2016 May C8 – The Business of Managing Middle Management

Middle Managers are the glue that connects the bottom with the top.  Executives rely on Middle Management to cascade their messages to the front line.  However, do they actually do a good job of this or are they information hoarders and not sharing it with those below?

They are also expected to be conduits pushing valuable ideas and insights from the front line upward to the senior leaders.  The innovation capacity of companies often relies on those closest to the customer. Invariably many great ideas potentially emanating from the front line are never tapped, because there was not the environment to do so.  That environment creation is the responsibility of the Middle Managers.

Middle Managers will play an even more important role in the future, as the supply of young workers dwindles and a ferocious war for talent consumes us all.  The inability of Middle Management to retain the young will have a direct negative cost on the bottom line of our businesses.  Replacing and covering for the departing young has many costs – recruitment, disruption, opportunities, team motivation etc.

In this month’s CI Luncheon, Dale Carnegie’s Japan President and CI member CEO, Greg Story will be leading the discussion on “The Business Of Managing Middle Management”.  Come join us as we talk about developing a companies most important asset, it’s team.