Bayer's dynamic shared ownership

Introduced by chief executive Bill Anderson from January 2024, the model cut management layers from twelve or thirteen to around five or six, roughly halved management positions, and organized work into around 2,000 self-directed teams of six to ten people running on 90-day cycles. Bayer framed it as moving from a span of control of three to five toward a span of coaching of fifteen to thirty or more, targeting around 2 billion euros in savings.

It is the most radical documented delayering by a large incumbent and the anchor for the Coaching Span pattern. It is also recent enough that the verdict is not in, and the striking claim that 95 percent of decisions formerly made by management now sit with employees is the company's own.