Ep. 147: Bryan Hancock, Partner and Global Leader of Talent Work at McKinsey & Company, The Evolving Role of Middle Management and Unlocking Freelance Opportunities

Leaders,

Today we’re joined by Bryan Hancock, Partner at McKinsey & Company, author of Power To The Middle, and podcast host of McKinsey Talks Talent.  

Our industry faces a unique challenge — our biggest blocker is change management, not technology or operational excellence. While these aspects are important, the most significant barrier to freelance adoption is the organizational change required to start the freelance journey.

Bryan will teach us how middle management can become the driving force for change. This episode isn’t specifically about freelancing; it’s about the evolving role of middle managers, how they have transformed, and how they can be catalysts for change within their organizations. For us, this means that freelancing is one of the tools middle managers can use to drive changes that align with their teams' objectives, organizational priorities, and strategic goals.

Key takeaways:

1. Based on McKinsey data, the percentage of talent that says they freelance has risen from 27% in 2016 to 36% today.

2. Middle managers can be the changemakers in the Future of Work.

3. Middle managers traditionally have been the bureaucrats. 

4. There are 4 characteristics of a good middle manager. They (1) drive clarity, (2) empower and challenge their team, (3) drive connections within and across teams, and (4) understand the whole person within their team members. 

5. Evaluating effective middle managers depends on the specific responsibilities and context of their role.

6. Everyone is feeling the pain of the talent shortage, needing to be operationally excellent, and being disrupted.