Work extensification in the times of COVID-19: middle managers safeguarding employee well-being and performance through controlling, caring, and social sensing

The outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 triggered the transition from onsite to remote work turning onsite supervision to distance management and shifting the defined business hours into flexible work schedules (Kniffin et al., 2021). Distance work and separation of organizational members became more pronounced over the recent decades along with the widespread adoption of digital technologies in organizations connecting the workforce with the organization, and external collaborators (Kolb et al., 2020; Leonardi & Treem, 2020).

On the one hand, remote work and distance management provide autonomy, on the other hand, the constant connection to digital technology and increasing work demands have led to the extensification in managerial work (Hassard & Morris, 2021). While managers voluntarily choose to complete tasks outside the office, they are driven by increased responsibilities and greater variety in tasks (Hassard & Morris, 2021).

Hassard and Morris (2021) suggest that COVID-19 has extended work for middle managers even more, thus affecting their well-being negatively. Consequently, our study aims to explore work extensification encountered by middle managers during the outbreak of COVID-19. Specifically, we zoom in on seven middle managers who transitioned into distance managing and explore how exactly their work has become extensified during the pandemic.