As Julia Herbst writes at FastComapny.com, these middle managers—the butt of the joke in so many office comedies for their outsize ambition, assumed mediocrity, or embrace of the status quo—actually play a crucial role in most workplaces. They get stuff done. They motivate others to get stuff done. They provide the vital link between the C-suite and the rest of the company—two groups that often have vastly different desires and motivations.