Microsoft Unit Boss Orders Four Office Days, Flatter Teams

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Charles Lamanna, the Microsoft executive who leads the Copilot platform and AI agents and now also Office, has started changing how his teams work. People familiar with the changes told Business Insider that he is tightening office rules and removing middle managers.

In August, Lamanna wrote that the most important thing his team would do this year was not a single product or feature but "changing how we work."

Four days in the office

Lamanna has asked employees at "partner" level and above, some of Microsoft's most senior staff, to work in physical offices at least four days a week. The companywide standard is three days.

Last week his Copilot, Agents, and Platform organization also offered select US employees the chance to relocate to Microsoft's Redmond, Washington headquarters, San Francisco or New York, according to three people familiar with the plans.

One manager for 12 engineers

The Teams unit, which now reports to him, recently widened the "span of control" for engineering managers. That is the number of people reporting to each manager. Some managers were converted to individual contributors. The unit now aims for one manager per 12 individual contributors.

One of the people said the thinking is that agentic coding means Microsoft needs fewer managers. A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed that other teams have restructured in a similar way.

"Agentic coding capabilities have changed every level of the engineering function," the spokesperson said. "Software engineers are no longer hand-assembling every line of code. Instead, they are now designing and directing the 'agentic coding machine' that helps build the product."

The spokesperson added: "At the same time, some tasks that traditionally required managerial coordination, such as managing handoffs and orchestrating work across teams, become less central," the spokesperson said.

New remit

A Microsoft spokesperson described the approach: "We're rethinking where managerial layers are critical and where flatter structures can enable faster decision-making, clearer ownership and greater autonomy."

Lamanna took over Office and Teams earlier in October, when the previous head, Ryan Roslansky, announced plans to leave at the end of the year. Roslansky had been seen as a successor to Rajesh Jha, who retired in July, and he and Lamanna were two of the three executives on the new Copilot leadership team.

The changes come as CEO Satya Nadella reshapes the company around AI. Microsoft has been consolidating responsibility for its AI products, and a wave of senior departures has made way for a new generation of leaders.

The people who spoke to Business Insider asked not to be named because the matters are internal.

Source: Business Insider