Reframing Middle Management with Gary Cookson

About this episode

Gary Cookson discusses the importance of middle management in today's fluid work environment and explores themes from his book, The Squeezed Middle.

In Reframing Middle Management , Gary Cookson explores why the “ squeezed middle ” matters more than ever in a fluid, fast-changing world of work—and how middle managers carry culture, sense-make through uncertainty, and lead without formal authority. In this episode of Reframe Your Mindset for Success , Paul is joined once again by Gary Cookson to explore his latest book, The Squeezed Middle , and to reframe how we think about middle management . As the future of work becomes more fluid, complex and uncertain , middle managers are often the people carrying the greatest burden—yet receiving the least recognition. They are the bridge between strategy and reality, the people expected to absorb pressure from above while supporting teams below. Gary explains why the “ squeezed middle ” has long been the layer most exposed to cuts, change and competing demands, yet remains absolutely central to organisational success. This conversation shines a light on the invisible work middle managers do every day: the emotional labour , the sense-making, the relational strain, the culture-carrying, and the difficult balancing act of leading often without formal authority . Gary shares why middle…

People in this episode

Host: Paul Corke

Guest: Gary Cookson

Topics covered

• middle management
• organizational culture
• leadership
• future of work
• emotional labor

Keywords

• middle management
• squeezed middle
• organizational success
• leadership without authority
• emotional labor

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: The Squeezed Middle

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