Caught in the middle A toolkit for clarifying manager responsibility and authority (1).png
Caught in the middle A toolkit for clarifying manager responsibility and authority (1).png

Caught in the middle: A toolkit for clarifying manager responsibility and authority

CA$19.99

Caught in the middle: A toolkit for clarifying manager responsibility and authority is a practical, systems-focused toolkit designed for organizations that want to understand why managers are stretched thin and what to do about it.

Across many workplaces, manager roles have quietly expanded to include far more responsibility than they were originally designed to hold. Managers are expected to deliver outcomes, support wellbeing, handle conflict, accommodate individual needs, and absorb organizational instability, often without clear authority, updated policies, or meaningful escalation pathways.

This toolkit helps organizations surface where those expectations have drifted, where responsibility and authority are misaligned, and where managers are compensating for gaps in role design, policy, or governance.

Rather than focusing on individual performance or resilience, the toolkit is designed to support clearer role definition, better decision-making structures, and more sustainable management practice.

Caught in the middle: A toolkit for clarifying manager responsibility and authority is a practical, systems-focused toolkit designed for organizations that want to understand why managers are stretched thin and what to do about it.

Across many workplaces, manager roles have quietly expanded to include far more responsibility than they were originally designed to hold. Managers are expected to deliver outcomes, support wellbeing, handle conflict, accommodate individual needs, and absorb organizational instability, often without clear authority, updated policies, or meaningful escalation pathways.

This toolkit helps organizations surface where those expectations have drifted, where responsibility and authority are misaligned, and where managers are compensating for gaps in role design, policy, or governance.

Rather than focusing on individual performance or resilience, the toolkit is designed to support clearer role definition, better decision-making structures, and more sustainable management practice.

What this toolkit includes

This toolkit is structured as a three-part process:

  • A manager worksheet, capturing what managers are actually holding in practice, including informal or assumed responsibilities

  • A supervisor or HR worksheet, capturing how the organization believes the manager role is designed to function

  • A guided comparison and synthesis process, helping identify discrepancies and determine what type of response each issue requires

The toolkit also includes guidance for leadership on reviewing multiple completed exercises together to identify patterns that point to system-wide issues rather than isolated challenges.

Who this is for

This toolkit is designed for:

  • People managers and middle managers

  • HR and people operations teams

  • Senior leaders and executives

  • Public sector, nonprofit, and private sector organizations

It is especially useful for organizations experiencing manager burnout, role confusion, inconsistent expectations, or rising attrition among managers.

What this toolkit is and is not

This toolkit is:

  • A structured, practical tool for surfacing hidden work and misalignment

  • An input into role design, policy review, and governance conversations

  • A way to move from ad-hoc coping to intentional system design

This toolkit is not:

  • A performance evaluation tool

  • A leadership style assessment

  • A one-time exercise meant to be completed and forgotten

How it is typically used

Organizations often use this toolkit as:

  • A starting point for clarifying manager roles

  • An input into job description updates or policy redesign

  • A foundation for broader organizational or governance work

When used across multiple teams, the toolkit helps leadership see where similar issues are repeating and where system-level solutions are needed.