Although most companies desire to leverage a knowledge-based, empowered workforce, they struggle to let go of a rigid top-down hierarchy.
In a top-down management culture, senior leadership mandates initiatives to middle managers, who translate those into tasks to be performed by front-line workers. In this scenario, senior executives are the only decision-makers, and front-line workers do what they are told, as passed through by middle managers.
As a result, those closest to the products or customers have no sense of power or ownership and cannot associate their daily tasks with the organization's strategic objectives. In addition, they have no forum for sharing or trying out their ideas about how to improve the way work gets done.
The crucial tasks of building continuity and ensuring front-line workers reach the strategic goals defined by the executive team should fall to middle managers. But enlisting them as enforcers rather than enablers impedes their potential value to the organization.
Additionally, that hierarchy creates other problems, such as the proliferation of functional silos. Each middle manager may focus on their own priorities based on their interpretation of senior management’s direction. This may lead to conflict over resources, localized improvements, competition for recognition, and disconnection from the organization's strategic objectives. Front-line staff may find this work environment frustrating and stressful.
Successful lean organizations break this pattern by redefining the management pyramid.
The role of middle managers in a Lean transformation is that of improvement culture facilitators. They have three crucial responsibilities:
By adopting this approach, middle managers transform from enforcers to enablers and create an open conduit from the senior executive team to the front lines.
Middle managers are in the prime position to support the five core Lean principles:
Organizations that have successfully adopted Lean practices, including Toyota, General Electric, Motorola, DuPont, and Merrill Lynch, have evolved their middle managers into change leaders by leveraging strategy deployment within the Lean framework.
Strategy deployment, also called Hoshin Kanri, is a structure for translating key objectives of senior leaders into an annual plan with specific steps and accountability. It starts with senior management crafting breakthrough goals that can be achieved in three to five years. These cascade into yearly goals and improvement priorities. Further, they break down tasks for every level of the organization.
Strategy deployment prioritizes the organization's goals, centering the significant few from the trivial many and propagating the discipline to focus on the few crucial metrics. This alignment helps managers allocate resources and accurately prioritize improvement efforts when it comes to execution.
For this reason, middle managers should be involved in the process of creating the annual goals as well as the deployment plan. Involving them in the early stages of strategy deployment empowers middle managers to actively enable their teams. In addition, their involvement helps ensure strategic alignment and improve decision-making at every level.
Nurturing middle management with the adoption of Lean principles and strategy deployment results in enormous benefits. Once they become skilled at coaching and empowerment, middle managers can let go of low-value responsibilities and focus on opportunities that align with the organization's strategic goals. By doing so, they can increase the productivity and effectiveness of their team by spending more time improving processes, training, coaching, and promoting knowledge transfer that builds Lean culture.
An added benefit of reframing middle managers in a Lean organization is the development of leadership skills, forming a pool of future senior leaders.
So, what does empowered middle management look like in practice? It starts with leader standard work. In the same way that standard work defines the current best practice for any activity or task, leader standard work sets out the tools, actions, and behaviors practiced daily by managers. In general, 50% of a middle manager's time should be spent on these activities, including:
It is clear that middle managers play an essential part in the success of Lean. Senior leaders must ask a lot from those in this role, so executives must create the conditions necessary for success. Crucial steps include:
If you look at successful Lean organizations, you will find middle managers who are empowered, engaged, and excited to fulfill the organization's purpose. They understand their annual objectives and know how to get the most creativity and innovation from their team. Likewise, you will find senior leaders who understand the crucial role of middle management and dedicate the resources to help them succeed.