get more structured as a plant grows? Yes. Census's structured-management score rises from 0.402 at 1 to 4 employees to 0.742 at 2,500 or more, with the steepest climb between 20 and 250 employees. Below 20 employees the bands are level. Does this cover small businesses? Not directly. MOPS covers manufacturing plants of multi-plant companies and large single-plant companies. Small single-plant shops are outside it. Keep reading - [Workplaces With Fewer Than 10 Staff Had Their Lowest Quit Rate in Ten Years in 2025. So Far, 2026 Is Lower Still.](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/founder-the-people-who-stayed/) - [8.6% of Finance Employers Name Managing Staff at Home as the Obstacle. In Retail, 3.0% Do — and They Employ 21.4% of the Workers.](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/founder-the-big-firm-answer/) - [10.3% of Finance Employers Name Security as a Limit on Working From Home. In Health Care, It Outranks Managing Staff.](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/founder-the-security-answer/) Part of the entrepreneurial struggle: [Leadership Burden](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/entrepreneur-struggle/leadership/) ![The Lonely Entrepreneur](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/TLE_Logo_mobile-490W-26-26.png) Published by **The Lonely Entrepreneur** — the community and coaching platform for entrepreneurs who are building alone. [lonelyentrepreneur.com](https://lonelyentrepreneur.com/) This article is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for professional financial or legal advice.