See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/254115577 The Leadership Role of Today's Middle Manager Article in Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies · July 1996 DOI: 10.1177/107179199600300303 CITATIONS READS 6 2,742 1 author: Jay Klagge Arizona State University 78 PUBLICATIONS 177 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: sustainable leadership in global arena View project RESEARCH THEORY & TECHNIQUES View project All content following this page was uploaded by Jay Klagge on 25 March 2015. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies http://jlo.sagepub.com The Leadership Role of Today's Middle Manager Jay Klagge Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies 1997; 3; 11 DOI: 10.1177/107179199700300303 The online version of this article can be found at: http://jlo.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/3/3/11 Published by: http://www.sagepublications.com On behalf of: Midwest Academy of Management Additional services and information for Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies can be found at: Email Alerts: http://jlo.sagepub.com/cgi/alerts Subscriptions: http://jlo.sagepub.com/subscriptions Reprints: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.nav Permissions: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav Citations http://jlo.sagepub.com/cgi/content/refs/3/3/11 Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 The Leadership Role of Today’s Middle Manager Jay Klagge University of Phoenix Executive Summary In a previous article this author identified a leadership role for top management. In this article he sets his sights on identifying the unique leadership role of today’s middle manager. This author links the role of middle management with that of today’s organizational leaders in response to the simultaneous calls for unity and diversity. Is there a What role legitimate need for middle managers in today’s flattened organizations? might be left for the middle manager in light of trends toward team-based operations? Can middle managers supplement the work of teams? How can middle management complement the role of organizational leaders? How should middle managers respond to today’s simultaneous calls for unity and diversity? After briefly reviewing the role of organizational leaders in response to simultaneous calls for unity and diversity, the author explores the leadership role of middle management today. In preparation for identifying the tasks of the middle manager in today’s organizational environment, he covers some of the costs associated with the loss of middle managers. The author concludes that middle managers in today’s flattened and team-based organization bring leadership as: integrators creating organizational unity; facilitators releasing human diversity into group processes; and implementers of necessary supporting systems for recognizing and rewarding actions that foster unity and unlock diversity. Key Words: Leadership Role; Middle Management; Middle Manager Role; Organizational Unity; Human Diversity; Middle Manager Tasks About the Author: As an academician, Jay has been an adjunct faculty member for the University of Phoenix’s College of Business in Phoenix since 1988. In 1989, Jay was given the &dquo;Outstanding Faculty Member Award&dquo; by the students of the University. He currently carries an average teaching load of two classes. As a practitioner, Jay has twenty-five years of experience as a public manager. He currently serves as the Director of Planning for The State Department of Transportation in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. In this position he oversees the activities of the nine operating sections which comprise the Division. Jay’s experience has given him a broad background in strategic planning, management, leadership, public policy, and public administration. As a student, Jay, whose undergraduate degree is in liberal arts, received his Masters of Business Administration in 1984 and his Doctorate in Public Administration in 1995 at Arizona State University. ’ Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 12 ’ Introduction Downsizing, rightsizing, and re-engineering in the 1990’s have taken a heavy toll on the ranks of middle management. Middle managers themselves have become an endangered species as entire layers disappear in organizational flattenings. Obsolescence drips from former definitions of middle management focusing on problem-solving, doing things through others, and controlling work processes. Organizations in both the public and private sectors teach all employees the tools and techniques formerly reserved for middle managers. Gone is the old role as teams of trained workers take on the tasks previously handled by the middle manager. . In addition to these pressures on middle management, organizations are also feeling the pressure of two countervailing calls. One is the call to establish a solid base of organizational unity. The other is the call to recognize and support human diversity in the workplace. The simultaneous calls for unity and diversity, and organizational downsizings and flattenings set turbulent background for the identification of leadership roles in the 1990’s. Several questions remain unanswered. &dquo;Is there a legitimate need for middle managers in today’s flattened organizations?&dquo; &dquo;What role might be left for the middle manager in light of trends toward team-based operations?&dquo; &dquo;Can middle managers supplement the work of teams?&dquo; &dquo;How can middle management complement the role of organizational leaders?&dquo; &dquo;How should middle managers respond to today’s simultaneous calls for unity and diversity?