The middle manager is back!

For some time the role of the ‘middle manager’ has been discussed in less than complimentary terms. Now it seems the wheel has turned. In a new management series, Leading from the Center, (See Recommended Resource section below) a new and positive perspective is being placed on those people in leadership roles in the middle of organisations.

The authors argue there are 6 key roles that these ‘leaders in the center of organisations’ need to play:

• Strategy Translator: involves understanding and translating the broader organisational focus and direction in a way that can be committed to and then implemented by their team.
  
  Some questions to ask yourself and others here: How well do I ‘get’ the overall organisational strategy? To what extent does it impact on my day to day activities? How well do I help those I manage, align their priorities with the organisational direction? How would I know this is happening well?
  
  
• Influencer and Collaborator: involves communicating and working across organisational boundaries to achieve greater results.
  
  Some questions to ask yourself and others here: How well do I create and maintain effective relationships with other departments and teams in the organisation? How well do I manage the competing commitments of team/unit vs the wider organisation? What would other managers say about how well my team contributes to wider organisational success?
  
  
• Leader of Teams: involves facilitating team alignment, commitment, creativity and communication to deliver the desired results.
  
  Some questions to ask yourself and others here: How well do I lead my team? To what extent are we clear on goals and purpose? Are we aligned with broader organisational priorities? Are our roles clear so that we know and agree on who does what? How effective is our internal communication?
  
  
• Coach: involves growing capability, stretching people, giving feedback to help individuals learn and develop.
  
  Some questions to ask yourself and others here: How well do I coach my people? How well do I listen? Are my questions penetrating and leading to insight and awareness? How much am I talking during coaching conversations? To what extent do my coaching conversations lead to ACE – specific Actions – greater Clarity and increased Energy for the person I might be coaching?
  
  
• Innovator: involves bringing a creative focus to the way work gets done so that fresh approaches to organisational challenges and client needs are regularly being explored.
  
  Some questions to ask yourself and others here: How often do I find myself looking for new ways to ‘tweak’ or improve the way things get done? In what ways do I challenge the status quo? How comfortable am I with the way things are?
  
  
• Owner of Systems and Processes: involves taking ownership of systems and processes and being active in streamlining them so that they work better or replacing them if they are no longer working.
  
  Some questions to ask yourself and others here: How much do I own the various systems in our organisation? Do what extent do I see myself as operating mindlessly as a user of various processes rather than as refiner and enhancer of processes that may have outlived their usefulness?

As well as helping rethink aspects of how we operate in our own roles, a framework such as this can be helpful, when coaching others...

• It provides a way of seeing middle management roles from a different perspective, creating greater awareness and choice.
• It helps focus coaching conversations in highest leverage areas
• It has relevance across a wide range of organisations and industries

Middle manager roles occupy a place in organisational life that impact significantly on what actually gets done. Making explicit, these implied key roles can assist in ensuring that things ‘get done’ in smarter and more intentional ways.

Have a great month!