"Being in and around the sites of core activity and business, and also by simultaneously being engaged in such, middle leaders have the greater capacity to lead practice development."

Leadership is always talked about as an essential factor for organisations to thrive and develop, and there have been countless articles and reports that list the essential qualities and attributes of a great leader. Indeed, most of leadership literature focuses on the ‘big boss’ – the one who leads ‘from the top’! Here we do not want to diminish the importance of good leadership ‘from the top’, but it seems simplistic and narrow to only consider this form of leadership. For any organisation beyond something small, there will be other leaders who will influence the functioning and success of the enterprise, and yet these leaders and these practices are rarely considered. We call these people ‘middle leaders’[i], and here we want to focus on their role and practices in leading organisations.

Middle leaders are those who have a position of authority or leadership, but are also engaged in the everyday work and business of the organisation – in the middle, between the senior management and the ‘on the ground’ staff. In a school these people might be a Head of Faculty, or in a business it might be the Group Leader, or in a hospital it might be the Head Nurse on a ward. These people have to provide leadership, but they also have to engage in the core work of the organisation, and in this way, they are different from the senior managers – they have different practices and they practice under different conditions and arrangements. From a sporting analogy, they are perhaps more like a team captain who has to lead in the midst of the action, rather than the coach who sits on the side and gives direction. As such, they require different models of leadership and unique professional development opportunities, but they are also well placed to provide leadership close to the site where the real business of the organisation occurs – e.g., laboratories, classrooms, wards, salesrooms.

Being in and around the sites of core activity and business, and also by simultaneously being engaged in such, middle leaders have the greater capacity to lead practice development. Often the senior leaders can provide conditions and arrangements to support (or constrain) the fundamental work of an organisation, but they can be too far away from the action to actually understand, implement, and sustain the ‘on the ground, day-to-day’ functioning, and so this is why middle leaders are crucial[ii]. However, importantly here, this requires senior managers to realise and acknowledge the important and different leadership work of middle leaders, and to provide resources, space, and professional development. Often middle leaders can become drawn into and overwhelmed by the bureaucratic and managerial work of an organisation, thus diminishing their capacity to undertake the particular and unique leading practices that their organisation needs, and while this is regularly the case, it seems particularly important at this time of upheaval and as workplaces return to some form of post-lockdown operations.

So, given the paucity of understanding, information, and support for middle leaders, what are some key considerations for organisational leadership in order to enable effective middle leading practices? Here we will make three points:

  1. Middle leaders provide leadership in the ‘hot site’ of the organisation;
  2. Middle leaders provide leadership for the core business of an organisation; and,
  3. Middle leaders provide leadership among awkward relationships.

Middle leaders provide leadership in the ‘hot site’ of the organisation

As has already been noted, middle leaders practice their leading in the very place where the core business of an organisation occurs (for example, the Head Mechanic in a workshop does not sit in an office in a ‘suit and tie’ – rather, they are in their overalls in the workshop). This means that their leading can, and has to be, responsive to the needs and requirements of the organisation’s work as it unfolds in time and space. Being in the midst of the action they can understand how the ‘core business’ is being undertaken and how their practices can be developed and improved and provide leadership that is nimble and timely.

Middle leaders provide leadership for the core business of an organisation

Being close to, and in, the action, middle leaders are able to provide leadership that direct influences the work and practices for which the organisation exists (for example, a Head Nurse on a ward is fundamentally responsible for the care of patients in that ward). In organisations, the senior management are usually the best paid and the most highly regarded, but often their leading influences ‘core business’ in an important but general sense (e.g., the Director or CEO of a hospital does not interact with patients on a regular basis), so clearly leading of middle leaders is important because it impacts ‘core business’ specifically and directly in the site where it occurs. The crucial nature of this site-responsive leadership means that senior managers and organisations need to ensure that middle leaders are not distracted and drawn away from this core role. Furthermore, they need professional development so they can grow their capacity to lead responsive staff development.

Middle leaders provide leadership among awkward relationships

Finally, as has been noted, middle leaders are simultaneously involved in both leading and undertaking the core work of the organisation (for example, a Head Teacher in a school has to lead their department while still teaching in a classroom). Of course, this can provide useful insights into the practices and activities of the staff, but it can also see them in a sometimes awkward and difficult position. First, sometimes middle leader can be lonely and isolated because they are not necessarily seen as part of the working group, but nor are they seen as part of the senior management. Second, their leading can be judged by their colleagues based on the ability to undertake the core business, while having to undertake this work without the normal time to think about and prepare for your practice (e.g., a Head Teacher evaluated on her teaching work rather than their capacity to lead). Finally, middle leaders are often appointed because they are good at the work of the organisation, but now as a leader their role is to facilitate quality work and outputs through the practices of others, and this requires a different set of skills and knowledge – hence the point above for specific and tailored professional development for middle leaders.

Workplaces and organisations are complex and dynamic places, and there is always a need to grow and develop in response to changing conditions. Organisations always need to be responsive to new and different conditions, needs and arrangements. To survive and thrive, organisations need effective and thoughtful leadership, and while this will come from senior leaders and managers in the ‘big picture’ sense, to be successful it will depend to a large degree on middle leaders – those who practice their leadership in the site of the ‘core business’ of the organisation.


[i] Grootenboer, P., Edwards-Groves, C., & Rönnerman, K. (2020). Leading from the middle: Pedagogical leadership in schools. Routledge

[ii] Grootenboer, P. (2018). The practices of school middle leadership: Leading professional learning. Singapore: Springer.

Peter Grootenboer is a Professor in Education in the School of Education and Professional Studies. Peter is the Acting Director for the Griffith Institute for Educational Research (GIER) within the University. Peter’s research has focused on professional practice, ‘middle’ leadership, action research and professional learning and change. Peter is an experienced school teacher, leader, researcher and academic.

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