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What is the real role and meaning of the middle manager? [closed]
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Based on my own experience and based on the reading of the great number of questions, comments and answers on this site and around, seems to me that a lot of conflicts and troubles is caused by misunderstanding of the role and place of middle management.
Most employees see middle manager as overcontroller or as the obstacle to their own promotion, success and sense of the freedom.
On the other hands, higher management expects from the the middle manager the efficient division of tasks, impproving of effectiveness and complete informativeness of what is going on on the working field, all that employees are reluctant on.
In the reality, more middle managers have been fired than it is the case with employees that have careless and protected position of non having much responsibilities. It follows me to see middle manager as the victim of moderne organizational schema.
What is the real and specific role of the middle manager today that is essential for his surviving and succesfull functionning?
management
edited Jan 23 '15 at 20:39
JakeGould
6,5821739
asked Jan 23 '15 at 20:00
Ddvrb19
37118
closed as too broad by JakeGould, gnat, IDrinkandIKnowThings, Jim G., nvoigt Jan 26 '15 at 17:12
Please edit the question to limit it to a specific problem with enough detail to identify an adequate answer. Avoid asking multiple distinct questions at once. See the How to Ask page for help clarifying this question. If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.
suggest improvements |Â
up vote
-4
down vote
favorite
Based on my own experience and based on the reading of the great number of questions, comments and answers on this site and around, seems to me that a lot of conflicts and troubles is caused by misunderstanding of the role and place of middle management.
Most employees see middle manager as overcontroller or as the obstacle to their own promotion, success and sense of the freedom.
On the other hands, higher management expects from the the middle manager the efficient division of tasks, impproving of effectiveness and complete informativeness of what is going on on the working field, all that employees are reluctant on.
In the reality, more middle managers have been fired than it is the case with employees that have careless and protected position of non having much responsibilities. It follows me to see middle manager as the victim of moderne organizational schema.
What is the real and specific role of the middle manager today that is essential for his surviving and succesfull functionning?
management
edited Jan 23 '15 at 20:39
JakeGould
6,5821739
asked Jan 23 '15 at 20:00
Ddvrb19
37118
closed as too broad by JakeGould, gnat, IDrinkandIKnowThings, Jim G., nvoigt Jan 26 '15 at 17:12
Please edit the question to limit it to a specific problem with enough detail to identify an adequate answer. Avoid asking multiple distinct questions at once. See the How to Ask page for help clarifying this question. If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.
This is the best description I've seen for what middle management should be doing in a high-functioning company. As for the actual day-to-day work, it will vary greatly based on needs, but often boils down to "help your team do well".
– Telastyn
Jan 23 '15 at 21:25
suggest improvements |Â
up vote
-4
down vote
favorite
up vote
-4
down vote
favorite
Based on my own experience and based on the reading of the great number of questions, comments and answers on this site and around, seems to me that a lot of conflicts and troubles is caused by misunderstanding of the role and place of middle management.
Most employees see middle manager as overcontroller or as the obstacle to their own promotion, success and sense of the freedom.
On the other hands, higher management expects from the the middle manager the efficient division of tasks, impproving of effectiveness and complete informativeness of what is going on on the working field, all that employees are reluctant on.
In the reality, more middle managers have been fired than it is the case with employees that have careless and protected position of non having much responsibilities. It follows me to see middle manager as the victim of moderne organizational schema.
What is the real and specific role of the middle manager today that is essential for his surviving and succesfull functionning?
management
edited Jan 23 '15 at 20:39
JakeGould
6,5821739
asked Jan 23 '15 at 20:00
Ddvrb19
37118
Based on my own experience and based on the reading of the great number of questions, comments and answers on this site and around, seems to me that a lot of conflicts and troubles is caused by misunderstanding of the role and place of middle management.
Most employees see middle manager as overcontroller or as the obstacle to their own promotion, success and sense of the freedom.
On the other hands, higher management expects from the the middle manager the efficient division of tasks, impproving of effectiveness and complete informativeness of what is going on on the working field, all that employees are reluctant on.
In the reality, more middle managers have been fired than it is the case with employees that have careless and protected position of non having much responsibilities. It follows me to see middle manager as the victim of moderne organizational schema.