&dquo; This article attempts to answer these lingering questions about the leadership role of today’s middle manager. Unity, Diversity, and the Role of Top Management previous article, Unity and Diversity., A Two-Headed Oppottunity for Today’s Organizational Leaders, this author identified a role for those in the position of organizational leader (Klagge, 1995b). Organizational leaders, as &dquo;top management,&dquo; are called upon to create unity out of inherent diversity, and to coax diversity within the created unity. The three tasks associated with the accomplishment of these ends comprise the unique territory of top management. These tasks are: (1) lead the organization into unity through vision-developing, goal-setting, and direction-giving activities; (2) unlock the leadership potential of the organizations’s members by tapping the diversity among them; and (3) ensure that both diversity and unity are nurtured by the organization and In a rewarded within its culture. The unity which top managers seek is the institutional, practical, and emotional condition of oneness that results from the presence of shared focus, purpose, visions, values, and actions within an organization. This type of unity is key to organizational success. The notion of success coming through organizational unity is expressed in many colloquialisms: &dquo;Many logs burn brightly together;&dquo; Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 13 &dquo;United we stand, divided we fall;&dquo; &dquo;A house divided against itself cannot stand;&dquo; and &dquo;We must all hang together or we shall all certainly hang separately.&dquo; Each of these proverbs seeks to communicate the same truth: unity is a major precursor to organizational success. This unity should not arise from organizational integration, but from the social contract (Rousseau, 1960), the shared purposes (Follett, 1987), the shared respect for procedural justice (Hampshire, 1989), and the shared life within the social unit (Perrow, 1986). It is the first task of top management to lead the organization into this type of unity through vision-developing, goal setting, and direction-giving activities. The diversity which top managers seek arises from the individual differences in history, experience, knowledge, imagination, personality, intelligence, talent, ability, perspective, insight, gender, class, community, society, and culture of the members in an organization. Human diversity is also key to organizational success. Success can be achieved through the deployment of human diversity when organizational unity has been realized and important distinctions among human beings have been identified. Therefore, diversity in organizations should not arise merely from structural differentiation (Bedian, 1980), but from the personal uniquenesses and individual distinctives inherent in the diversities among people (Flores, 1994). It is the second task of top management to unlock the potential of individuals within the organization by tapping into their inherent diversity. ’ The final task of top management is to ensure that both diversity and unity are nurtured by the organization and rewarded within its culture. The mandate to create systems and processes to achieve these objectives clearly resides with top management. The mandate to implement these systems and processes among a unified group of diverse individuals, however, is the unique territory of the middle manager. Before discussing the tasks of today’s middle managers, focus is placed on the costs incurred from the elimination of middle management positions. Cost of - Eliminating Middle Management While organizations have experienced savings from eliminating middle managers, they have also experienced costs. Both the benefits and costs are significant because about twenty percent of the layoffs since 1988 came from the ranks of middle management (Floyd and Wooldridge, 1994). Real and direct savings are realized by eliminating middle management positions. The bottom line is increased as the price of administration is cut. Less bureaucratic layering and siloing also benefits the organization by facilitating the dissemination of information and decision making. Less paternalism and lower organizational conformity are reported to benefit organizational creativity and innovation (Skagen, 1992). Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 14 1 While there are benefits from eliminating middle managers, there are also costs. Some of these &dquo;costs&dquo; occur among these middle managers who survive the cuts. These costs are less loyalty and commitment to the organization, more tailoring of individual careers and skills to outside markets, and less development of the individual’s skills for their specific firm (Cappelli, 1992). Some researchers have found that surviving middle managers are more loyal to their own career and less satisfied with their jobs, resulting in reduced productivity (Reilly, Brett, and Stroh, 1993). Additional costs from the loss of middle managers are experienced by other organizational members. Many employees experience the loss of the comforting support when their middle manager is removed (Skagen, 1992). Finally there are organizational costs which go unrecognized in the short-run, but impact the long-run success of the organization. Fewer middle managers means less ability to respond to the complexity and dynamism in the environment, less organizational skill base for unstructured work (Pinsonneault and Kraemer, 1993), and less leadership in the middle of the organization. Some have concluded that the loss of middle managers equates with the loss of valuable skills and the vital strategic capability necessary for organizational success (Floyd and Wooldridge, 1994). While the foregoing costs are real and substantial, they often go unnoticed because their direct monetary value is not easily calculated. Given