Monopoly og Knowledge: Middle Management

Every company deals with legacy systems and outdated technology that slows innovation. But there’s an equally damaging, often-overlooked legacy: legacy people — those entrenched in the organization for years, often resistant to change, preserving the past rather than driving the future.

In an agile organization, the ideal structure has a wide base, a lean middle, and a focused top. But in many companies, especially those with long histories or heavy acquisitions, the middle bulges. Instead of facilitating change, middle management becomes a choke point for new ideas, innovation, and speed. Legacy people often reinforce outdated norms, creating a thick “knowledge monopoly” that locks the company in the past.

Take Nokia, for instance. Their middle management’s attachment to legacy practices was one of the reasons they missed the smartphone revolution. They were drunk on tradition and completely missed the tech tidal wave of the iPhone. Look where that got them! Rigid, risk-averse thinking stopped them from seeing the future beyond their once-successful past.

Organizations often assume that the most experienced people fit senior roles best. But experience can breed inertia. Legacy people, locked into a way of doing things, usually need more perspective to make radical changes. In contrast, companies like SpaceX and Tesla value fresh thinking over tenure, actively hiring for innovation, not just experience. They avoid getting weighed down by long-timers who can’t adapt quickly. Decoupling experience from seniority could be revolutionary for traditional companies. Why not mandate rotations or fixed tenures in middle management roles to keep things dynamic?

A dangerous byproduct of legacy people is the “familiarity bias,” where decision-makers trust and listen only to those who share their history and perspective. This creates a closed, inward-looking culture that blocks fresh ideas. Tech giants like Google tackle this by encouraging employees to move across teams and projects, fostering knowledge diversity, and breaking familiarity patterns.

However, many organizations cling to loyalty, seeing outside perspectives as a threat. When everyone thinks alike, innovation dies. Sony tackled this by bringing in external leaders to its board—a move that shook things up and helped it get back on track globally.

The longer someone stays in one position, the more their knowledge becomes an unchallenged monopoly. Middle managers in these roles often control information and influence, reinforcing legacy working methods. To combat this, companies could cap tenure in management positions, forcing a regular flow of new ideas and keeping teams agile.

Amazon’s “Day 1” philosophy embodies this approach by preventing any single mindset from taking root. Leaders are challenged to question the status quo continually, keeping the company fast and adaptive.

Imagine requiring managers to spend time in unrelated industries or entirely different roles. This “deep rotation” model forces leaders to refresh their perspectives and inject new ideas. For instance, a pharmaceutical company could send senior leaders to work in tech for a year, opening them up to different approaches and mindsets. Why can’t HR, from day one of onboarding, encourage each new hire to learn the organization’s structure and strategy, then create a one-page document on their aspirations after 24 months? New employees could be urged to think outside the box, with mentorship programs offering exposure to teams far.

The UK government’s “Fast Stream” program does something similar, rotating civil servants across departments to prevent silos. In the private sector, such bold moves could help prevent legacy thinking from taking over.

What if authority itself was temporary? By assigning senior roles only for specific projects or phases, companies could keep their leadership lean, adaptable, and responsive. Haier, the Chinese appliance giant, uses “micro-enterprises” to create a constantly shifting leadership model, allowing new leaders to emerge based on the needs of each project. This approach ensures that no one group holds power for too long, making the organization resistant to stagnation.

Here’s a bold question: Could companies survive without permanent middle management? Imagine an organization with only a strategic top and a strong frontline, bringing in specialized expertise only when needed. Such a setup would continuously disrupt itself, maintaining an “outsider mindset” by design. This “middle-free” organization may seem extreme, but in an age where flexibility is critical to survival, it could be the ultimate agile structure.

The legacy people problem is a quiet threat, embedding an insular culture that blocks change. Only companies willing to question tenure-based hierarchies will stay competitive in a fast-moving world. Through anti-tenure policies, cross-industry rotations, and temporary leadership roles, organizations can break free from the knowledge monopoly and remain agile.

The most dangerous phrase in business isn't "we can't do that"—it's "we've always done it this way." Your legacy people aren't just preserving the past but stealing the organization's future. The question isn't whether you'll deal with this challenge—it's whether you'll do it before your more agile competitors make you irrelevant.

What radical steps will you take to ensure your organization doesn't become tomorrow's cautionary tale? Ultimately, it’s not just about rethinking roles — it’s about reclaiming the future from those stuck in the past.

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