Engaging the Concrete Layer in Change

When I was involved in leading large-scale change in organizations, we often referred to middle managers as the “concrete layer” because the vision for change was set by the senior leaders. We sought to provide WIIFM (what’s in it for me) to the front-line employees, but the connection was often blocked by the middle managers who didn’t buy into the change and feared a loss of power by it.

What I realized over time was that we – the change leaders – were really the problem.  We had left out a critical group of stakeholders, the middle managers, and we needed to first get them on board before we went directly to the front-line staff.

Missing Managers

In a recent Korn Ferry survey of more than 15,000 professionals worldwide (from entry-level to CEOs across ten major geographic markets), they found the number 1 shift in the workforce is what they termed “missing managers.”  A big contributor to this phenomenon is that companies often cut the middle manager level in an attempt to cut costs.  This results in fewer managers with broader spans of control that lead to employee confusion and dissatisfaction, and ultimately, reducing productivity.  “43% of employees say their leaders aren’t aligned, and 37% say the lack of managers has left them feeling directionless.”

https://www.kornferry.com/insights/featured-topics/workforce-management/workforce-planning-insights

Key to Retention

The study also found that trusted managers were key to employee retention from the lure of a better rewards package from their competitors. “Our research for the World’s Most Admired Companies found that organizations with the highest motivation and engagement saw twice the revenue growth of their worst-performing peers.”  A significant percentage of employees (80%) say they would stay in a job because they have a manager they trust. This supports the common saying, “Employees don’t quit a job; they quit a bad manager.”

Next Steps for Engaging the Concrete Layer

What is your current state with respect to employee engagement and retention, productivity, and alignment with key objectives?  If you’re struggling with any (or all) of these, take a closer look at your middle managers.  If possible, segment your employee satisfaction results so that you can see how their issues differ from senior managers and front-line staff.  Or hold focus groups of a cross-section of middle managers to probe for concerns and obtain actionable feedback. We would love to hear from you regarding any insights you may get.