You know the type. Those managers somewhere in the middle of the org chart who get paid to sit in meetings all day, either nodding in agreement or offering criticism while remaining untouchable and unapproachable. They’re all terribly stressed because they’re constantly rushing from one meeting to the next.
The human touch as a strength
In between, there’s barely time to read or learn anything, because they’re constantly dealing with their teams. So what happens to them as artificial intelligence becomes more prevalent?
Will middle management be spared, or will they be the first to tumble? I reckon the sandwich managers will hold on to their positions, because they can do something the AI brains still can’t: the interpersonal stuff.
Adaptability is the key
As long as there are enough people to be managed, managers will keep their seats warm. It could be, though, that fewer employees are needed while more intelligent digital interns are brought in. At some point it might no longer be worth having someone in between who mainly slows things down without adding measurable value. But that’s still a way off — if it happens at all.
So the highly paid seat warmers (sorry if you’re one of them) can breathe easy for now. But: if they don’t understand the power of AI, cling to old power thinking, and fail to get their teams ready for AI — then their job starts wobbling after all.