Rethinking Leadership Growth: Why Mid-Level Managers Need More Than Just a Promotion Plan

James Czarniak • July 17, 2025

Are you preparing not just for the role you want, but for the leaders you need to become to succeed in it?

Leadership today is more complex than ever—especially for those in the middle. You’re balancing day-to-day operations, responding to urgent system demands, managing teams, and keeping your eye on results. At the same time, many of you are thinking bigger. You’re asking yourself: What’s next? How do I move from managing work to leading change? What kind of leader do I want to be—and what kind of impact do I want to have?

Whether you're envisioning a promotion within your current agency, looking to shift into a new role or sector, or simply want to lead more effectively from where you are, the journey isn’t just about gaining new responsibilities. It’s about growing in three dimensions: your person, your role, and your system.

The Person-Role-System Lens: A Foundation for Leadership Growth

At Brightpath, we use the Person-Role-System framework to help leaders prepare for and succeed in transformational leadership. It starts with you:

  • Person: Who are you, and what do you bring? This includes your values, identity, strengths, and areas that may hold you back. Do you have the resilience, self-awareness, and internal foundation to lead authentically in the face of resistance or complexity? Can you bring your full self to the work, while staying grounded and adaptive?
  • Role: What is expected of you—and what kind of role do you want? Leadership roles vary dramatically in terms of scope, authority, and influence. You need clarity about the kind of role you’re stepping into, what’s yours to lead, and where you’ll need to grow. Are you ready to lead teams, cross-sector efforts, or change initiatives? Do you have the right tools, mindset, and boundaries?
  • System: What change are you hoping to create? Have you defined the result you want to influence? Do you understand the forces that shape your system—and who you’ll need to engage to succeed? Leadership without systemic awareness leads to frustration. Change without allies rarely sticks.

Leaders who move into bigger roles without addressing these dimensions often find themselves burned out, stuck, or misaligned. That’s where coaching can help.

How Align and Advance Coaching Supports This Journey

Brightpath’s Align and Advance Coaching is built specifically for leaders in transition—those stepping into more complex roles, seeking greater influence, or refining their leadership practice to match their vision. Our coaching is personalized, practical, and grounded in real work.

Through one-on-one or team coaching, we help leaders:

  • Reflect deeply on their personal leadership identity and resilience
  • Clarify their role and understand the adaptive shifts required
  • Align around a clear result and lead more strategically
  • Strengthen the relationships, influence, and skills needed to move systems
  • Build internal readiness to pursue new opportunities with confidence and clarity

We don’t coach toward titles—we coach toward impact. Because stepping into a larger role isn’t just about what you want to do. It’s about who you’re becoming in the process.

A Question to Consider

As you think about the next chapter in your leadership, ask yourself:

Are you preparing not just for the role you want—but for the leader you need to become to succeed in it?

If you’re ready to explore what that looks like for you, we’d love to be part of your journey.

From Opponents to Allies: How Conflict Can Drive Systems Change

By James Czarniak • July 10, 2025
Opposition is inevitable in systems work. Whether you’re leading a juvenile justice reform effort, redesigning child welfare response, or launching a community-based initiative, someone will disagree with you. And that’s not a problem to avoid—it’s a reality to embrace. Too often, resistance is seen as a barrier. But when we treat it as a signal—a clue that values are misaligned, history is unacknowledged, or relationships are frayed—we gain the opportunity to shift the dynamic. That’s where the "Name It, Frame It, Game It" framework comes in. Name It: Be honest about the conflict or tension. Is it fear of change? Lack of trust? Competing priorities? Naming it takes the power out of avoidance. Frame It: Recast the conflict as an opportunity. What shared values exist underneath the disagreement? How can we center the goal rather than the turf? Game It: Strategize your next move. How will you engage the opposition in a productive way? What do you need to shift in your stance, language, or assumptions? In our workshops and technical assistance projects, we've seen system leaders move from defensiveness to curiosity. We’ve seen community members once labeled as "opponents" become essential partners. We’ve seen conflict lead to creativity and alignment. The work of systems change is not about eliminating conflict—it’s about learning to navigate it. And often, your strongest allies begin as your fiercest critics. Who are you avoiding? What could be possible if you leaned in?

A Tale of Two Data: Measuring What’s Broken—and What’s Possible

By James Czarniak • July 10, 2025
We often hear that "data drives decisions." But what kind of data? And what does it reveal—or obscure—about the communities we serve? Most systems rely heavily on deficit-based data: numbers that reflect risk, failure, and system involvement. We track arrests, removals, referrals, and recidivism. These data points are real and important. They shine a light on inequities and harm. But if that’s all we measure, we risk reinforcing a narrative that communities are problems to solve, not places of possibility. Enter the Tale of Two Data. Alongside traditional metrics, we must elevate data that reveals strength, connection, resilience, and readiness. Where are the assets in a community? Who are the trusted leaders and informal supports? What programs are already working? What does healing look like, and how can we measure progress toward it? Through the Roots & Routes asset mapping toolkit and our work in Syracuse’s 13204 and 13207 ZIP codes, we’ve helped communities gather and lift up the data they know to be true—not just what systems count, but what people value. This includes lived expertise, community-developed programs, and places of safety and joy. When we measure both harm and hope, we can design more balanced interventions. We can resource what works, not just respond to what’s wrong. And we can shift the narrative from what a community lacks to what it has the power to build. What are you measuring? And what stories are your data telling?

Why Every System Leader Needs a Builder Mindset

By James Czarniak • July 10, 2025
In systems work—whether in juvenile justice, education, or child welfare—it’s common to hear people say, "the system is broken." But what if it isn’t? What if it’s operating exactly as designed? If that’s the case, we don’t just need reform; we need to redesign. And redesign starts with a different kind of leadership—one rooted in what I call the builder mindset. A builder mindset is not about fixing what’s broken. It’s about co-creating something new. Builders ask bold questions: What would this system look like if it truly served children, families, and communities? What can we design that doesn’t yet exist? Instead of tweaking around the edges, builders work alongside community partners to imagine and construct entirely new pathways, practices, and policies. This mindset demands humility. Builders don’t show up with all the answers. They show up ready to listen, learn, and support others in leading. It also demands action. Too often, leadership becomes performative—measured by how many meetings we attend or strategies we draft. Builders stay focused on what actually changes as a result of their leadership. In my work with Results Count leadership programs, Santa Barbara Unified School District, and the New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission, I’ve seen firsthand the power of this shift. Leaders who adopt a builder mindset remove barriers, align resources, and co-create solutions with communities rather than imposing solutions on them. They become catalysts for transformation. The question isn’t whether you have power. It’s how you use it. Are you fixing? Or are you building?