What is the real and specific role of the middle manager today that is essential for his surviving and succesfull functionning?
management
edited Jan 23 '15 at 20:39
JakeGould
6,5821739
asked Jan 23 '15 at 20:00
Ddvrb19
37118
edited Jan 23 '15 at 20:39
JakeGould
6,5821739
edited Jan 23 '15 at 20:39
JakeGould
6,5821739
edited Jan 23 '15 at 20:39
JakeGould
6,5821739
6,5821739
asked Jan 23 '15 at 20:00
Ddvrb19
37118
asked Jan 23 '15 at 20:00
Ddvrb19
37118
asked Jan 23 '15 at 20:00
Ddvrb19
37118
37118
closed as too broad by JakeGould, gnat, IDrinkandIKnowThings, Jim G., nvoigt Jan 26 '15 at 17:12
Please edit the question to limit it to a specific problem with enough detail to identify an adequate answer. Avoid asking multiple distinct questions at once. See the How to Ask page for help clarifying this question. If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.
closed as too broad by JakeGould, gnat, IDrinkandIKnowThings, Jim G., nvoigt Jan 26 '15 at 17:12
Please edit the question to limit it to a specific problem with enough detail to identify an adequate answer. Avoid asking multiple distinct questions at once. See the How to Ask page for help clarifying this question. If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.
This is the best description I've seen for what middle management should be doing in a high-functioning company. As for the actual day-to-day work, it will vary greatly based on needs, but often boils down to "help your team do well".
– Telastyn
Jan 23 '15 at 21:25
suggest improvements |Â
This is the best description I've seen for what middle management should be doing in a high-functioning company. As for the actual day-to-day work, it will vary greatly based on needs, but often boils down to "help your team do well".
– Telastyn
Jan 23 '15 at 21:25
This is the best description I've seen for what middle management should be doing in a high-functioning company. As for the actual day-to-day work, it will vary greatly based on needs, but often boils down to "help your team do well".
– Telastyn
Jan 23 '15 at 21:25
This is the best description I've seen for what middle management should be doing in a high-functioning company. As for the actual day-to-day work, it will vary greatly based on needs, but often boils down to "help your team do well".
– Telastyn
Jan 23 '15 at 21:25
suggest improvements |Â
1 Answer
1
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oldest
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1
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accepted
Upper management
Upper management are the decision makers, they give the orders everyone below is expected to follow those orders.
Middle management
Think of middle management as something between an enforcer and filter. Their job is to make sure everyone they oversee is on track to accomplish whatever upper management has ordered. They also act as a buffer for suggestions, questions, etc directed to upper management. A good middle manager will spot ideas with merit and pass them up the chain while preventing other stuff from reaching upper management. (as upper management time is better spent only on items of importance)
Middle management gets a bad rep for several reasons.
- When you internally promote someone from a non-manager position to management often it's into a middle management role. This includes people with no experience managing which leads to mistakes in learning to manage, or people who are simply not the right material to manage. (AKA most likely place to find crappy or inexperienced managers)
- Middle managers typically hold more accountability than anyone in the company. If a deadline slips, product has mistakes, etc. There will be a middle manager to catch the blame. This tends to cause them to micromanage to the detriment of productivity. (Ironically causing the exact issue they're trying to prevent)
- They break the bad news. When the Board decides to withhold bonuses, require overtime, lay people off, etc. Sure they might send out a company email or hold a meeting, but it's the middle manager who actually pulls people into his office to lay them off. So even though they have little to no say in the matter, they are the people who catch the flack.
- If you have desire to get into management, getting a middle manager role is usually the first step. People reasonably successful at middle management tend to stay in those roles for a very long time. That makes it ALOT harder for others to get into those roles which prevents them from successfully pursuing roles that require management experience.
Crappy employees
There are people who "create job security" and regularly don't perform by deflecting blame. I find the worst offenders tend to be at the bottom of the food chain typically the unmotivated person who's work is handled by the ambitious young person who feels they have something to prove.
Of coarse this trait is not exclusive to any market, position, or location. Middle managers like this tend not to survive long. Usually they can talk their way out of one blown deadline, but when you have two or three they get in trouble. Or if you have unusually high turnover under a specific manager it can cause them trouble.
This also happens in upper management, but they tend to do fine as often their job is to delegate marching orders down the pipe. Being a bit lazy there can be entirely covered by an ambitious middle manager picking up the slack.
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
suggest improvements |Â
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
1
down vote
accepted
Upper management
Upper management are the decision makers, they give the orders everyone below is expected to follow those orders.
