Unless they skip several levels in the organizational chart through a major promotion or start out near the top, anyone looking to climb the corporate ladder needs to make a pit stop in middle management. While being promoted from an individual contributor to a management position is the first step toward achieving career dreams—for many, it may actually be their career dream—middle management is no picnic.
In this feature, we share input from employers, managers, and industry experts on the unique challenges of middle management and strategies to help alleviate the burden.
Stuck in…Well, the Middle
Middle managers have always been caught between the competing challenges of supporting their employees and serving as a point of escalation on the one hand—and satisfying higher ups, including implementing top-down directives on the other.
Their jobs are challenging with too little time and too many things on their plates. In a post-COVID environment marked by demands including controversy over RTO, rapidly emerging technology, and other impacts, middle managers are really feeling the pinch.
Pulled in Many Directions
On top of that, middle managers are also often required to continue aspects of their individual contributor duties while continuing to carry out their management responsibilities.
“In organizations of our size, many managers are not only responsible for investing in their people, they are also responsible for contributing to the workload,” says Lisa Sterling, Chief People Officer at Perceptyx. “Today’s managers feel stressed and worry they aren’t leading effectively. Middle managers often have to balance competing demands from their leaders, employees, and peers. Many middle managers work in more of a player/coach role than truly being a manager.
Sterling points to new Perceptyx research indicating that 39% of mid-level managers say pressure from leadership has increased since last year and 37% say pressure from direct reports has increased.
Hands-On Training and Development
Middle management isn’t all bad, though. Aside from the fact that it conveys some level of seniority, middle managers also have opportunities to intensively shape the careers and development of those under their charge, in ways senior executives aren’t able to.
“Being a middle manager can be very rewarding,” insists Sterling. “They have an opportunity to be impactful in the growth and development of future leaders and shape the direction of their teams and projects, while also contributing to the overall success of the organization.”
Factors for Success
While it’s not an easy job being a middle manager, it is a necessary job in many organizations, so there’s a need to find a way to make the role work for the company, its employees, and the middle managers themselves. The industry experts we spoke with suggested a number of strategies to help make middle managers more successful and better engaged.
More Training
Far too often, the people promoted to middle management roles aren’t those with the best potential for leading people, but those individual contributors who are the best at doing their individual-contributor job. The best software developer is not necessarily the best manager of other software developers.
This doesn’t mean these all-star individual contributors shouldn’t be given a chance. But when that chance comes, it’s only fair that the organization puts them in a position to succeed. And that’s where training comes into play.
“A common theme is that managers often struggle with key skills like providing constructive feedback, coaching employees, and guiding team members to find their own solutions rather than simply giving them answers,” says Kirsten Moorefield, Cofounder & COO, with Cloverleaf. “At the root of many toxic manager-employee relationships is often a lack of skill or comfort in delivering feedback in a way that feels genuinely helpful.”
Organizations are taking varied approaches to address middle management training challenges, Moorefield explains. “Many create digital learning solutions—videos, readings, e-learnings—to reach managers even when schedules don’t align or resources are stretched. Others with more bandwidth invest in workshops that build these essential skills. While both strategies can be useful in establishing frameworks, they often fall short in supporting managers through the messy, real-world process of applying what they’ve learned.”
Effective Communication
Middle managers are the linchpin of many organizations, serving as the connection between senior management and front-line workers. It’s crucial that information is effectively transferred through this organizational conduit to make sure everyone in the organization, from top to bottom, is on the same page.
Realistic Goals
Senior leadership teams who don’t have solid communication throughout their organization can easily fall into the trap of pushing performance challenges onto middle managers. It’s much easier (at least initially) to make big demands of middle management than it is to come up with realistic, achievable goals that might be less ambitious.
“When leaders within a company set goals, it is important that the middle managers believe in those goals,” says Jacob Binke, Managing Partner at The Birmingham Group, Sanford Rose Associates. “Mid-level managers are often responsible for doing the revenue-generating work. If they don’t believe they can achieve the goals, they will not be as invested. If they don’t believe in the goals, these middle managers will surely spread this non-belief to others within the organization. Furthermore, people often lose confidence when they don’t hit goals. You want confident employees. Set realistic goals that middle managers believe they can achieve. If they believe they can achieve it, it is far more likely that they will be invested in reaching the goal. And when they reach the goal, they will have the confidence to.”
While middle management is a challenging role that often comes with competing demands from both above and below, it remains a crucial part of any organization.
The pressures of balancing leadership duties with individual contributions, coupled with new post-COVID work dynamics, make it even more demanding.
However, with proper support, training, and realistic goal-setting, middle managers can thrive. By empowering them with the right tools and guidance, organizations not only lighten their load but also foster stronger teams and more successful outcomes.
Middle management may be tough, but it’s also a vital and rewarding stepping stone to leadership success.
Lin Grensing-Pophal is a Contributing Editor at HR Daily Advisor.