Middle Managers: The Silent Risk to Psychological Safety

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Welcome back to The Lab. I'm your host, Greg Gillum, and today we're unpacking insights from the latest Harvard Business Review article, Middle Managers Feel the Least Psychological Safety at Work. So psychological safety, the belief that you can speak up, you can ask questions, you can admit mistakes without fear, that's crucial for learning. It's crucial for innovation and engagement. But here's the surprising twist.

Middle managers, the backbone of most organizations, report the lowest levels of psychological safety. Let's explore why, what that means for you and your team, and what you as a manager can do about it. Well, Amy Edmondson of Harvard first defined psychological safety as a shared belief that a team is safe for interpersonal risk taking. It's what allows people to say, you know what, I might be wrong about this, but here's what I think. Or we made a mistake. Let's learn from it.

When it's missing, people play it really safe. They hide problems. They avoid questions. They stop innovating. And when the people in the middle, your managers, feel unsafe, the whole system suffers. Ideas stop flowing up or down. HBR's research here shows middle managers are really caught in a very unique squeeze. There's pressure from above to hit goals and to execute strategy. And then there's a responsibility below to support and develop their teams.

Yet limited control over decisions or resources. So they're expected to translate big picture vision into daily results, but often feel they can't question directives or admit uncertainty. And that double bind breeds silence. And when managers stay silent, learning stops and risks go unnoticed. So here's four quick takeaways from the research and some real-world examples that I think will help us think through the importance of this article.

Number one, psychological safety does not equal comfort. It's not about avoiding conflict. It's about making it safe to challenge ideas and admit mistakes. Number two, middle managers are both bridge and bottleneck. If they don't feel safe, communication between senior leadership and employees then breaks down. Thirdly, leaders shape safety through behavior, not slogans. One dismissive reaction from a senior leader can undo months of progress.

And then fourthly, safety is built through small, consistent actions. Regular check-ins or curiosity and gratitude for honesty create the conditions for openness.

So what can we do? Senior leaders, this is for you. Here are three things that we can do as senior leaders to help fix this gap. Model vulnerability. Share your own missteps. That tells managers that it's okay to be human. Second thing is to create direct communication channels. Give middle managers the forums they need to raise issues safely and to see visible follow-up. And lastly, reward candor.

Recognize people who speak up, not just those who deliver flawless results, if there was such a thing.

Okay, if you're a middle manager and you're sitting there shaking your head, yes, yes, yes, this is me. Here's what you can do. Ask open questions. What are we missing here or what's getting in the way? Invite honesty from your team and from your managers. Admit uncertainty. Try saying, I don't have all the answers. That signals to everyone that it's okay for others to do the same. Third, build peer networks. Connect with other managers to share your own challenges.

Collective safety boosts individual courage. And finally, turn mistakes into learning. When something fails, debrief what was learned, not who's to blame.

And for those of us like me who are in HR or who are on people committees, include psychological safety in engagement surveys. Make sure you're measuring that in some way. Offer training for managers on leading with curiosity and vulnerability, and then track whether middle managers feel heard and supported, not just how they perform.

So psychological safety drives learning and innovation, but it starts with the people in the middle. When middle managers feel safe, they create safety for everyone else. So this week, try one simple step. Ask your team, what's one thing we're not talking about that we should be talking about? Then listen, without judgment, that small act could spark the openness your organization needs most.

Well, thanks for listening today. If you found this helpful, share it with another manager and join us next time as we explore how great leaders build trust, courage, and connection at work. And until next time we meet in the Manager Lab, do good work.