The Michigan Model of Leadership (MMoL), recently highlighted in National Today for its application across organizations, supports leaders as they learn to navigate complexity.
In an episode of the Business & Society podcast, Gretchen Spreitzer, Monica Worline, and Mike Barger discuss how the model helps leaders manage competing demands in today’s work environments. Worline serves as faculty director of the Center for Positive Organizations and is a Management and Organizations faculty member, while Spreitzer and Barger are Michigan Ross professors and Sanger Research Lab members.
Rather than choosing between priorities, the conversation emphasizes the importance of developing the capacity to hold multiple demands at once—balancing stability with innovation, and results with relationships. Grounded in decades of research and the Competing Values Framework, the MMoL provides a flexible set of skills leaders can draw on as situations evolve.
The discussion reinforces a core idea behind the model: leadership is not a fixed trait, but a skill that can be developed over time through awareness and practice.
Mike Barger, Gretchen Spreitzer,
Monica Worline