“Middle managers are the key to continuous innovation,” said Rosabeth Moss Kanter, a renowned Harvard Business School professor. And she wasn’t being generous. Middle managers serve as the vital link between the lofty vision of senior leaders and the day-to-day grind of junior-level employees. They are the glue holding teams together, translating big-picture strategy into bite-sized, executable goals. So why, despite their obvious value, are middle managers suddenly being treated like organisational dead weight?
In recent months, headlines have been rife with stories of companies trimming the fat – and by fat, they mean the middle. From tech startups to corporate behemoths, middle management roles are being “re-evaluated,” restructured, or straight-up eliminated. While CEOs are busy preaching agility and frontline workers are hailed as essential, the middle tier is increasingly being framed as outdated, redundant, or – dare I say – expendable.
Let’s be honest: “middle” isn’t a word that sparks joy. The term “middle child” brings up theories about being ignored or overlooked. “Middle seat”? Nobody’s first choice. “Middle manager”? Cue the image of someone drowning in bureaucracy, wedged between authority and accountability. Yet this view is both inaccurate and unfair.
Middle managers often hold the institutional memory of an organisation. They manage teams, mentor future leaders, resolve conflict, and implement changes in real-time. They are strategists, diplomats, problem-solvers, and therapists – all rolled into one job description. And they do it all while managing up, down, and sideways.
Yet despite being the engine room of any functioning workplace, they’re increasingly being portrayed as obstacles rather than enablers. The phrase “too many layers” has become code for “get rid of middle managers.”
The burnout Is real
It’s not just about job losses. Middle managers are exhausted. Reports from organisations like Gallup and McKinsey show that mid-level leaders are experiencing higher rates of burnout than their junior and senior counterparts. Why? Because they’re asked to drive performance, manage culture, implement change, and hit KPIs — all while navigating the anxieties of their teams and the expectations of their bosses.
Add to that the hybrid work conundrum, and you’ve got a full-blown identity crisis. They are expected to create cohesion without face-to-face time, boost morale during layoffs, and execute strategy when the strategy itself is being rewritten in real-time.
As if they didn’t have enough to worry about, artificial intelligence is now gunning for middle managers’ jobs. According to a Gartner report, by 2026, 20% of organisations will use AI to flatten their structure, eliminating more than half of existing middle management positions. Why? Because AI can automate performance tracking, task allocation, even aspects of talent management. Essentially, anything that can be quantified or templated is now fair game for automation.
To some leaders, this sounds like utopia. No more layers, faster decisions, leaner teams. But here’s the kicker: AI can’t replace human judgement, emotional intelligence, or contextual leadership. It can’t walk a stressed employee through a personal crisis. It can’t spot brewing discontent in a team. It can’t innovate, mediate, or inspire.
What happens when you remove the middle?
We’ve seen examples of what happens when companies rush to cut middle managers. Take Twitter (now X) under Elon Musk’s leadership. The massive layoffs gutted the middle management layer, leaving a direct line between senior leadership and frontline staff. The result? A breakdown in communication, confused priorities, and a morale nosedive. Even in smaller firms, the lack of a guiding intermediary can lead to chaos, burnout, and stalled innovation.
Middle managers provide context and continuity. When they’re removed, organisations risk becoming either too top-heavy or disorganised at the bottom. It’s like trying to build a house by putting the roof directly on the foundation – sooner or later, something’s going to collapse.
Instead of throwing them out with the bathwater, forward-thinking companies should choose to redesign the role. In modern workplaces, middle managers can act as culture stewards, change agents, and enablers of innovation. They can lead agile squads, facilitate cross-functional collaboration, and even become the bridge between tech and touch – leveraging AI tools without losing the human connection.
Companies like Adobe and Microsoft are already piloting flatter structures with redefined mid-tier roles focused on coaching and cross-functional leadership. The emphasis is not on hierarchy, but on influence and impact.
Let’s be clear – not all industries are the same. In high-stakes sectors like healthcare, manufacturing, and education, middle managers are indispensable. They oversee critical workflows, ensure safety protocols are met, and manage real human lives. Here, the notion of flat structures is not just impractical – it’s dangerous.
Even in tech, where agility is prized, the absence of middle management can lead to misaligned goals and unmet deadlines. As one tech lead recently told Harvard Business Review, “Middle managers are the ones who actually make things happen. Without them, it’s all just ideas floating in Slack.”
The hidden costs of ousting the middle
There’s also a hidden cost to eliminating middle managers: the development of future leaders. Middle managers are the farm system for senior leadership. They’re where talent is nurtured, mistakes are made safely, and managerial muscle is built. If we remove the ladder, how do we expect anyone to climb?
Furthermore, without middle managers, organisations risk losing the cultural fabric that holds teams together. Who mediates when departments clash? Who builds bridges between sales and product, or HR and engineering? Spoiler: It’s not the CEO.
Rather than viewing AI as a replacement for middle management, why not reframe it as an enabler? Automate the admin, yes. Let AI draft the performance reports, schedule the check-ins, and crunch the data. But let humans do the human work: motivating, mentoring, meaning-making.
Middle managers, supported by tech, could become more strategic, more agile, and more impactful. The future isn’t man versus machine – it’s man enhanced by machine. But that requires investment, training, and a commitment to reimagining the role, not discarding it.
So, we need to think like this – middle managers are not dead weight! They are the scaffolding of a functioning, resilient, innovative organisation. If they’re tired, it’s because they’ve been overworked and undervalued. If they’re unsure of their place, it’s because their roles haven’t evolved with the times. Hence, before you write your next “flattening the structure” memo, ask yourself: Are you really making your organisation more agile? Or are you just making it more fragile?
Because in the grand hierarchy of things, the middle still matters. And if we’re smart, we’ll start treating them not as relics of a bygone era – but as architects of the future.