Why Managers Matter by Nicolai J. Foss & Peter G. Klein Summary

Why Managers Matter challenges modern trends favoring flat, bossless organizations, arguing that hierarchy and managerial authority are essential for agility, coordination, and performance. The book highlights how managers enable decision-making, adapt teams to disruptions like AI or pandemics, and prevent chaos in creative work. Foss and Klein use evidence from organizational theory to defend structured leadership.

Executives, mid-level managers, and organizational designers grappling with hybrid work models or flatter structures will find actionable insights. The book also appeals to skeptics of self-management trends, offering data-driven counterpoints. Academics studying leadership, entrepreneurship, or microfoundations of strategy may value its theoretical framework.

Yes, particularly for those navigating post-pandemic workplace dynamics. The authors combine academic rigor with practical examples, debunking myths about "bossless" utopias. While critics argue it oversimplifies self-management, the book provides a timely defense of hierarchy in an era of remote work and AI-driven disruptions.

1. Hierarchy enables agility: Formal authority helps teams pivot during crises.
2. Managers coordinate complexity: They resolve conflicts, allocate resources, and align goals.
3. Critique of "bossless" fads: Flat structures often lead to covert micromanagement.
4. Future-proofing leadership: Managers are vital for integrating AI and managing remote workers.

The book argues that managers are critical for balancing autonomy with coordination in hybrid/remote settings. It emphasizes their role in mitigating AI’s ethical risks, fostering innovation through structured feedback, and maintaining accountability during black swan events like economic crises.

Critics claim Foss and Klein undervalue successful self-managed organizations (e.g., Valve, Buurtzorg) and conflate all non-hierarchical models with chaos. Some note a lack of case studies on agile hierarchies, relying instead on theoretical assertions.

Foss, a leading strategist and microfoundations scholar, draws on 30+ years of research into organizational design. His work on how individual actions aggregate to shape firm behavior underpins the book’s defense of managerial systems.

• "Covert hierarchy": Informal power structures in supposedly flat organizations.
• Authority-as-enabler: Using formal roles to streamline decision-making.
• Coordination intensity: The need for managerial intervention in complex tasks.

Unlike Reinventing Organizations (Laloux), which champions self-management, Foss and Klein advocate for evolved hierarchies. The book aligns more with Team of Teams (McChrystal) on adaptive leadership but adds a counterweight to anti-managerial trends.

Yes, by clarifying roles, reducing decision bottlenecks, and legitimizing authority. The authors suggest managers focus on mentoring, resource allocation, and inter-team communication rather than rigid oversight.

With AI reshaping job roles and global instability increasing, the book’s emphasis on human oversight in tech integration and crisis management remains pertinent. It offers frameworks for balancing innovation with operational stability.

• Leverage authority sparingly: Intervene only in high-stakes decisions.
• Build "hierarchy lite": Combine clear roles with team autonomy.
• Use managers as integrators: Bridge silos between AI systems and human teams.