Middle management
Think of middle management as something between an enforcer and filter. Their job is to make sure everyone they oversee is on track to accomplish whatever upper management has ordered. They also act as a buffer for suggestions, questions, etc directed to upper management. A good middle manager will spot ideas with merit and pass them up the chain while preventing other stuff from reaching upper management. (as upper management time is better spent only on items of importance)
Middle management gets a bad rep for several reasons.
- When you internally promote someone from a non-manager position to management often it's into a middle management role. This includes people with no experience managing which leads to mistakes in learning to manage, or people who are simply not the right material to manage. (AKA most likely place to find crappy or inexperienced managers)
- Middle managers typically hold more accountability than anyone in the company. If a deadline slips, product has mistakes, etc. There will be a middle manager to catch the blame. This tends to cause them to micromanage to the detriment of productivity. (Ironically causing the exact issue they're trying to prevent)
- They break the bad news. When the Board decides to withhold bonuses, require overtime, lay people off, etc. Sure they might send out a company email or hold a meeting, but it's the middle manager who actually pulls people into his office to lay them off. So even though they have little to no say in the matter, they are the people who catch the flack.
- If you have desire to get into management, getting a middle manager role is usually the first step. People reasonably successful at middle management tend to stay in those roles for a very long time. That makes it ALOT harder for others to get into those roles which prevents them from successfully pursuing roles that require management experience.
Crappy employees
There are people who "create job security" and regularly don't perform by deflecting blame. I find the worst offenders tend to be at the bottom of the food chain typically the unmotivated person who's work is handled by the ambitious young person who feels they have something to prove.
Of coarse this trait is not exclusive to any market, position, or location. Middle managers like this tend not to survive long. Usually they can talk their way out of one blown deadline, but when you have two or three they get in trouble. Or if you have unusually high turnover under a specific manager it can cause them trouble.
This also happens in upper management, but they tend to do fine as often their job is to delegate marching orders down the pipe. Being a bit lazy there can be entirely covered by an ambitious middle manager picking up the slack.
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
suggest improvements |Â
up vote
1
down vote
accepted
Upper management
Upper management are the decision makers, they give the orders everyone below is expected to follow those orders.
Middle management
Think of middle management as something between an enforcer and filter. Their job is to make sure everyone they oversee is on track to accomplish whatever upper management has ordered. They also act as a buffer for suggestions, questions, etc directed to upper management. A good middle manager will spot ideas with merit and pass them up the chain while preventing other stuff from reaching upper management. (as upper management time is better spent only on items of importance)
Middle management gets a bad rep for several reasons.
- When you internally promote someone from a non-manager position to management often it's into a middle management role. This includes people with no experience managing which leads to mistakes in learning to manage, or people who are simply not the right material to manage. (AKA most likely place to find crappy or inexperienced managers)
- Middle managers typically hold more accountability than anyone in the company. If a deadline slips, product has mistakes, etc. There will be a middle manager to catch the blame. This tends to cause them to micromanage to the detriment of productivity. (Ironically causing the exact issue they're trying to prevent)
- They break the bad news. When the Board decides to withhold bonuses, require overtime, lay people off, etc. Sure they might send out a company email or hold a meeting, but it's the middle manager who actually pulls people into his office to lay them off. So even though they have little to no say in the matter, they are the people who catch the flack.
- If you have desire to get into management, getting a middle manager role is usually the first step. People reasonably successful at middle management tend to stay in those roles for a very long time. That makes it ALOT harder for others to get into those roles which prevents them from successfully pursuing roles that require management experience.
Crappy employees
There are people who "create job security" and regularly don't perform by deflecting blame. I find the worst offenders tend to be at the bottom of the food chain typically the unmotivated person who's work is handled by the ambitious young person who feels they have something to prove.
Of coarse this trait is not exclusive to any market, position, or location. Middle managers like this tend not to survive long. Usually they can talk their way out of one blown deadline, but when you have two or three they get in trouble. Or if you have unusually high turnover under a specific manager it can cause them trouble.
This also happens in upper management, but they tend to do fine as often their job is to delegate marching orders down the pipe. Being a bit lazy there can be entirely covered by an ambitious middle manager picking up the slack.
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
suggest improvements |Â
up vote
1
down vote
accepted
up vote
1
down vote
accepted
Upper management
Upper management are the decision makers, they give the orders everyone below is expected to follow those orders.
