Night owls crowd entry-level jobs; leaders rise early: MyPerfectResume
GUAYNABO, PUERTO RICO — A study analyzing data from over 1.5 million workers in the United States and Canada reveals a sharp divide in workplace energy patterns.
While entry-level employees are nearly twice as likely to be night-oriented, executives are 32% less likely to identify as night people.
Conducted by Herrmann International in partnership with MyPerfectResume, the research draws on more than 2.5 million cognitive assessments, suggesting that natural chronotype may quietly influence who gets promoted within corporate structures.
The leadership gap: morning types dominate the C-suite
The information reveals a major difference in chronotypes between entry-level employees and top management, suggesting that the corporate hierarchy is biased towards morning people.
Entry-level employees are 29% more likely than the typical employee to consider themselves night people, making them the only level of management that overvalues night preference; at the other extreme, executives are 32% less likely, and directors are 27% less likely. This results in entry-level workers being almost twice as likely to be night-oriented as C-suite workers.
The separation is said to result from a combination of genetic, aging, and social factors. The study cites research suggesting that genetics, specifically the PER3 gene, is a strong correlate of chronotype, although people tend to become morning types with age.
Behavioral adaptation may also be necessitated by social factors, such as family commitments and early working hours, which require night-oriented workers to adjust to a culture that revolves around mornings, the dominant factor in leadership circles.
The report reads, “If chronotype and career success are tied, companies risk sidelining talented night-oriented workers who thrive later in the day. This could result in the loss of innovation, creativity, and leadership diversity.”
Creative and service roles fuel a night-oriented workforce
Night-oriented workers are not evenly distributed across the economy; they are disproportionately concentrated in creative fields and high-demand service industries.
The study identifies art as the strongest field for night people, with a 52% higher concentration, followed closely by education at 51% and writing at 33%.
Entertainment and consulting also indicate a 25% more and 30% more, respectively, in the proportion of night people, while the services sector is increasing by 22%, consistent with the 24-7 working world.
The number of night owls within such positions is associated with the work itself, which tends to demand continuous attention or does not coincide with the business day. To artists, nighttime offers the freedom to avoid interruptions from meetings and structured daytime routines.
Notably, the strong prevalence of evening orientation in education, despite early school start times, suggests that teachers may regain energy and autonomy at night after spending the day managing the classroom’s structure and demands.
“Industries that rely on creativity, flexibility, or round-the-clock service could unintentionally penalize their own talent by adhering to rigid, morning-heavy schedules,” the report stated.
Cultural and geographic surprises in global energy patterns
The findings uncover unexpected chronotype patterns that defy traditional geographic and cultural stereotypes, revealing that workplace culture may override latitude in determining sleep-wake preferences.
Singapore emerged as the most night-oriented country in the study, with 45% more night people—nearly three times Sweden’s rate of 49% fewer night people.
On the other hand, Italy had the highest preference for the morning, with 52% more day people and 41% fewer night people than the rest of the world, notwithstanding its Mediterranean culture.
These results indicate a subtle difference between individual power and work motivation. Northern Europeans, such as Sweden and Denmark, are predictably daytime-oriented.
Yet, the data from Mediterranean countries like Spain—which maintain famously late social schedules—shows a preference for morning energy.
The survey notes that respondents who interpret “drive” as work-related energy may report a daytime preference if evenings are culturally reserved for social and family life, suggesting that in some cultures, the energy exists but is allocated to personal time rather than professional output.
The future of work: accommodating chronotype diversity
While day people still constitute the majority across all populations—typically outnumbering night people by 40% to 45%—the concentration of night-oriented workers in critical talent pools presents both a challenge and an opportunity for employers.
About 20% of the population consists of night people, who are overrepresented in creative jobs and among younger employees, who are the future source of talent.
Digital culture and remote work have rendered these latent night preferences more noticeable, so it remains unclear whether more night owls are being created or whether these preferences are simply being noticed more than ever before, since work structures are no longer as fixed.
For employers, the nine-to-five system is strict, and these groups become a bottleneck to diversity in terms of chronotype before they can reach senior positions.
The survey suggests that chronotype diversity can be accommodated without disrupting an organization’s operations through small structural adjustments such as later meeting times, flexible deadlines, or split shifts.
“Employers who adapt will retain creative and global talent, reduce turnover, and create pathways for workers who might otherwise be overlooked,” MyPerfectResume concluded.
