Once thought of as a mere bridge between junior staff and senior management, the role of a middle manager has evolved. With technology and a talent crunch appearing to shift the balance of power towards employees, organisations will have to do more or find new ways to keep their brightest talents.

One way lies with an existing group of employees: Managers. On top of traditional responsibilities of ensuring their teams run smoothly and meet their targets, we have found that managers need to play an increasingly greater role in retaining talent.

Here’s why their stock has never been higher, and how organisations can better value their middle management.

“Employees leave managers, not companies”

While those at the higher echelons set the tone and direction for their organisations, employees are more likely to be influenced by the very people they work with daily – their managers. This is especially true for bigger MNCs where their senior leaders are either based elsewhere or rarely interacting with the rest of the staff.

A possible reason for this trend could be attributed to employees placing more emphasis on their manager’s values than that of their organisation, as indicated by 3 in 5 respondents in our Workforce Insights report. People relate better with people, more so with those they work closely with at least 40 hours a week. Naturally, managers will have more influence on employees than organisations could have.

In the same vein, it is likely an employee will leave the organisation if they are unhappy with their manager, or if their manager’s values do not align with their own. The adage “employees leave managers, not companies” now holds truer than ever before.

Uniting their team to greater heights

As mentioned, managers engage with their teams on a regular basis, in a manner that most senior management will never be able to achieve.

This presents managers with valuable insight into what makes each of their team members tick, their career goals and personal aspirations. With this deep understanding, good managers can then find ways to bring the team together and help each of them feel a greater sense of belonging at their workplace, which 50% of respondents attributed as the main reason for the preference towards manager’s values.

Under the charge of a manager who consistently engages with his team, employees tend to be more productive and resilient. This ability to unite their team towards common goals makes good managers invaluable to any organisation.

Retain the best by investing in your best

Today’s employees seek to advance their “portfolio careers” quickly by moving between organisations, replacing the traditional notion of lifelong employment at a single company.

With talents placing greater consideration on their manager’s values when considering a possible exit, organisations can improve their talent retention rates at the onset by empowering their managers during the recruitment process.

Managers can hire candidates with similar values right from the get-go, subsequently increasing the likelihood of their team staying longer. This coincides with the 60% of hiring manager respondents believing their values can influence their team’s career choices.

Conversely, these employees are also more likely to leave should their manager leave and, worse still, be replaced with another with conflicting values. This is perhaps why handing such great power to your managers brings with it great responsibility for organisations to value them.

A big part of talent retention nowadays starts with valuing and retaining your best managers. Given the increasingly international composition of today’s workforce, managers are emerging as key influencers in a multinational and multicultural workplace. Instead of eliminating or reducing middle management, organisations should instead invest in their capable and engaging managers, potentially reaping the rewards of improved talent retention rates.

Learn more about organisational values in our Q2 2018 APAC Workforce Insights report.

Interested to find out what we can do for you? Reach out to us today!