How Organizations Can Make Invisible Management Work Visible

By AMA Staff

AMA’s 2026 Management Survey points to a challenge for organizations: Much of the work managers are doing is becoming harder for employees to observe.

Managers continue to spend significant time making decisions and solving problems. They are also navigating ambiguity, evaluating AI-generated information, and applying their own judgment to unfamiliar situations.

Employees experience management differently. They tend to judge manager engagement through behaviors they can see, including regular communication, clear direction, listening, coaching, and support for their development.

That difference helps explain why managers can feel highly engaged while employees do not always perceive the same level of engagement. Organizations can help close that gap by making expectations for managers clearer and recognizing both the visible and less visible work effective management requires.

1. Redefine Manager Success Beyond Visible Activity

Many important management behaviors are easy to observe. Organizations can see whether managers hold coaching conversations, provide feedback, communicate priorities, and spend time developing employees.

Other parts of the job are less visible. Planning, deliberating, weighing risks, and regulating emotions may happen before a manager communicates a decision or acts. These activities can require considerable time and judgment even though employees rarely see them.

AMA’s research suggests organizations should account for both. Manager effectiveness should include observable behaviors such as coaching and feedback, along with the cognitive work involved in making sound decisions. Recognizing both gives organizations a fuller picture of what effective management requires.

2. Teach Managers to Explain Decisions, Not Just State Them

One way managers can make their work more visible is by communicating more about how they reached a decision.

Employees often see the outcome of a manager’s thinking without seeing the process behind it. A new priority may be announced. A project may change direction. Work may be reassigned. Employees may understand what has changed without understanding why.

AMA’s research suggests managers would benefit from strengthening their ability to explain priorities and their decision-making processes, not just outcomes. That means giving employees enough context to understand the reasoning that shaped the direction.

3. Combine Critical Thinking With AI

AI is becoming part of managerial decision making, but managers remain responsible for evaluating what AI produces.

AMA’s survey found that managers are using AI-generated data and insights to support decisions. They also reported spending more time reviewing AI outputs.

Managers still exercise their own critical thinking when considering alternative courses of action. Organizations therefore need to develop decision-making capability alongside AI capability. Managers need to know how to work with AI-generated information while continuing to question assumptions, consider context, and exercise judgment.

4. Measure Coaching and Decision Quality

AMA’s research suggests measuring visible management behaviors, including coaching techniques and the frequency of feedback conversations. The less visible side of management deserves attention as well.

Organizations can consider how effectively managers plan, deliberate, and make decisions. They can also assess whether managers are able to explain priorities and provide employees with the direction they need.

This creates a broader view of manager effectiveness. A manager may be doing substantial cognitive work, but employees still need communication and coaching. Likewise, frequent communication does not replace the need for sound judgment.

5. Help Employees Understand Invisible Management Work

Effective management increasingly includes work that happens out of view. Managers may be considering competing priorities, evaluating information, or working through decisions before employees see the result. Greater awareness of that work can give employees a more complete picture of the demands managers face.

At the same time, employees should be encouraged to communicate their own needs. If they need more frequent direction or more feedback from a manager, saying so can help make those expectations clearer. Understanding needs to work in both directions.

Making Managerial Work Easier to See

As organizations become more complex and AI becomes more involved in decision making, managers will continue to spend time on work employees may never directly see.

Organizations can respond by defining manager expectations more clearly, developing stronger decision-making and communication skills, and creating a better understanding of what effective management looks like today.

Managers still need to make good decisions. Employees also need to understand those decisions and receive the coaching and feedback that help them do their own work effectively.

Making invisible management work more visible can help bring those two needs closer together.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is invisible management work?

Invisible management work includes activities employees may not directly observe, such as planning, deliberating, weighing risks, navigating ambiguity, and evaluating information before making a decision.

Why is invisible management work increasing?

AMA’s research suggests managers are spending more time making decisions, solving problems, and evaluating AI outputs. These activities often require significant thought but may produce few visible signs of the effort involved.

How can managers make their decision-making process more visible?

Managers can explain priorities and provide more context about how decisions were reached. Employees may not need every detail, but understanding the reasoning behind a decision can give them a clearer view of the work involved.

What role does AI play in invisible management work?

Managers are increasingly using AI-generated data and insights to support decisions and spending more time reviewing AI outputs. They still need to determine whether that information is useful and how it should influence a decision.

What should organizations measure when evaluating managers?

AMA’s research suggests considering both observable behaviors, such as coaching and the frequency of feedback conversations, and less visible cognitive work related to planning, deliberation, and decision making.

Why are coaching and feedback still important?

Employees tend to experience manager engagement through direct interaction. Clear communication, coaching, feedback, and development support remain important even when managers are spending more time on less visible cognitive work.

Do employees have a role in closing the engagement gap?

Yes. Employees can benefit from understanding that some management work happens outside their view. They can also communicate more clearly with managers about the direction, feedback, and coaching they need.