Middle management
Think of middle management as something between an enforcer and filter. Their job is to make sure everyone they oversee is on track to accomplish whatever upper management has ordered. They also act as a buffer for suggestions, questions, etc directed to upper management. A good middle manager will spot ideas with merit and pass them up the chain while preventing other stuff from reaching upper management. (as upper management time is better spent only on items of importance)
Middle management gets a bad rep for several reasons.
- When you internally promote someone from a non-manager position to management often it's into a middle management role. This includes people with no experience managing which leads to mistakes in learning to manage, or people who are simply not the right material to manage. (AKA most likely place to find crappy or inexperienced managers)
- Middle managers typically hold more accountability than anyone in the company. If a deadline slips, product has mistakes, etc. There will be a middle manager to catch the blame. This tends to cause them to micromanage to the detriment of productivity. (Ironically causing the exact issue they're trying to prevent)
- They break the bad news. When the Board decides to withhold bonuses, require overtime, lay people off, etc. Sure they might send out a company email or hold a meeting, but it's the middle manager who actually pulls people into his office to lay them off. So even though they have little to no say in the matter, they are the people who catch the flack.
- If you have desire to get into management, getting a middle manager role is usually the first step. People reasonably successful at middle management tend to stay in those roles for a very long time. That makes it ALOT harder for others to get into those roles which prevents them from successfully pursuing roles that require management experience.
Crappy employees
There are people who "create job security" and regularly don't perform by deflecting blame. I find the worst offenders tend to be at the bottom of the food chain typically the unmotivated person who's work is handled by the ambitious young person who feels they have something to prove.
Of coarse this trait is not exclusive to any market, position, or location. Middle managers like this tend not to survive long. Usually they can talk their way out of one blown deadline, but when you have two or three they get in trouble. Or if you have unusually high turnover under a specific manager it can cause them trouble.
This also happens in upper management, but they tend to do fine as often their job is to delegate marching orders down the pipe. Being a bit lazy there can be entirely covered by an ambitious middle manager picking up the slack.
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
Upper management
Upper management are the decision makers, they give the orders everyone below is expected to follow those orders.
Middle management
Think of middle management as something between an enforcer and filter. Their job is to make sure everyone they oversee is on track to accomplish whatever upper management has ordered. They also act as a buffer for suggestions, questions, etc directed to upper management. A good middle manager will spot ideas with merit and pass them up the chain while preventing other stuff from reaching upper management. (as upper management time is better spent only on items of importance)
Middle management gets a bad rep for several reasons.
- When you internally promote someone from a non-manager position to management often it's into a middle management role. This includes people with no experience managing which leads to mistakes in learning to manage, or people who are simply not the right material to manage. (AKA most likely place to find crappy or inexperienced managers)
- Middle managers typically hold more accountability than anyone in the company. If a deadline slips, product has mistakes, etc. There will be a middle manager to catch the blame. This tends to cause them to micromanage to the detriment of productivity. (Ironically causing the exact issue they're trying to prevent)
- They break the bad news. When the Board decides to withhold bonuses, require overtime, lay people off, etc. Sure they might send out a company email or hold a meeting, but it's the middle manager who actually pulls people into his office to lay them off. So even though they have little to no say in the matter, they are the people who catch the flack.
- If you have desire to get into management, getting a middle manager role is usually the first step. People reasonably successful at middle management tend to stay in those roles for a very long time. That makes it ALOT harder for others to get into those roles which prevents them from successfully pursuing roles that require management experience.
Crappy employees
There are people who "create job security" and regularly don't perform by deflecting blame. I find the worst offenders tend to be at the bottom of the food chain typically the unmotivated person who's work is handled by the ambitious young person who feels they have something to prove.
Of coarse this trait is not exclusive to any market, position, or location. Middle managers like this tend not to survive long. Usually they can talk their way out of one blown deadline, but when you have two or three they get in trouble. Or if you have unusually high turnover under a specific manager it can cause them trouble.
This also happens in upper management, but they tend to do fine as often their job is to delegate marching orders down the pipe. Being a bit lazy there can be entirely covered by an ambitious middle manager picking up the slack.
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
answered Jan 23 '15 at 22:22
RualStorge
9,5372231
9,5372231
suggest improvements |Â
suggest improvements |Â
This is the best description I've seen for what middle management should be doing in a high-functioning company. As for the actual day-to-day work, it will vary greatly based on needs, but often boils down to "help your team do well".
– Telastyn
Jan 23 '15 at 21:25