Manager Burnout: Middle Managers Caught in the Middle

Why is manager burnout most common in middle management? Learn the load of being caught in the middle, early signs and steps organisations can take.

The targets coming from senior management rise a little higher every quarter; the requests, complaints and leave applications coming from the team never end. The person who defends the figures at the morning production meeting, listens to an employee's family problem in the afternoon and sends a message about tomorrow's shift plan in the evening is the same person: the middle manager. Whether they appear as a foreman, shift supervisor or department head in factories, or as a team leader or unit manager in offices, these people are the organisation's most critical yet often least supported link. Manager burnout is a risk that grows quietly in this link. In this article, for business owners, senior executives and HR professionals, I look at why middle managers struggle so much, the early signs of burnout and the concrete steps organisations can take.

What Is Manager Burnout?

The World Health Organization defines burnout as "a syndrome conceptualised as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed" and lists three dimensions: feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion, increased mental distance from one's job or feelings of negativism related to one's job, and reduced professional efficacy (WHO, 2019). The WHO classifies burnout not as a medical condition but as an "occupational phenomenon".

Managers are not outside this definition either; however, in managers burnout shows itself in distinctive ways. Managers often feel they have to hide their own tiredness from their team; the belief that "I must look strong" makes it harder to ask for help. Moreover, a manager's burnout affects not only them but the whole team they manage. For individual symptoms and the recovery process, you can read the burnout syndrome article.

The data also show that this risk is growing. According to Gallup's 2026 report, the engagement rate of managers worldwide is 22%, down 9 points since 2022 (Gallup, 2026). According to the same report, global employee engagement fell for a second year in a row to 20%. It is not surprising that the loss of engagement among managers is reflected in the engagement of their teams.

Why Do Middle Managers Struggle More?

The middle manager's job is to be a bridge between two different worlds. This bridging position creates its own pressures:

Being caught in the middle: pressure from both directions

The middle manager passes senior management's decisions on to the team and carries the team's voice upwards. But these two sides do not always want the same thing. While senior management wants cost cuts and higher targets, the team wants more staff, less overtime and pay rises. The manager has to defend decisions they did not make and may be seen by both sides as "the other side's person". This constant role conflict is one of the known sources of burnout.

Lots of responsibility, little authority

Middle managers are held responsible for results, but the decisions that determine those results, that is budget, headcount, pay and equipment, are often not in their hands. The "control" and "role at work" headings among the categories of psychosocial hazards listed in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security's (ÇSGB) 2024 guide describe this situation directly (ÇSGB, 2024).

Both manager and doer

Many middle managers continue their own operational work while managing their team. The foreman both runs the line and steps in at the machine when there is a breakdown; the team leader both coordinates their team and delivers their own projects. When management is squeezed in between "the real job", both the management and the work suffer.

Emotional labour

Employees' personal problems, conflicts within the team, performance conversations, news of redundancies... The middle manager carries a significant share of the organisation's emotional load. And often they have received no training in this at all.

Unprepared promotion

Making the best worker on the shop floor a manager is a common practice. But moving from technical mastery to people management requires different skills. A promotion made without training and support can lead the person both to struggle in their new role and to lose their former sense of achievement.

The load of periods of change

In processes such as restructuring, digital transformation, downsizing or mergers, the heaviest implementation load falls on the middle tier. In times of economic uncertainty and a high cost of living, they are also the first people to meet employees' worries about pay, job security and the future.

The middle manager is the person who carries the organisation's decisions but is often not included in them; their burnout feeds on this imbalance.

Early Signs of Manager Burnout

Managers rarely say openly that they are struggling. For this reason, it is important for senior executives and HR to watch for the following signs:

• Constantly working until late, not taking leave, or continuing to work while on leave
• A previously patient manager turning into someone irritable, sarcastic or prone to sudden reactions
• Cancelling team meetings, postponing one-to-ones, withdrawing from the team
• Struggling to make decisions or, on the contrary, trying to control everything alone
• Expressions of helplessness such as "Nothing I do is enough" or "These things never change"
• Sudden staff losses, a rise in absence or intensifying conflicts in their team
• Physical complaints such as sleep problems, constant fatigue and headaches

These signs may have different causes and do not by themselves mean burnout. But if several occur together and have lasted for weeks, a respectful and supportive conversation with the manager is needed.

The person to have this conversation is usually the manager's own line manager or HR. It is important to frame the conversation as a support conversation rather than a performance review. An opening based on observation and free of judgement, such as "I've noticed that you've been working weekends and postponing meetings in recent weeks; how is the load going?", prevents defensiveness. After that, it helps to listen to what is most difficult for the manager, to agree two or three concrete steps together rather than imposing solutions straight away, and to set a date to meet again soon. To reduce the manager's fear of "looking weak", it also helps to say that such conversations are a routine practice in the organisation.

How Does a Manager's Burnout Affect the Team and the Company?

A systematic review examining 36 prospective studies showed that burnout predicts later outcomes such as job dissatisfaction, absenteeism, presenteeism and new disability pension, as well as insomnia, depressive symptoms and serious injuries (Salvagioni et al., 2017). In a manager, this picture multiplies its effect:

• Decision quality falls: An exhausted manager makes shorter-term, more defensive decisions.
• The team climate deteriorates: Impatience, anger or indifference erodes the team's trust. The behaviour of a struggling manager can, over time, turn into patterns perceived as toxic management.
• The early warning system collapses: A manager crushed under their own load cannot notice a struggling employee in their team.
• Staff loss: Both the manager themselves and their team may start to lean towards leaving. In an analysis carried out in the UK, around 40% of the costs of staff turnover were attributed to mental health problems (Deloitte, 2022).
• Safety at work: A tired and distracted shift supervisor in a production environment can cause risks to be overlooked.

