The assumption that other types of roles can take over for the middle manager requires that these other roles should be able to cover all their functions.

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Obviously, the roles and responsibilities of a baseball manager and basketball coach overlap.

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Of course, Product Manager roles have been in industry ever since the rise of consumer electronics products like transistor radios or television sets.

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"It's about defining the roles between the manager and the technical director in terms of who is ultimately responsible for the performance in the football department, who's responsible for recruiting, who's responsible for players leaving, who's responsible for how the budget is spent, " said Gannon.

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He then moved across the city to United where he was taken on as commercial manager and then went on to perform a variety of roles including chairman before retiring in 2006 just after the club had clinched promotion back to the Premiership.

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