This article explores dilemmas in middle manager work through the perspective of leadership-as-practice. An autoethnographic account is outlined of how a dilemma is addressed by a middle manager. The account shows how a dilemma faced by a middle manager needs to be understood as situated within the flow of activity that is itself nested in a context of roles and relationships as well as the strategic context. The authors show how the outcome of the dilemma became accommodated within the emergent practice in the organization with no sense of recognition of the dilemma’s impact. The notion of middle manager agency within leadership-as-practice is explored through aspects of moral disengagement. The article problematizes two aspects: firstly, that normative ethical theorizing has been unable to cater for the complexity of middle manager work seen through the practice lens; second, that notions of leadership as ‘leader’ appear absent from the narrative describing middle manager work when seen through the lens of traditional leadership theory. Finally, the article gives insight and structure to researching leadership-as-practice.