Smells of bad UX/design process - some senior "wants" this particular solution, despite their users showing direct feedback that it doesn't work for their needs.
You say "users": how many, what percentage, what cohort..you get the idea.
A bit like the teams editor, which was forced upon me and is absolutely horrendous.
Personally, I think the importance of not upsetting the established userbase far outweighs the probability of maybe growing that userbase a little.