Mid-Level Excellence Starts with the Definition

One of the challenges of training is that while everyone is unique and every organziation special, there is a universality that exists in the experience of being a mid-level manager no matter where you work. And while large firms have more levels within the middle range than small firm, and not-for-profits are not the same as educational organizations, (which are differnt from government institutions, and corporate firms) there are some truths that apply no matter how big your organization or how sophisticated the culture.

  

Understanding the role of Mid-Level Manager is critical to being effective and successful. Managing at is difficult because you have top-level management on one side and entry-level management (as well as non-management employees) on the other side. Many of the issues you will be asked to deal with don’t have to do with the organization – they have to do with the people who work there!

 

TIPS

• Be the bridge. First-line supervision is focused on employee productivity, communication, morale, and benefits. Executives are concerned primarily with sales, service, and profits. Your job at mid-level is to be the bridge between them and coordinate everyone so all of the levels behave as a cohesive team.
• For the most part, your employees are now managers too. These employees are not managed as easily as non-management employees. Initially, you may find yourself dealing with resistance, resentment, and even sabotage because you often represent change to their status quo, ideas and strategies. And change that isn’t always appreciated. Even if they agree with your ideas and what you say, be a little suspect.
• Like any employee, you are the boss and therefore responsible for their work product and actions.
• Your job is to improve the bottom-line. You are expected to empower your team to make decisions and take on the responsibility to increase sales/service/profits. Empowering others is essential to your success. If you don't know how to do that, then you will have limited success.
• Know your organization and its’ culture. When you lead from the middle, you are not setting strategy and vision. Everything you do needs to compliment, augment, and fit with the existing organizational norms and ways of doing things. 
  

Executives often get to attend external programs for professional development. They are sent awawy to talk to other executives about the challenges they face. First Line Supervisors get training, often internally, to help them make the challenging transition to the first management position in their career. If folks at the mid-level are having to fend for themselves when it comes to professional training  and skill development, it isn't much different from crossing fingers and wishing on a star.

Work and Home IS Life

We make choices every day about our work: what is most important, what to delegate, what isn’t worth our time, and where our energy and focus can be used most effectively. We do the same thing about the lives we lead when we leave work: what is most important, what adds to our enjoyment, what is a necessary responsibility, what isn’t worth our time, and where our energy and focus can be used most effectively. Our lives are a series of goals and choices.


Our culture has become increasingly diverse and the multiple generations that share the workplace each have their own set of values, beliefs and priorities. Not only are people at different stages in their lives, organizations are at different stages in their development as well.


The idea of Work/Home parity (or Balance) means different things to different people. The folks who recently retired most likely thought that the issue of balance was more of a sequential issue: “First I’ll work, and when I retire, I’ll play with the grandkids.” Baby Boomers are thinking about staying at work longer (often due to financial considerations), considering a second career, and may feel sandwiched in between the needs of elderly parents and their kids, just when the career pressures ramp up. Gen X-ers are entering midcareer and feel the pressure of making a misstep, while members of Gen Y are just starting out in the workforce and expect to put themselves first when it comes to life satisfaction.


When it comes to creating a Work/Home balance, different generational needs can often be addressed with technology, flextime, mentoring, providing opportunities for an accelerated on-ramp if they depart and return to work, and creating a culture that is values flexibility. Organizations are focused on their goals and people are focused on theirs. When the two dovetail – it can create a mutually beneficial relationship. It shouldn’t be a battle.

Today's Holy Grail: Balance

Seeking parity between work and home feels like you are on a quest in search of an elusive ‘holy grail’; it must exist out there somewhere! You know it does! You just have to find it!! Everyone who works has a life outsdie of the office, right?

Balance: What is it, what isn't it, and how can I get some? 


What works for one person simply doesn't work for another. It won't make sense to compare your work/life formula for balance to someone else’s. Given the reality that work and life are in constant flux, creating different pressures on us at different times, there ARE a few simple things to do to help create some balance in your life:

• Every once in a while review the demands on your time: What are the demands on your time at work and at home? What things are you involved in that are ineffective uses of your time at home and at work?

• Prioritize the demands on your time: Are you doing the right things first? Do you know what the most important tasks are or do you handle the easy things first, the biggest things first, or the loudest things first?

• Develop skills needed increase efficiency: If you have a tough time ending conversations, you need assertiveness skills. If you spend lots of time worrying about things that might happen in the future,  some stress management training would help. If you often miss deadlines, time management or project management skills are an area to improve in.

Integrate these techniques into your day becasue they help create a strong sense of balance:

Positive Self-Talk - The ability to tell yourself that you CAN do things and have handled things like this in the past serves as a reminder that you have managed before to deal with challenges and this is just another in the series;

RET (Rational Emotive Therapy)  - Reframe beliefs you have that create emotional reactions into more logical beliefs that don’t create as much internal chaos;

Letting Go of Perfectionism - Don't allow “Perfect” to get in the way of “Good.” You may be the only person who sees any difference between those two things;

Protect the Essential  - Those few things that are absolutly crucial are rare. They are critical to your values and standards so make sure you don't comproise them lightly.

Supportive Relationships  - You should be able to identify at least 5 people in the key areas of your life (Work, Family, Friends and Community) that can jhelp you should you be in need. The goal is to reduce the sense of isolation that can lead to stress and frustration.


Balance is really created by you for you. While it isn't always easy to manage the demands of work and home, if you know THAT - it's the first critical step in keeping your balance!

The 10 Commandments of the Mid-Level Manager

The 10 Commandments have served as a code of conduct by which we can live a moral life. Wouldn’t it be interesting (and make organizational life a little simpler) to have 10 Commandments for Mid-Level Managers? See if the following help with professional effectiveness and clarity.

As a Mid-Level Manager, thou shall -

1. Do what the Executive /CEO asks for
Like it or not, Mid-Level Managers exist so that executives can delegate tasks they don’t want to do, are too busy to do, or don’t have the expertise to do.

2. Focus upward (your boss) and downward (your direct reports)
You represent, support and articulate the policies and procedures set by Senior Management and you represent, support and articulate the concerns, interests and observations of your employees.

3. Understand the need for risk
Raising questions to your boss comes with the risk of being seen as insubordinate so effective communication (not total capitulation) skills are essential. That said – you are expected to carry out the goals your boss sets forth.

4. Know it will be a bumpy ride
Not everyone will like what you have to say so prepare for some unhappy folks, some bumps in the road, hurt feelings and misunderstandings, resentments along the way – if you are doing your job right, it is unavoidable.

5. Motivate the Flock
Understanding how to motivate an increasingly diverse workforce and keep them connected to the mission of the organization is a critical part of the job. As those things change, flexibility is an essential asset.

6. Go it alone
It is almost impossible to maintain friendships with people you used to work alongside now that you have control over their work, their resume and their paycheck. They say it’s lonely at the top, but without a strong professional network of peers, it’s lonely at in the middle too.

7. Leverages influence to get things done
The job involves your level of influence and your accountability involves the delivery of services or products that are used or consumed by someone inside your organization.

8. Handle talent with care
The job is about attracting, developing and retaining talent, and making everyone feel welcome, respected and valued.

9. Not make the big decisions
You won’t decide the new markets to enter, what the business strategy should be, select firms to merge with, determine how much to invest, and select the technology to employ.

10. Communicate with purpose
A great deal of time is spent mediating between teams and divisions within the organization, and between the organization and its customers. Mid Level Managers today negotiate between different interests and help them make key decisions about trade-offs.