Why the manager is still your most scalable lever for performance—and how to rebuild the role so people want it.

We’ve all felt the shift; fewer people see management as an aspirational path, and even those who step up often feel overwhelmed. Recent research in the UK highlights the scale of this: over half of employees in middle-manager roles and below don’t aspire to management; 40% see it as necessary but unappealing; 12% actively avoid it. The top reasons for these stats are stress (54%), not enjoying people management (42%), and a pay premium that doesn’t feel worth the load (30%). Meanwhile, the work of management hasn’t disappeared – it’s just getting done unevenly, or not at all.

The uncomfortable truth: if we don't look after and develop managers, there'll be no one left to play the roles that turn strategy into results, no one to take on the roles of developer, coach, mentor, supporter, champion, challenger and engager. AI won't do it, org charts won't do it, and HR alone can't do it.

Your managers are the most scalable lever you have for culture, engagement and performance. Treat them as a critical system, or watch value leak out through avoidable attrition, slow execution and disengagement.

The manager role has expanded and become less attractive

There are many reasons why management roles have changed, and why people increasingly feel that moving into management doesn’t have the appeal it once did, including:

Scope creep. Today’s managers are asked to deliver numbers and steward wellbeing, balance hybrid routines (their own and their teams’), inclusion, change adoption and AI experimentation – usually with the same bandwidth. The result is a permanent cognitive overload.

Conflicted signals. “Be empowering and developmental… but hit this stretch target by Friday and keep the compliance plates spinning.” Mixed messages create risk aversion and decision paralysis, and how many managers have had the right training, at the right time, to help them?

Time poverty. Calendars fill with status meetings, tool updates and approvals. What should be the core work of management – coaching, prioritising, clearing blockers – gets squeezed into the remaining scraps of the week.

Ambiguous career value. Many see more stress without clear growth, recognition or pay. If there’s no visible upside, rational people will opt out.

So what? Capable people sidestep the role; accidental managers inherit teams; and the organisation pays twice – first in execution drag, then in preventable churn.

What high-performing organisations do differently

They treat management as an operating system (OS), not a title. They make it:

1. Doable: Right-size capacity and remove friction before training anyone.
2. Teachable: Build mindset and skill through tiny, frequent practice on real work.
3. Valuable: Make the manager premium visible in rewards, recognition and mobility.

Below is a practical blueprint you can apply without a reorg or a 12-month transformation.

The Manager OS: Seven roles, one clear standard

Give managers a simple, shared playbook. One approach that can be used is this “Seven Hats” model, where each hat has a purpose, a core behaviour, and a simple tool.

Clarity Setter

Coach

Connector

Challenger

Champion

Change Leader

Culture Shaper

Make the role doable: redesign the work before you train

Training can’t fix a broken job. Start with the job design.

1) Protect a Manager’s Time

Help your managers ring-fence at least 25–35% of each week for management: 1:1s, feedback, planning, and helping them to overcome blockers and obstacles to team success.

Why it matters:

No coach time = confused team, slow progress, and stressed people.

How to do it (three quick moves):

1. Check the calendar: Mark each meeting as “IC” (individual contributor – doing the work yourself) or “M” (managing/coaching). If “M” time is under 25%, that’s a problem.
2. Shorten meetings: Make internal meetings 35 minutes by default. Use the saved minutes for coaching and 1:1s.
3. One in → one out: If you add a new project, pause another. Otherwise, time magically disappears.

Example:

Coach has 40 hours. Protect 10–14 hours weekly for 1:1s, feedback, planning, and fixing blockers. That’s “Coach Time.”

2) Kill Busywork Drag (Reduce Admin Drag)

Busywork = work that doesn’t help the team win (like typing the same info into three systems or waiting for tiny approvals).

Why it matters:

Busywork eats coaching time and makes everyone slower.

How to fix it:

• Status lives in a dashboard: Don’t hold a meeting to read updates. Put the numbers in one place, people can check anytime.
• Simple approvals: Small spends should need 1–2 clicks, not five signatures.
• One template for asks: Use a one-page “Impact Brief”: What’s the problem? What did we try? What did it do? What do we need now?

