Everyone in the Middle

Guess what is not happening right now?

Nothing.

Nothing is not happening and it's coming from all directions. Some folks are thoroughly enjoying this moment in time, some are grinding their teeth waiting for change, and others are trying to make effective change to influence their situations.

Everyone who has any role in our capitalist society can be seen as in the middle. There are pressures of different types, from varying angles, with wildly swinging influence. Consider topics such as AI disruption, geopolitical volatility, and evolving workforce expectations if you're seeking examples of 'all the things.'

What we can collectively do, is respond to the moment and try our best to move forward with purpose and integrity. At the center of this storm are middle managers who are currently caught in a debilitating squeeze. This squeeze occurs as executives set ambitious strategic goals from above while direct reports demand increasingly personalized, adaptive support from below.

To be crystal clear, middle managers as a group is a very large cohort. Anyone with supervisory responsibility to reports to anyone else could be considered "middle management." The intent is not to compare how hard things are for people in different positions, but to highlight the stressors and possible reactions for people who are responsible to and for their peers and colleagues.

Recent research indicates that people leaders are 1.7 times more likely to experience high stress than individual contributors, with 40% reporting an inability to maintain work-life balance. Many have become organizational catchalls, tasked with delivering strategy, culture, and emotional support without the necessary clarity or capacity. This is compounded by a significant training gap characterized by 37% of supervisors receiving training upon promotion, and 74% report never receiving ongoing development thereafter.

Transitioning to a Skills-First Culture 

To survive this shift, upper management must pivot from qualification-centric hiring to a skills-based paradigm. While 73% of companies have already begun using skills-based hiring, 60% still reject qualified candidates simply for lacking a degree. This shift is not just about recruitment; it is about retention. Employees hired based on skills stay 9% longer than those hired through traditional methods. Furthermore, as AI automates routine tasks, leaders must prioritize human-centric competencies like emotional intelligence, empathy, and relationship-building.

Actionable Strategies for Upper Management

To empower middle management and foster a resilient culture, organizations must:

1. Redesign the Role: Clarify the purpose of the people leader and account for "invisible" emotional labor in workload calculations.

2. Hard-wire Equity: Integrate level-setting practices like structured interviews and transparent scoring to ensure applicants are hired includes different ways of knowing, thinking, and doing.

3. Modernize Performance Management: Move from annual ratings to dynamic, transparent goal-setting. An effective leader will meet with individuals on their team regularly and discuss performance as well as aspirations. This ensures the annual review contains no surprises.

Ultimately, organizations that treat human capital as expendable might be financially successful but will be absolutely throwing money away due to wasted resources on preventable turnover. Organizations that integrate equity and human-centric leadership into their core will grow and innovate. Even if they don't create trillion dollar valuation, employees will be more productive, more loyal, and will have increased longevity.

Sources:

• Archie. (2026, January). Companies returning to office: RTO tracker [January 2026]. Archie Blog.

• BDO USA. (2026, February 19). BDO USA named to Newsweek’s 2026 list of America’s greatest workplaces for culture, belonging & community [Press release].

• Brower, T. (2025, March 30). Top 5 leadership challenges keeping leaders up at night. Forbes.

• ChildFam Possibilities Psychosocial Services. (2026, January 6). Why 'New Year, New You' is outdated: Embracing sustainable mental health in 2026.

• Emergenetics. (2026). The middle management squeeze 2026: Why supervisors are often overlooked and how to empower them.

• From Day One. (2025, July 22). When CEOs talk tough, what should HR leaders bring to the conversation?.

• HR Executive. (2026, January 16). One year since DEI rollbacks: A crossroads for HR?.

• McKinsey & Company. (2026, February). The state of organizations 2026: Nine shifts transforming organizations.

• McLean & Company. (2025, November 28). People leaders are overloaded and undersupported, McLean & Company finds in major new study [Press release]. PR Newswire.

• Nursing Times. (2026, February 17). Workforce pressures and toxic workplace culture revealed by NMC survey.

• Russell Reynolds Associates. (2025). Shorter runways, higher stakes: What today’s CEO turnover means for boards and succession (Global CEO Turnover Index Report 2025).

• SHRM. (2026). Transforming HR: The rise of skills-based hiring and retention strategies. WorkplaceTech Spotlight.