Collegiate middle-managers (deans and directors of support services) work in a complex setting that is part bureaucratic, part collegial, and part political. They are loyalists to begin with, and many strive to maintain allegiance to their institution. But the pressures and attractions of professional work, together with the general lack of regard for administrators by faculty, encourage middle managers to question their loyalty and commitment. They feel the calling of service to a mission, but they also feel inhibited by the strict hierarchical ranking of status levels on campus. Mobility is limited to a circumscribed arena. Few are tapped for higher status. Rewards are limited. Finally, loyalty becomes uncertain. (Author)