Empowering middle managers: A strategic investment for business growth

Middle managers are the backbone of any organization, translating strategic visions into operational realities. Yet, middle managers are often overlooked in terms of investment and development.

Recent insights from McKinsey highlight the immense value of investing in middle managers for organizational health and financial performance. Strong managers can reduce attrition, support talent acquisition and buoy employee well-being. However, middle managers are often mired in administrative tasks rather than focusing on nurturing talent. In fact, only 20% of respondents in a McKinsey survey strongly agreed that their organizations help them to be successful people managers.

Managers at all need this crucial training

Middle management performance has a significant impact on business performance.

Middle managers play a crucial role in driving effective operations and nurturing talent. 

McKinsey's research reveals that, over five years, organizations with top-performing middle managers yield multiple times the total shareholder returns (TSR) of those with average or below-average managers. This solid link from middle-manager performance to shareholder returns underscores the monetary value at stake and the organizations' immense opportunity to invest in middle managers.

• Middle managers are integral to organizational health and performance.
• Top-performing middle managers can yield multiple times the total shareholder value of average or below-average managers.

According to McKinsey, the following 11 manager behaviors are directly related to an organization’s financial performance:

1. Creative + entrepreneurial: Supports innovation and creativity.
2. Open + trusting: Encourages honesty, transparency and candid dialogue.
3. Operationally disciplined: Emphasizes productivity and efficiency.
4. Authoritative: Focuses on the hierarchy to get things done.
5. Challenging: Encourages people to do more than they thought possible.
6. Consultative: Empowers employees through communication and delegation.
7. Supportive: Builds a positive environment characterized by team harmony.
8. Inspirational: Encourages people through guidance and recognition.
9. Employee involvement: Engages people in the direction of the organization.
10. Personal ownership: Drives individual accountability and responsibility.
11. Talent development: Provides coaching for knowledge and skills.
    

Here’s how HR and people leaders can support middle managers engage in these 11 beneficial behaviors:

• Recognize the value of middle managers and advocate for investment in their development.
• Identify and promote the 11 manager behaviors within your organization.
• Implement modern manager training programs that focus on these 11 behaviors to enhance middle management performance.

Help your managers become leaders

Strengthen middle manager performance to boost your business performance.

Middle managers are the linchpin of your organization, bridging the gap between strategic vision and operational execution. However, their potential can often be untapped due to a lack of focus on their development and the challenges they face in their roles. McKinsey's research provides a roadmap for strengthening middle-manager performance, which can significantly boost your business performance. 

Here are the key steps:

1. Optimize organization spans. Adjust the number of direct reports your managers have to find a balance where managers have enough time to provide meaningful coaching and strategic thinking without being overwhelmed by too many direct reports or underutilized with too few.
2. Reset manager roles. Redefine the responsibilities of middle managers to reduce bureaucracy and allow them to focus on value-adding tasks. Strip away unnecessary administrative tasks and enable managers to concentrate on strategic work and people development.
3. Pivot to capability building. Implement modern manager training and development programs that enhance the skills and capabilities of middle managers. Identify the key behaviors that drive performance and create learning opportunities that reinforce them.
4. Drill down into the manager experience. Take a deep dive into the day-to-day experiences of middle managers to understand their challenges and needs. Create an environment that supports the wellbeing and job satisfaction of middle managers, which in turn can enhance their performance.
5. Build accountability mechanisms. Set clear expectations for middle managers and implement systems to track and measure their performance. Ensure managers are held accountable for their actions, and provide feedback to help them improve. Accountability mechanisms include integrating performance goals into the performance management system, providing regular feedback and linking performance to rewards.

These five steps enhance the performance of middle managers while contributing to the organization's overall health and financial performance.

• Optimizing organizational spans can reduce strain on managers and improve efficiency.
• Resetting manager roles can reduce bureaucracy and allow managers to focus on value-adding tasks.
• Capability building, improvements in experience and accountability mechanisms can enhance middle-manager performance.

Here’s how HR and people leaders can support middle managers:

• Review and optimize your organization's structure to ensure managers are set up for success.
• Reset manager roles to reduce bureaucracy and focus on value-adding tasks.
• Implement capability-building programs and accountability mechanisms to enhance middle-manager performance.
• Work toward reducing administrative tasks for middle managers, allowing them to focus on nurturing talent.
• Foster a culture of cohesion among managers to improve organizational health.
• Implement modern manager training and support systems to help managers reduce attrition and support talent acquisition.

Investing in middle managers is a business imperative.

By recognizing the value of middle managers and strengthening their performance, organizations can enhance organizational health and financial performance. HR and people leaders play a crucial role in this process, from advocating for investment in middle managers to implementing training programs and support systems that enable them to thrive.

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Empower your middle managers with help from Electives.

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Your company's growth hinges on the strength of your managers. Equip them with the skills to lead with excellence. All live, interactive and engaging, our Modern Manager Training program is meticulously designed to catalyze employee engagement and supercharge productivity across your teams.

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