Example:

Instead of a 45-minute “update” meeting, the team posts updates in the tool. The manager uses those 45 minutes to coach someone who’s stuck.

3) Right-Size the Team & Load (Spans of Control and Individual Contributor load)

A manager shouldn’t have more players than they can coach well, and they shouldn’t be doing so much hands-on work that they can’t coach at all.

Why it matters:

Too many direct reports = rushed check-ins and missed problems.

Too much “doing the work yourself” (IC load) = no time to help others grow.

Easy rules of thumb:

• Team size (direct reports):
• Manager doing hands-on work (IC load):

Fixes if it’s too heavy:

• Add a team lead to help with day-to-day coaching.
• Give a coordinator to handle admin and scheduling.
• Move a project to another team.
• Shrink the scope while the team is new or changing a lot.

Example:

If a manager has 12 new people and a big change project, that’s too much. Reduce reports to 7–8 or add a team lead until the change settles.

4) Make a clear Manager Deal (Before they start)

Write down the rules of the game to avoid any surprises. It’s like a simple contract between the manager, their boss, and HR.

What goes in the deal:

• Purpose: One sentence—why this team exists.
• Top 3 outcomes: What success looks like this year.
• Decisions: Which choices the manager gets to make vs. advise on.
• Time & load: Promise the 25–35% coach time and set a limit for hands-on work. Keep the one in → one out rule.
• How we work: The Seven Hats (Clarity, Coach, Connector, Challenger, Champion, Change Leader, Culture) with one simple tool for each.
• Support: A mentor, a peer group, and a short list of tools/templates.
• Rewards: What the pay/praise looks like when they build people and get results.
• Boundaries: Quiet hours, meeting-free blocks, and how we cover vacations.
• 90-day goals: Three clear targets (e.g., 90% of people have 1:1s, blockers get solved faster, one annoying process gets fixed).

Example:

“You’ll have 10–14 hours each week for coaching and planning. If we add a new project, we’ll pause one. You own decisions A and B, and help with C. We’ll measure your success by how your team grows and how fast work moves, not just by raw output.”

Build Skills That Stick

Think of a manager like a team coach who’s also still learning. To get better, you don’t need long classes; you need short, regular practice on real stuff. Practice beats PowerPoints.

1) Tiny weekly drills (15 minutes)

Month 1 example

• Week 1 – Purposeful feedback: Tell someone clearly what happened, why it mattered, and what to do next.
• Week 2 – Better 1:1s: Use a simple agenda: check-in → priorities → blocker → coaching → feedback → commit.
• Week 3 – Set the “Top Two”: Name the two most important outcomes for the team this week.
• Week 4 – Remove a blocker: Map who you need help from and ask for a yes/no decision.

2) Manager circles = practice squad

1. One person brings a real problem.
2. The group uses this week’s drill to help.
3. The owner picks one action to try before the next circle.
4. Next time, they share what happened (win or learn).

3) Just-in-time resources (keep them accessible)

Examples:

• “Purposeful Feedback” card (What | So What | Now what)
• “Top Two” weekly sheet
• “Dependency Map” checklist (who we rely on, what they need, who decides)
• “What Would You Do?” is a social space where managers can discuss everyday dilemmas in a safe environment, learning from each other and sharing experiences.

4) Stretch chances (but with a safety net)

Examples:

• Run one work-experience day or a mini project.
• Lead part of a team meeting (e.g., the “Top Two”).
• Shadow a tough conversation, then try the next one with support.
• Safety net: Agree on the goal, boundaries, and who has your back.

5) Simple reflection = faster learning

5-minute weekly check (write it in the 1:1 doc):

• What did I try?
• What worked?
• What didn’t?
• What’s one change for next time?
• Traffic light: Green = good; Amber = bumpy; Red = need help.

Reward the work that creates value

Incentives drive behaviour. Adjust them visibly.

Compensation and recognition.

• Make the manager premium explicit. Tie a portion to capability outcomes (internal promotions, skill lift) as well as business results.
• Publicly celebrate “manager moments” (where appropriate, consider private where preferences dictate) in all-hands: name the behaviour and the impact, not just the metric.

