With traditional corporate structures undergoing seismic change in the wake of the Great Recession and the superseding of the Industrial Age by the Digital Age, one constant remains: the Middle Manager.
While estimated at only 7.6% of the U.S. workforce – some 10.8 million individuals – the often unsung middle manager is described by one M.I.T. scientist as "the most durable tech-proof profession out there." In other words, if you're a middle manager, you're unlikely to be replaced by artificial intelligence anytime soon.
Indeed, as business hierarchies are reconfigured and managerial pyramids flatten, the role of the middle manager is changing. Now the smart money is on companies that are refitting their organizations from the middle out.
Instead of thinking of your middle-management tier as task-oriented "doers," envision them as collaborative "innovators" while providing them with access to the technological platforms necessary to do their jobs in this day and age.