SANGER LEADERSHIP CENTER
MISSION AND VISION
The Sanger Leadership Center at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business accelerates the development of leaders through bold ideas, transformative experiences, and inclusive communities The Center serves Michigan students from every school and college in action-based learning experiences, courses, and communities. It is also the home of a world-class research lab with faculty members from across the university and frameworks, including the Michigan Model of Leadership.
The Center’s vision is to become the world’s premier center for leadership development, making leadership synonymous with Michigan
ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE YEAR
The Center has focused its strategy on four levels, all of which have celebrated tremendous successes in the past year
Deliver transformational leadership programming to students The Center is expanding its reach to students In 2024, Sanger celebrated the largest Leadership Crisis Challenge to date, hosting 425 students and 115 alumni and sponsors The program was covered by both The Financial Times and Poets&Quants Additionally, every Ross student across all academic programs will now participate in the team collaboration program, Collaboration Lab, during orientation. The Center’s micro-credential, the Michigan Ross Leader Endorsement, saw a 188 percent increase in completion in 2024 Students have access to a one-on-one executive coach to support their professional growth and leadership development
Produce and disseminate the world’s best bold ideas on leadership Sanger will host an international leadership conference for scholars in 2025, the New Directions in Leadership Research. Additionally, Sanger Research Lab faculty members took top honors at both the Academy of Management Conference in 2024 and in the Academy of Management Journal.
Build inclusive relationships among stakeholders (students, faculty, staff, alumni, corporate) Inviting voices from alumni and external organizations is crucial in educating students about the skills needed to be leaders The Center engaged with 150+ alumni and sponsors in the past year, and the Sanger Advisory Board now hosts 17 members from across industries.
Invest in the team The Center leads the way at Michigan Ross in departmental strategic planning and data tracking It has a comprehensive three-year strategy and a robust dashboard to track learning and engagement
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
The Sanger Leadership Center was one of the key deciding factors for enrolling in the Michigan Ross MBA program One of my top priorities for business school was to immerse myself in an intentional, multi-faceted, and authentic leadership journey Sanger offers this and so much more through their various programs Coming from consulting, I worked with various leaders (both internally and as clients) While these experiences taught me about the type of leader I wanted to be, Sanger has given me the tools to help craft and refine my leadership style.”
Sam Schmitt MBA ’25
2023–2024
IMPACT BY THE NUMBERS
#1 public university for future leaders (TIME & Statista, 2024)
Over 50 external partners included in student programming
More than 9,300 student interactions in the past year
+188% increase in students who received our micro-credential, the Leader Endorsement
128 program sessions delivered annually
Two of the top five reasons students choose Ross are Sanger programs (Crisis Challenge and Story Lab), according to Poets&Quants
307,000 research citations from Sanger faculty to date
43 members of the Research Lab spanning across campus
19/19 schools and colleges served at Michigan
THINKING AHEAD
VISION FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR
By 2030, the Center’s aim is to make the word “leadership” synonymous with Michigan Ross Leadership is the key to putting Ross at the top of the rankings The Center’s goals and objectives include advancing bold ideas that will shape the future of leadership development, delivering excellent, inclusive, and transformational programming, and developing sustainable relationships to broaden its impact Increasing brand awareness and enhancing its reputation both internally and externally are also key objectives The Center will celebrate its tenth anniversary in 2025, marking a milestone in its continued commitment to its mission and vision.
DONOR IMPACT
Philanthropy has played a critical role in maximizing the Sanger Leadership Center’s impact. The Center advances its mission through nearly 100 percent donorsupported funds Steve and Karen Sanger’s transformative endowment gift allowed the Center to significantly expand in 2015 Since then, other families and individuals such as the Ismail family, the Faricy family, and the Sanger Advisory Board members have enabled the Center to create new programming and expand programming to significantly more Michigan students Before philanthropic support, the Center operated with few employees and limited reach
Partnerships with foundations and corporations have also been vital to the success of the Center. The Deloitte Foundation's 2014 gift established the Ross Leaders Academy and created a successful employee matching fund. The fund has resulted in engaging more than 150 donors and over $1,000,000 in support. Many annual corporate donors such as General Motors, McKinsey, and others have enhanced programming with funding and volunteer partnerships
SUPPORTING THE FUTURE
The Sanger Leadership Center's funding priorities are outlined in three areas:
Enhance Leadership Coaching Support: Allocate $500,000+ in expendable funds, alongside a $5 million endowment, to provide a significant number of students with access to a personal leadership development coach, which would provide a distinct competitive advantage over other top-tier business schools. Champion New or Existing Student Programming: Allocate $100,000+ expendable or $2 million endowment, to be a part of making sure every Michigan student can participate in the Center's award-winning action-based learning programs like the Leadership Crisis Challenge, Story Lab, and new programs that are being developed to meet the needs of the complex and ambiguous world
Propel Academic Research and Bold Ideas: $50,000-100,000 expendable, $1-2 million endowment Ensure Michigan Ross is at the forefront of leadership ideas being published both in scholarly journals and in popular media Funds will be used to endow professorships, conduct research studies, and expand publishing efforts.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Sanger Leadership Center
Stephen M. Ross School of Business
700 East University Avenue Kresge Hall, Suite 3510K
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1234
For more information, please contact us at: rossleaders@umich.edu