HBR's 10 Must Reads for Mid-Level Managers (with bonus article "Managers Can't Do It All" by Diane Gherson and Lynda Gratton)

The Real Value of Middle Managers

by Zahira Jaser

THE IDEA OF MIDDLE MANAGERS as unexceptional, mediocre supervisors has been around for decades—at least since Abraham Zaleznik’s seminal 1977 HBR article, “Managers and Leaders: Are They Different?,” made a clear, explicit distinction between being a leader (an inspirational visionary) and being a manager (a strategic administrator). These ideas are still central to the concept taught in many MBA and executive development programs, where there’s a tendency to educate managers on how to “upgrade” and become leaders.

In my 20 years of being a middle manager and then researching them, however, I have developed great respect for them. They are the engines of the business, the cogs that make things ...