that organizational flattening by the removal of middle management positions is a reality that is likely to continue, and given that these reductions of middle managers have unintended costs associated with them, how can organizations mitigate these costs through redefining the role of the middle managers who remain? Unity, Diversity, and the Role of Middle Management Organizational flattenings, the trend toward team-based operations, and the simultaneous calls for unity and diversity have wreaked havoc on the middle managers. Their former role no longer fits. New descriptions of leadership are required. While these times of change and confusion bring pain, they also bring new opportunities. One such opportunity is the need for middle managers to redefine their unique niche within today’s organizations. It may well be that their unique niche can be best described as &dquo;leadership from the middle.&dquo; legitimate need for middle managers in today’s flattened organizations? Many have concluded that given today’s flattened organizations, the position of the middle manager is more important than ever. Some believe that the key value of today’s remaining middle managers is their ability to provide a key strategic link within the organization (Tregoe and Tobia, 1990). Is there a Others feel that the role of the middle manger needs to move toward that of counselor or coach or both (Stroul, 1992). Most agree that the role of the middle manager is integrative. Various approaches to the integrative tasks of the middle manager have been proposed. Floyd and Wooldridge (1994) identified vertical task components of middle management integration. The specific Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 . 15 vertical task components that Floyd and Vllooldridge set forth for middle managers include the upward integrative task of synthesizing information and the downward integrative task of synthesizing information and the downward integrative task of implementing deliberating strategy (1994:50). Martin (1992), on the other hand, presented middle managers with horizontal linkage requirements for integration. The horizontal linkages given by Martin involve the satisfying of customers and the facilitation of cross-functional systems. Martin sees horizontal linkages between suppliers, cross-functional systems, and customers as the territory to be integrated by the middle manager (1992:90).. Drucker (1993) agrees with Martin that the middle manager has integrative responsibilities both inside and outside the organization. Drucker, however, also stresses the need for middle mangers to &dquo;manage&dquo; their bosses as well as their subordinates. This, to Drucker, is a key element of and an organizational integration important task of the middle manager. While the specific integrative tasks proposed above vary, in each instance the conclusion is that the middle manager has an important and legitimate role in the flattened organizations of the 1990’s. One important aspect of that role is to act as an integrator unifying overall organizational goals with the goals of their particular work group and its individual members. What role might be left for the middle manager in light of trends toward teambased operations? Can middle managers supplement the work of teams? Many offer suggestions as to the role which middle managers can play in support of team-based activities. The basic role of the middle manager in a team environment is to be the facilitator of group processes. These processes include decision-making, work planning, continuous improvement, measuring progress, and rating team member performance. The wisdom of having the middle manager play the facilitator role is that it overcomes the conflicts which can arise when outside facilitators are used. Some studies have shown that if facilitation of worker commitment and involvement is done by outsiders, it can result in conflict, disillusionment, and disappointment (Brennan, 1992). The expertise which middle managers need in order to fill the facilitator role includes negotiating skills, people skills, team-building skills, project management skills, and motivational skills (Skagen, 1992). Others would add counseling and coaching skills as requisites (Stroul, 1992). The middle manager in the’teambased environment has the role of acting to facilitate worker involvement and commitment by encouraging individual members to make their unique contribution to the organization through the work group. How can middle management complement the role of organizational leaders? How should middle mangers respond to today’s simultaneous calls for unity and diversity? The role of organizational leaders - top management - is focused on three major tasks: (1) leading the organization into unity through visiondeveloping, goal-setting, and direction-giving activities; (2) unlocking the leadership potential of the organization’s members by tapping into the diversity already resident among them; and (3) ensuring that both diversity and unity are Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 16 nurtured by the organization and rewarded within its culture. In order to complement the role of top management, middle mangers should act as integrators creating organizational unity, facilitators releasing human diversity into group processes, and implementers of necessary supporting systems for recognizing and rewarding actions that foster organizational unity and behaviors that unlock human diversity. As an integrator, the middle manager should lead in synthesizing information and ideas from the work group (Tregoe and Tobia, 1990). The middle manager should &dquo;champion&dquo; the group’s inputs within the organization and present them to top management (Floyd and Wooldridge, 1994). This can be referred to as &dquo;upward&dquo; .integration. Further, the middle manager should be involved in &dquo;downward&dquo; integration by ensuring that the work of their group is contributing to the success of the entire organization (Martin, 1992). As an integrator, the middle manager is involved in &dquo;strategic framing&dquo; and acts as a &dquo;go-between&dquo; linking the activities of the work group with the visions and strategies of the organization (Hamel and Prahalad, 1994). facilitator the middle manager should &dquo;lead from the middle&dquo; by involving all workers in anticipating external changes, innovating new solutions, and initiating intemal improvements (Frohman and Johnson, 1992). Additionally, the middle manager needs to actively lead and facilitate organizational adaptability in meeting strategic goals by fostering human diversity (Floyd and Wooldridge, As a 1994). As an implemented within the organization, the middle manager must take the lead in developing the supporting systems which recognize and reward those who dare to &dquo;dream&dquo; and those who dare to &dquo;do.&dquo; Behaviors and activities that foster unity are team-based efforts, networking, and cooperation across the organization (Frohman and Johnson, 1992). These should be recognized and rewarded within the work group. Behaviors and activities that unlock diversity are exploration, innovation, ideation, and other forms of trailblazing (Klagge, 1995a). These individual efforts should also be recognized and rewarded at the work group level. In short, today’s middle managers are &dquo;leaders in the middle.&dquo; As such they must be actively involved in unleashing the diverse talents within individual team members to create, improve, pursue, and reach the unifying vision of the organization. Middle managers are uniquely suited to these responsibilities because they comprise the organization’s chief reservoir of core capability (Floyd and Wooldridge, 1994). The preceding three aspects of the leadership role of today’s middle manager are supported by several general tasks. These general tasks are shown in Figure 1 along with a listing of specific activities which support them. Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 17 Conclusion There is legitimate leadership role for middle managers in today’s organizations. That role complements the role of organizational leaders - top managers - and responds to the simultaneous calls for unity and diversity within today’s organizations. As one writer put it, &dquo;They (today’s organizations) may not realize it yet, but the two trendiest bits of language in the business world, ’vision’ and ’core competencies,’ are probably making middle managers fashionable again&dquo; (The Economiso. a The first aspect of the role for middle managers today is to act as an integrator. As an integrator, the middle manager complements the unifying role of the top manager and responds to the call for organizational unity. Unity is addressed by these activities of the middle manager. The second aspect of the role for today’s middle managers is to be a facilitator of group processes. As a facilitator, the middle manager supplements the top manager’s unlocking of leadership potential already resident in the organization’s members. Human diversity is fostered and served by this aspect of the middle management role. . The third aspect of the role for middle managers is to act as an implementer of supporting systems at the work group level. As an implemented, the middle manager ensures that the diversity and unity desired by top management are nurtured by the organization and rewarded within its work groups. Unity and diversity are promoted as the middle manager serves as an implementer of supporting systems. today’s remaining middle managers act as integrators, facilitators, and implementers, they will adequately complement the role of top management, respond to the simultaneous calls for unity and diversity, and ensure organizational success. Middle managers who neglect these duties will not succeed. Teams with managers who slight these duties will struggle. Organizations which lack middle managers who pursue these tasks and activities will, in the long-run, fail. As is initiated at the top of the organization and fulfilled at the it is lead, developed, nurtured, and matured in the middle of the bottom, organization. This developing, nurturing, and maturing requires middle managers who fulfill their leadership role as integrators, facilitators, and While success implementers. Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 18 Tasks and Activities Manager Figure 1 Supporting the Leadership Role of the Middle . (Drucker, 1993), (Floyd & Wooldridge, 1994), (Frohman & Johnson, 1992), (Klagge, 1995a), (Martin, 1992), and (Tregow and Tobia, 1990) Sources: Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 19 References Bedian, Arthur G. 1980. Theory Dryden and Analysis. Press. Organizations: Hinsdale, IL: The Brennan, Maire. "Mismanagement and Circles: How Middle Managers Influence Direct Participation." Management Decision. Vol. 30, No. 6 (1992): 35-45. "Unity and Diversity: A TwoHeaded Opportunity for Today’s Organizational Leaders." The Leadership and Organization Development Journal. Vol. 16, No. 4 (July, 1995): 45-47. 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Innocence and MA: Harvard The "The Salaryman Rides Again." Economist. Vol. 334, No. 7900 (February 410, 1995): 64. Tregoe, Benjamin B. And Tobia, Peter M. "The Strategic Role of Middle Managers." Supervisory Management. Vol. 35 (March, 1990): 4. Klagge, Jay. "Leadership: A Notion Come of Age." The Joumal of Leadership Studies. Vol. 2, No. 2 (Spring, 1995): 20-26. Downloaded from http://jlo.sagepub.com at APOLLO GROUP INC. on February 25, 2009 View publication stats 29