Dual tracks with parity.

• Ensure technical and managerial tracks can both reach top pay bands. People shouldn’t have to manage to progress – but if they choose to operate, they should see a clear upside.

Progression markers.

• Move beyond “team size” as a proxy. Use complexity handled, talent developed and cross-functional impact delivered as the badge of seniority.

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Measure what matters (leading indicators beat lagging ones)

Don’t wait for annual engagement scores. Track simple, behavioural signals:

• Manager activity: % of team with a monthly 1:1; # of purposeful feedback moments logged per month. Aim for 90%+ 1:1 coverage; “two pieces of feedback per person per month” as a norm.
• Talent signals: Internal fill rate for key roles (target 60%+); time-to-productivity for new hires (trend down month-on-month); regretted attrition of high performers (trend down).
• Execution health: Cross-functional cycle time (request → decision); blocker removal time; change adoption (measurable behaviour, not attendance).
• Wellbeing risk: Calendar load, after-hours send ratio, self-reported workload control. Use thresholds to trigger a coaching check-in, not a reprimand.

Publish the dashboard by division. Celebrate improvements loudly and share the playbooks that drove them.

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A 90-day rollout you can start next week

Days 1–30: Reset and simplify

• Codify the Seven Hats on one page. Socialise with managers and their leaders.
• Calendar audit for a representative group; reclaim 20% by killing or delegating low-value recurring meetings.
• Stand-up manager circles; schedule the first three sessions.
• Ship three micro-tools: 30-minute 1:1 guide, Clean Feedback script, Team Priorities Canvas.
• Success criteria: 80% adoption of 1:1 guide; 15% reduction in average manager meeting hours.

Days 31–60: Build capability in the flow

• Run weekly 15-minute micro-practices (one tool, one conversation, one reflection).
• Launch a lightweight manager dashboard (people basics + actions).
• Start recognising manager behaviours in ‘all-hands’/’town hall’ meetings.
• Pilot dual-track communications with clear examples of parity.
• Success criteria: 70% of managers log at least two clean feedback moments; time-to-decision improves by 10% in one cross-functional process.

Days 61–90: Lock in and scale

• Tie the Manager OS to performance dialogues and promotion criteria.
• Publish the first monthly manager health report.
• Fix one structural blocker per Business Unit (e.g., duplicate approvals, unclear decision rights).
• Expand manager circles; add advanced modules (coaching for performance vs. potential, leading change narratives).
• Success criteria: Internal fill rate improves by 10 points in targeted roles; after-hours send ratio drops; new-hire ramp improves by one week.

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Objections you’ll hear – and how to respond

• “We don’t have time.” You don’t have time not to. Reclaiming 20% calendar time typically returns more capacity within two weeks than any single headcount request.
• “Some people don’t want to manage.” Good. Keep dual tracks. But for those who do, make it a craft worth mastering.
• “Our environment is unique.” The hats are universal; the examples are yours to tailor. Start with one team, one Business Unit, one quarter.

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What this changes – for real

• Employees feel led, not just managed. Clear expectations, fair feedback, visible growth.
• Managers regain pride and energy. The job is doable, valued and supported.
• Leaders see throughput. Faster decisions, stronger execution, healthier succession.

If you don’t invest here, the gap doesn’t stay empty; it fills with inconsistency, mixed signals and avoidable attrition. If we do invest, managers become what we desire and intend: the multiplier of your strategy.

Where to begin: 

If the thoughts in this newsletter have caused you to pause, and you think you could do more to support your managers differently (or if you are a manager and you think you could be working differently), consider the following:

1. This week, protect two hours in managers’ calendars. Roll out the 20-minute 1:1 (wins (from last week), learnings (from last week), focus for the week ahead, and help required). Convene your first manager circle.
2. Next week, teach Purposeful Feedback and require one live practice per manager.
3. By the end of the month, publish your first manager health snapshot. Momentum beats perfection. The role of the manager is too important to leave to chance.

Tools for Managers

New Manager Playbook

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Consider the Social Learning Experience that blends gamification with group coaching and psychological safety – accelerate your development and raise the bar of your managers – introducing ‘What Would You Do?’