Organisations on the digital journey must often rethink their core roles and processes. However, digital ideas frequently don’t seem so attractive to internal stakeholders. Furthermore, things are likely first to get worse before they get better - and even then the process of improvement will be only gradual.
Why there are troubles with middle management?
Staff on this level usually perceive the change as a threat. They may feel as if they will soon be replaced by technology and analytics. Or they are afraid of having to learn new technologies.
Another factor is the time needed to learn and set up new routines. The majority of middle managers have to deal with many meetings, reports and other bureaucracy on a daily basis. So they usually have little time to keep pace with organisational initiatives. Involvement in digital initiatives is often not rewarded: in the end, official targets are what matters These cautionary words come from an article on the website of the INSEAD business school.
Middle management can also be “resistant” because they perceive a digital initiative as not bringing any real value. In fact, this could even be the case so that an honest questioning of the value proposition may be a valid critique.
Leading the change
Middle managers are not always concerned only about protecting themselves. They often also understand the importance of going digital. They see its potential as they use digital tools in their own lives. So you need to:
- Create a sense of opportunity, not only threat. Clarify what you are trying to achieve. Engagement is crucial.
- Create a narrative to educate constantly. You don’t need to turn middle managers into experts in data analytics, but some training may be perfectly appropriate.
- Make sure that digital roles and structures have the power to do their work. Only then will the topic be taken seriously.
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