gettoasty
Stylish Dinosaur
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- Feb 8, 2010
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I found this article interesting, but also surprising and depressing at the same time
What It's Like Being a Middle Manager Today
My parking lot right now is looking pretty empty, too ..
"Middle managers really want to feel that their company is loyal to them," says Jacob Spilman, a Portland, Ore.-based counselor who specializes in treating workplace stress and is creating a series of online seminars aimed at helping middle managers cope. "More and more often, that's a fantasy," he says.
What It's Like Being a Middle Manager Today
somewhere between senior leadership and the front lines, overseeing three direct reports along with three other subordinates. Her job affords her the freedom to run projects and pitch new ideas, but it's not without constraints.
Midlevel managers—whose ranks numbered 10.8 million in the U.S. last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics—are often dismissed as paper-pushers, perpetuators of groupthink and symbols of organizational bloat. But management experts say they're an essential layer of a company, turning top-line strategy into action, day by unglamorous day. Yet managing without much autonomy is stressful, and opportunities for getting ahead are limited.
It's easy for a middle manager to resemble "a rat on a wheel," working hard but not actually advancing, says Lynn Isabella, an associate professor of leadership and organizational behavior at University of Virginia's Darden School of Business.
She earns a good living, making more than $150,000 a year—nationally, the median earnings for middle managers just tops $90,000—but it doesn't go far in Marin County, Calif.
My parking lot right now is looking pretty empty, too ..