The reality for middle leaders and managers

📌 Making it Real for middle leaders: From AI generated infographics to real-life impact


Since AI has become a popular and increasingly used tool, there has been a swift increase in infographics appearing on LinkedIn and other platforms. A lot of leadership advice is being published using this method.

As someone who uses AI to do some of the heavy-lifting, I can see why people do this.

A lot of these posts come up with some very good starting points. This isn't a surprise because so much of their content has been scraped from established sources.

However, there is bound to be a limit to what they can offer.
Over the next few months, we will take the best of these, and by using our wide expertise, turn them into specific middle leadership tips and tactics.

Here's the first one:

➡️Problem: A member of your team feels they are standing still. Their career has stagnated.

🔖Solution: First, encourage your team members to tell you when they are in this situation.

☑️ Then find out what they want. What do THEY think is holding them back? It's that simple.

Often, they will have had a change of priorities since the last time you had an official review. For example, last November they had no desire to look for promotion, but something has changed and they now see that they would enjoy some extra responsibilities.

This is common when colleagues have rejected the idea of any type of advancement or change of roll for years! The frustration suddenly hits them.

☑️ As a middle leader, you will now be able to consider what tasks can be delegated in order to get things moving. But do not forget, as a middle leader, you will probably have to run things past your boss - budget implications, for example.

You don't want to promise things you can't deliver through no fault of your own. Also, this is a great time to use your 'leading upwards' skills - argue the case for your team member.

Or perhaps a lateral move would be good. This is when you can use your 'leading sideways' skills. What can other departments/ divisions/ branches offer?

In the perfect world, you shouldn't be caught out by a team member who is feeling blocked and ignored.

But very often, we just don't let the right people know. Encourage your team to not make that mistake.