Your Best Leaders Might Be Doing the Wrong Work

By AMA Staff

Leaders today aren’t just leading—they’re filling gaps across the organization. From stepping into operational issues to handling work that should sit elsewhere, many leaders are stretched far beyond their intended role.

AMA’s latest leadership survey of 1,249 professionals reveals a striking 71% of leaders are regularly performing work outside their formal role, a phenomenon known as "spillover." This isn't an individual failure to delegate; it is a signal that the organization is using its leaders as a capacity buffer to absorb breakdowns in staffing, processes and accountability.

Instead of addressing the root causes, companies are relying on the personal endurance of their most senior people to keep operations moving, a strategy that is unsustainable and corrosive.

The Strategic Cost of Tactical Overload

When leaders are consumed by spillover, like taking on tactical problem-solving, project execution and routine decisions, their primary responsibilities suffer. Nearly 60% of leaders state that this extra work limits their ability to focus on strategic priorities.

They lack the time to step back, anticipate future challenges and provide clear direction. This creates a vicious cycle: as leaders step in to handle tactical issues, their teams lose opportunities to build capability and confidence.

Short-term momentum is achieved at the expense of long-term organizational strength, turning senior leadership into a bottleneck rather than an engine for growth.

The Unseen Damage to the Leadership Pipeline

Perhaps the most critical consequence of spillover is the damage it does to the next generation of leaders. When senior leaders are constantly mired in tactical work, they have no time to model effective leadership behaviors or provide the consistent coaching their managers need.

Developmental conversations are deferred, feedback becomes reactive and the leadership pipeline stalls. This reinforces a dangerous dependency on the current senior team and weakens the organization's future.

The Widening Capability Gap

This problem is compounded by a development lag. Leaders are often promoted based on past performance or technical expertise, not their readiness for the complexity of their new roles. They are expected to navigate disruption and absorb operational spillover, all while learning on the job.

Without structured development that addresses these modern challenges, leaders default to what they know: personal effort. This not only increases the risk of burnout but ensures they never learn the skills required to develop capability in others, perpetuating the cycle of overload.

How Organizations Can Reduce Leadership Spillover

The most effective organizations focus on fixing the conditions that create spillover in the first place:

• Clarify ownership: When roles and decisions aren’t clearly defined, work escalates upward. Clear accountability keeps leaders out of unnecessary tasks.
• Build team capability: Leaders step in when they don’t trust the outcome. Stronger teams reduce the need for intervention.
• Fix root causes: Repeated leader involvement usually signals broken processes. Solve the issue, don’t rely on leaders as a workaround.
• Reinforce accountability: When teams own outcomes, leaders don’t have to carry the load.
• Protect strategic time: Leaders can’t lead if they’re stuck in the weeds. Organizations need to actively preserve their focus.

As organizations continue to evolve, leadership effectiveness will depend less on individual effort and more on how work is structured and supported.

Reducing spillover isn’t just about easing the burden on leaders—it’s about restoring their ability to think strategically, develop others and drive the business forward. That shift is what separates organizations that operate efficiently from those that truly scale.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is "spillover work"?

Spillover work refers to tasks and responsibilities that leaders perform despite them being outside their formal role. It is often tactical work that should be handled by their teams or other parts of the organization.

Why is spillover a problem if the work is getting done?

It's a problem because it pulls leaders away from their core strategic responsibilities and creates an unhealthy dependence on individual heroics rather than sustainable systems. In the long run, it weakens the entire organization.

Is spillover the leader's fault for not delegating?

No, the research indicates it is a systemic issue. Leaders often step in because of organizational pressures or unclear ownership. While it may seem "easier to do it myself," this is often a symptom of a larger organizational failure, not a personal failing.

What is the "capability gap"?

The capability gap is the reality that leadership roles have expanded in complexity much faster than leadership development has evolved. Leaders are promoted into roles they aren't fully prepared for and compensate with personal effort, further fueling the spillover problem.

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