Over the past year or so, many of the conversations I’ve been having with HR and L&D leaders have circled around the same question:
AI has quietly embedded itself into everyday work. It’s supporting planning, analysis, communication, and tracking progress in ways that were simply not possible a few years ago. That naturally raises questions about which parts of the manager role still need to sit with people, and which don’t.
What I’m seeing isn’t organisations wanting to remove managers altogether. It’s more a sense of uncertainty about what managers should now be focusing on.
For a long time, many middle management roles have been heavily weighted towards coordination.
Keeping on top of work. Monitoring progress. Pulling together updates. Making sure things didn’t fall through the cracks.
AI is increasingly good at those things, and often quicker and more consistent than humans. That doesn’t make managers redundant, but it does change where their value lies.
In 2026, a manager’s impact comes less from overseeing tasks and more from applying judgement.
AI can highlight what’s happening, but it can’t decide what matters most, what needs attention now, or how to respond in a way that fits the context of a particular team or organisation.
This is where I see the manager role shifting towards being a strategic enabler.
As work becomes more complex and fast-moving, the old command-and-control model of management struggles to keep up.
Instead, managers are increasingly expected to enable performance rather than control it.
That shows up in a few key ways.
First, helping teams use AI tools well in their day-to-day work, without becoming overwhelmed or distracted by them.
Second, applying emotional intelligence. Change, ambiguity, and shifting expectations affect people in different ways. Managers play a critical role in managing their own reactions, noticing how change is landing with others, and supporting their teams through it.
And third, developing people through coaching rather than oversight. Less time spent checking progress, more time spent helping people think, learn, and adapt as roles continue to evolve. None of this is about doing more. It’s about doing different work.
At Willow & Puddifoot, we’ve always believed that leadership is a craft. It’s something that develops over time through practice, experience, and reflection.
If we want managers to operate as strategic enablers, we have to move them away from a narrow focus on task supervision and give them stronger foundations instead.
That’s why all of our programmes are built around our CRAFT™ leadership framework: Communication, Resilience, Authenticity, Future focus, and Transformation.
Whether someone is a new manager on our Ignite programme or a more experienced leader on Elevate, the focus is on building the skills that allow managers to make good judgements, have better conversations, manage themselves under pressure, think ahead, and lead change with confidence.
There’s a lot of discussion about when organisations will start to see a return on their AI investments.
But that value won’t come from technology alone.
It will come from managers who can combine insight with judgement, emotional intelligence, and critical thinking. Managers who know when to rely on the tools, when to question them, and how to translate output into meaningful action for their teams.
So perhaps the real question isn’t whether the middle manager still has a role.
It’s whether we’re redefining that role clearly enough, and developing managers properly for what’s now being asked of them.
Louise Puddifoot is the founder of Willow & Puddifoot, where she and her team CRAFT™ confident, capable leaders at every stage. With over 20 years’ experience in leadership and learning, Louise designs practical development that builds confidence, capability, and impact. Her work is built on the CRAFT™ Leadership Framework, focusing on communication, resilience, authenticity, future focus, and transformation, to create real behaviour change that lasts.
If you have any questions about this article you can contact Louise who would love to hear from you.