3 Levels of Management – Meanings, Responsibilities, and More

In any organization, management plays a key role in ensuring smooth operations. To keep things organized and efficient, management is usually divided into three levels: Top Level, Middle Level, and Lower/Operational Level. Each level has its responsibilities, but they all work together to achieve the organization's goals. But what are the relationships and differences among them? Read the write-up below to understand more about the levels of management.

In a large organisation, there are three generic levels of management, demarcated on the basis of authority and responsibility.

Generally, management levels are in the form of a pyramid, where the top management level is at the apex while the lower level is at the base. As a superior-subordinate relationship, this pyramidal structure is necessary for establishing a defined command chain that ensures efficiency in all processes, irrespective of organisational structure. This forms the basis of business and management courses from UG to postgrad study levels.

Levels of Management: A Historical Context 

As a concept, management levels could be considered a part of the evolution of Taylor's Scientific Management Theory that focused on task specialisation and analysis of work process for different designations within an organisation. This can be further related with modern management guru, Peter F Drucker in the mid-1950s who further elaborated the concept of hierarchies through the concept of MBO (Management by Objectives).    

Today, management levels also exist in formal and informal organisations, in the sense the relationships and interactions are more fluid across informal organisations than formal ones.   

Overall, there are no fixed designations in the levels of management these days. They are separated based on the professional's qualifications, skills, and work experience. For example, a C-Suite level executive will be in top management as they have the expertise in handling internal and external stakeholders o their organisation.

Likewise, the middle level management will have managerial positions or their individual departments and act as a link of communication between top and lower levels of management. Then comes the lower level management professionals, who act as operational managers or frontline employees, often taking supervisory duties. 

In fact, having a strong understanding of management levels ensures you know what also equates to different strutures of organisations. The roles get looked at differently in divisional organisational structure when compared to funcational or a matrix one. 

What are Levels of Management?

Simply put, levels of management refer to the demarcation of responsibilities of managers from top to bottom in a pyramidal organisational structure. This division in the managerial structure describes how the chain of command works.  

This concept is a fundamental of management that every beginner should know. 

In the image above, there are three broad demarcations under which managers have different functions. 

And you can already tell, the top level managers also need to have more experience than the middle level and bottom level managers. Likewise, the responsibilities at the top are to make the final decisions for the organisation. 

The levels of management make it easier for understanding how the authority passes down from top to bottom. For instance, the delegation of tasks goes downwards from top, and this process does not happen in the reverse order. 

This example also applies to leadership theories. You could further explore the Situational Leadership Theory, where task delegation is prioritised based on different levels of maturity of the subordinates/followers.

You can further look into Management Concepts for more theoretical understanding. 

Top Level Management 

Also referred to as the administrative level, managers here are responsible for the strategic decision-making process. It is upon them to ensure the goals set are met.

Learn about basics of administration to know how the chain of command actually works. That will further help you understand this important level of management at the apex. 

Responsibilities of Top Level Management 

The top level management in an organisation have the following responsibilities. 

• Setting organisational objectives that need to be met through devising a business strategy
• Preparing budgets for all departments
• Coordinating activities in the organisation
• Assigning executives to middle-level management
• Analysing the business environment to understand how the organisation will succeed
• Being accountable to shareholders
• Communicating to the outside environment, i.e., the public, about the organisation
• Being responsible for the company's survival and growth

Roles in Top Level Management

The top-level management has senior roles. Some of the top roles are-

• Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

• Managing Director (MD)

• Chairperson of the Board

• Chief Operating Officer (COO)

• Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

• Senior Vice President (SVP)

Required Skills in Top-Level Management

Read more on Effective Leadership Skills and work on those!

While you could look at the business strategy courses online, consider executive MBA online programmes when you are seriously planning to make your business or organisation stand out among the competition. The goal of an eMBA online is to provide high-level knowledge concerning the duties in the C-Suite. Look out for ones which require 10 to 15 years of experience, like ones from Wharton. The cohorts are usually at this level of management.   

Middle Level Management

Managers at this level act as intermediaries between top and lower management levels. Functional department heads are at this level, generally. For example, the marketing department will have a manager who has skills in marketing, the finance team a will have a manager from an accounting background, and so on. Refer to functional organizational structure. 

Responsibilities of Middle Level Management 

The following are the main responsibilities of middle level managers in the hierarchy. 

• Interpreting plans and policies created by top level management and implementing them as per their departments
• Offering guidance and mentorship to lower management employees
• Delegating tasks to lower management employees and monitoring them
• Liaising with top level management with timely reports and meetings and ensure the plans are on track
• Evaluating employee performance
• Recruiting and training the right talent

These duties are quite fluid nowadays, and require a high adaptability quotient, given there are new benchmarks to follow in the current volatile job culture and recognise the overlap of delegation and micromanagement. To overcome such challenges, you might want to look at leadership development programmes offered by Skillsoft - a globally recognised education provider.  

Roles in Middle Level Management

Department managers such as HR manager in human resources, Sales Manager in sales, etc. are the common roles at this level of the management pyramid. These roles can also consist of lower level management employees who move up to middle managers within or from a different organisation. 

Have a look at the essential managerial round interview questions that recruiters ask those at this level. 

Required Skills in Middle Level Management

So what is middle management defined as? Look at these basic duties or skills. 

One of the ways to secure your position in middle management as a fresher is to take online MBA programmes from reputed institutes - be it from India or abroad. You can conveniently acquire your degree while working. 

Also, read up on the types of planning in management, a critical function that mid-level managers must master, without compromising on business objectives and team goals. You can learn this aspect with business management courses online offered by IIMs, IITs, and institutes of similar repute. 

Lower Level Management 

Lower level management consists of first line managers who are responsible for achieving daily tasks assigned to them from middle management. 

Responsibilities of Lower Level Management 

• Maintaining operational efficiency in the organisation is a more prominent role in the low level management
• Communicating with middle managers about the progress or completion of tasks
• Planning and controlling daily work and analysing bottlenecks
• Reviewing performance of employees under them
• Assisting middle management with hiring the right talents
• Supervising and motivating employees under them

As a fresher who just joined a company, head over to learn about the different Types of Management Styles. You can see how they are implemented and what kind of communication happens when the top- to mid-level managers delegate tasks to you. Keep a note of that, as they would help you during situational-based interviews. 

Roles in Lower Level Management

Section officers, supervisors, etc are some of the common roles at this level of management. 

Required Skills in Lower Level Management

• Working knowledge of their functional areas 
• Supervising skills to ensure employees under them are able to complete tasks without hassle

In lower level management, it is essential to upskill more in your functional areas, as the job market is constantly changing with technological advances. The more your upskill, the more relevant your skills become. In addition, the responsibilities you will have in lower management will be less, so it is ideal to build up on those evergreen soft skills. There are several soft skills courses you can take and complete within hours, and they will have lifelong value. 

Also look into general management courses online. 

Importance of Levels of Management

The management pyramid is important for organisational success even today. The separation though is becoming diluted with the advent of artificial intelligence and hybrid work, pushing employees to take various types of ownership and reinventing how work is planned and completed to meet business goals.

Having a clear demarcation of roles and authority by implementing the management levels logically help in

• Making the right decisions 
• Communicating strategy transparently for stakeholders - both internal and external
• Delegating responsibilities perfectly 

Parting Thoughts

So these are the three different levels of management that you should know. If you are planning to move up to top-level management, the right work experience and the right management courses online will help you. Also remember to find some good learning options for various management concepts and their real-world applications with free online courses with certificates.