Give me What I Want but here’s What you Need: An Exploration of the Juxtaposition of Mid Level Managers as both Follower and Leader

Abstract

The catalyst for this study was the emergence of repeated statements by mid to senior level banking mangers about what they wanted to see in their supervisor and what they thought their employees wanted from them while attending an advanced degree program for senior bankers. These managers are questioned to ascertain if what they want from their managers coincides to what they feel their direct reports want from them as leaders. 574 mid to senior level managers are asked two open-ended questions and the results are categorized into four distinct areas: maturity, task engagement, relationship engagement, and personality. Responses provide an overview of similarities and misconceptions these managers hold in terms of understanding their relationships with both their subordinates and senior executives. It becomes clear that mid level managers are challenged by the duality of their roles. The pattern of responses give rise to the recommendation of management approaches to assist in keeping the mid level manager seamlessly connected to both senior executives and subordinates.