If you've ever had a day where someone senior says, Why isn't this sorted? While someone in your team says, Why are you doing this to us? And you're stood in the middle holding a lukewarm coffee and a sense of dread. You understand middle management. Middle managers are the people who keep the place moving. They translate plans into action. They carry the mood of the team. They take the first hit when someone's stressed, annoyed, or overwhelmed. They're the ones smoothing the bumps so customers don't feel the wobble and the team doesn't fall apart. And then we act surprised when they struggle. This is Buzzing About HR, and today we're talking middle managers. Why they struggle? What's really going on under the surface? And how you can help in ways that make a genuine difference. No fluff, no jargon. Just practical support. Hello and welcome back. It's Kate. Hazel is here too, my well-being officer. She sat nearby offering emotional support in the form of a dramatic sigh and an intense focus on whether I've got snacks. Hazel sighs. Translation Get on with it, Kate. Right. Middle managers don't struggle because they're weak. They struggle because the job is often set up to be impossible. They're the pressure point. Everything passes through them. Decisions come down from above, problems come up from below, and they're expected to fix all of it without enough time, power, or backing. Let's start with a truth that will make some business owners wince. If your middle managers are struggling, it isn't always a training issue. It's often a setup issue. A big one is accountability without authority. They're told they're responsible for results, but they can't always hire, change deadlines, adjust workload, approve tools, make decisions on flexible working, or even approve small changes that would prevent bigger problems. So they end up being blamed for outcomes they don't fully control. That chips away at confidence fast. It also creates that horrible feeling of constantly being on the back foot, like you're always defending yourself. Another reason is that we often promote people for being brilliant at the job, not for being trained to lead people. Being a great individual performer is not the same as being a great manager. Suddenly they're expected to coach performance, handle conflict, manage sickness, run meetings, deal with emotions, keep targets on track, and be the culture in human form. With no training and no time, it's a lot, and it's not just the doing either, it's the emotional weight. Middle managers hear everything first. I'm overwhelmed. This isn't fair. They're lazy. I can't work with them. I don't like change. I'm going off sick. I want to raise a grievance. They're often the first person someone cries in front of, or snaps at, or unloads on. They absorb everyone's feelings all day, then still have to deliver. If you don't support that, you burn out your managers quietly. They don't always kick off, they just switch off. Or they leave. Or they become blunt and detached because it's the only way to cope. Mixed messages from leadership make it worse. Be firm, be kind, improve performance, don't upset anyone, keep morale high, stop people leaving. Managers end up hesitant because they're thinking, if I handle this the wrong way, I'll get undermined. And when managers get undermined, the team learns they can just go over their head. That's how you lose control without even noticing. There's also the reality that middle managers are often doing two jobs. They're managing people and still expected to be the top doer. So they're leading between meetings, or at 7 pm, or while trying to squeeze in a quick chat in a corridor. Then we wonder why nothing is documented and the conversations are inconsistent. It's because they're trying to manage properly with no space to do it. Middle managers can also be isolated. They're not one of the gang, but they're not in the senior circle either. And when you're carrying pressure and you've got no safe space to offload or sanity check, everything feels heavier than it needs to. Here's the supportive truth. If your middle managers are struggling, you don't need to label them as the problem. You need to look at the system around them. The good news is systems can be fixed. So how do you help? First, give clarity on what good looks like. Not a massive framework framework, simple, real-world expectations. What are the non-negotiables? What decisions can managers make without asking? What should be escalated? What needs to be documented? What does good performance actually look like day to day, not on paper? When the line is clear, managers act faster and more fairly. When it's unclear, everything becomes a judgment call and judgment calls are exhausting. Second, match authority to accountability. If you're holding managers responsible for outcomes, give them basic decision power. Let them solve day-to-day problems without needing permission for everything. Let them make sensible calls within agreed boundaries. If managers have to ask for approval for every small thing, they stop leading and start forwarding emails. And you don't want a business full of people who forward problems instead of fixing them. Third, give them scripts for tough conversations. This changes everything. Most managers avoid hard conversations because they don't know what to say, or they're terrified they'll say the wrong thing and it'll blow up. Give them words they can start with. For example, I want to talk about what good looks like in this role. Right now the standard isn't being met. I'm not here to have a go at you. I want to help you improve it. Let's talk about what's getting in the way. Or for attendance. I've noticed your attendance has been a bit up and down. I want to understand what's going on and what support you might need. But we also need to be clear about what's expected. Or behaviour. I need to address how that came across. It isn't okay and it impacts the team. Let's reset the standard now. You don't need managers to be perfect. You need them to be willing to have the conversation early, calmly, and consistently. Fourth, back them up. Publicly. This is one of the biggest culture levers you've got. If a manager applies a reasonable standard fairly and leadership undermines them in front of the team, you've just killed their credibility. From that moment, the team learns they don't have to listen. And the manager learns it's safer to do nothing because acting gets them burned. Support publicly, coach privately. That's the rule. Unless something unsafe or inappropriate has happened, do not throw your managers under the bus to keep the peace. It costs you far more in the long run. Fifth, teach fairness in a way that feels doable. Managers worry about being accused of unfairness, so give them a simple framework. Be consistent. Be clear. Document the basics. Check patterns. Apply the same standards while still taking individual circumstances into account. And encourage them to keep simple notes. Date what happened, what was said, what was agreed. Not essays. Just enough to show a fair process. It protects them and it protects the business. Sixth, take some admin off their plates. If your managers are buried in holiday chasing, rota confusion, repeated basic questions, and process mess, they can't manage people properly. Fix one friction point and your manager suddenly has time and energy to lead. Sometimes you don't need to train managers better. You need to stop giving them five jobs at once. Seventh, give them regular support. Not an annual appraisal chat. A short monthly check-in where they can bring one people issue, one process blocker, and one win. Managers need a safe place to problem solve and sanity check. That's not babysitting. That's leadership. And it means problems get handled early instead of becoming a full-blown crisis with HR, formal meetings, and everyone stressed. Also, please stop pretending resilience is the fix. If the system is broken, be more resilient basically means cope harder. The real fix is clarity, authority, skills, backing and time. That's what builds resilient managers naturally. Now, a quick word on risk without the waffle. Middle managers are often where employee relations problems start. Not because they want conflict, but because they're unsupported and reacting in the moment. The biggest risks usually come from inconsistency, avoiding issues until they explode, not documenting, and trying to be everyone's mate, then suddenly getting strict. The safer route is early conversations, clear standards, and simple notes. And just to say this clearly because it matters, managing someone is being clear is not bullying. Setting standards is not bullying. But you need to do it fairly, calmly, and consistently. That's what keeps you safe and keeps relationships intact. If you're a business owner listening, here's a quick check. Do your managers know exactly what they're responsible for? Do they have authority to match it? Do they have scripts and training for tough conversations? Do they feel backed when they apply standards fairly? Have you removed obvious admin time wasters? Do they have regular support? If you've got a couple of no's, your managers aren't the issue. Your setup is. So let's get practical. This week, do one thing. Ask your managers, what's the hardest part of your job right now? Then listen without jumping in to fix it immediately. Pick one friction point to sort. One not ten. And give them one practical tool they can use immediately. A script. A checklist. A clear decision rule. Something that makes next week easier than last week. If you're a middle manager listening, I want you to hear this clearly. You are not failing because you find it hard. You are finding it hard because it is hard. And with the right support around you, it gets easier quickly. You can build confidence. You can get good at the conversations. You can lead without feeling like you're constantly bracing for impact. Hazel size again. Translation. Kettle on. Kettle on. Standards up. See you next time.