Comment by bediger

Ever heard of Empire Building? It's a common problem in corporations. Mid-level managers become important by having a lot of underlings. I imagine this would be even more important in compartmentalized areas, as mid-level managers would nominally have no other method to signal their importance to superiors or peers.

I can also think of a situation where a contractor might hire a mid-level manager's husband, wife or child. The mid-level manager would be able to crank up his or her headcount to get the relative a sizeable Christmas "bonus". I've heard tell that this sort of thing actually happens.