Managers' Position Under the Legislation

In Turkey's Occupational Health and Safety Law No. 6331, the concept of "employee" also covers managers. The employer's obligation to ensure employees' work-related health and safety (Article 4) and the obligation to develop a prevention policy covering factors related to work organisation and social relationships (Article 5/f) also apply to managers. Within the scope of Article 8 of the Risk Assessment Regulation, which provides for identifying sources of psychosocial hazards, role conflict, excessive workload and an imbalance between authority and responsibility in managerial roles are also matters that can be assessed.

What Can Organisations Do to Prevent Manager Burnout?

1. Redesign the role. Measure how much time the middle manager can devote to management work. If the operational workload makes managing impossible, review the division of tasks, the team size or the support staff.

2. Balance authority and responsibility. If you hold a manager responsible for the outcome, also give them a say in the decisions that affect that outcome. Giving a defined area of decision-making on matters such as budget, shift planning or the allocation of tasks within the team reduces the feeling of helplessness.

3. Involve them in decisions early. Where possible, discuss decisions that are expected to be passed on to the team with middle managers beforehand. A manager who knows the reasoning can pass the decision on more consistently and answer the team's questions.

4. Provide management training together with the promotion. In the World Health Organization's guidelines on mental health at work, the recommendation with the strongest evidence is mental health training for managers (strong recommendation, moderate-certainty evidence) (WHO, 2022). In a randomised controlled study at a fire and rescue service in Australia, after a 4-hour mental health training given to managers, work-related sick leave in teams was found to have fallen by 18% compared with baseline (Milligan-Saville et al., 2017). This study was carried out in a single organisation and the results need to be replicated in other settings; however, it points to the importance of investing in managers. For details, you can read the mental health training for managers article.

5. Give the manager a "manager" too. Middle managers should be able to have regular one-to-ones with their own line managers; in these meetings, not only the figures but also the load and the difficulties should be discussed.

6. Set up peer support. Regular meetings where managers at the same level share experience reduce the feeling of "I'm the only one going through this" and produce practical solutions.

7. Offer individual support. A meta-analysis examining workplace resilience programmes found that the one-to-one (coaching) format was the most effective; however, the overall effect is small and fades over time (Vanhove et al., 2016). For this reason, individual support should be considered alongside organisational change, not in place of it. The option of confidential psychological counselling allows managers to safely share a load they cannot talk about inside the organisation.

8. Protect boundaries at organisational level. Set clear rules that also cover managers for out-of-hours communication, leave use and meeting load. When senior management does not send messages at night, it gives the middle tier the message that "resting is allowed".

Imagine a production manager at an automotive supplier factory who is responsible for two shifts and has worked almost every weekend over the last six months, both because of a new customer project and because two foremen left. In meetings they have become increasingly quiet, and harsher towards their team. If senior management reads this as a "performance problem", the manager is simply given a warning and the problem deepens. Yet reviewing the role's workload, filling the missing foreman posts and offering the manager support would protect both the manager and the department.

How Do You Get Started in Your Organisation?

Needs analysis: Through a confidential survey designed specifically for managers, workload, role clarity, the balance of authority and responsibility, support received from senior management and burnout symptoms are measured. Data such as managers' overtime, leave use and the staff turnover rate in their teams complete the picture. Focus group discussions make visible the problems that the middle tier cannot easily raise upwards.

Programme: Depending on the results of the analysis, role design and authority arrangements, management training, peer support groups and individual support are planned together. Cognitive behavioural stress management work can help managers notice draining thought patterns such as "I must solve everything myself". You can look at the corporate services page to see how such programmes can be structured.

Measurement: The baseline survey is repeated at set intervals; indicators of absence, resignation and engagement among managers and their teams are monitored. The International Labour Organization recommends regular monitoring of this kind of indicator (ILO, 2026).

Frequently Asked Questions

Is manager burnout different from employee burnout?

The definition is the same; the difference lies in the sources and in the form of the impact. In managers, role conflict, an imbalance between authority and responsibility and emotional labour are more prominent risk factors. In addition, a manager's burnout can affect their whole team.

How can I spot a burned-out manager?

Not taking leave, constantly working until late, growing irritability, withdrawing from the team and sudden staff losses in the team are important signs. These signs do not by themselves amount to a diagnosis; talking to the manager without judgement and offering support is the first step.

Is supporting a middle manager expensive?

Support does not always require a big budget. Steps such as role clarity, regular one-to-ones, peer meetings and early involvement in decisions are low-cost. In addition, according to UK data, early and preventive interventions are reported to deliver a higher return in investment in employee mental health (Deloitte, 2024).

When should a manager experiencing burnout seek professional support?

If symptoms have lasted for weeks, sleep and daily functioning are clearly affected, or feelings of hopelessness are getting heavier, it helps to consult a mental health professional. If there are thoughts of self-harm, support should be sought without delay, and in an emergency 112 (emergency services) should be called.

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Eda Erkan Alapala

Klinik Psikolog. İstanbul Kent Üniversitesi Klinik Psikoloji Tezli Yüksek Lisans mezunu; bilişsel davranışçı terapi, çocuk merkezli oyun terapisi ve çocuk-ergen psikoterapisi alanlarında eğitimlerini tamamlamıştır.

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