Home / Lectures / Sara Soderstrom, University of Michigan
When the Middle Ground Moves: Tempering, Untempering, and Driving Change from Within
Sara Soderstrom, University of Michigan
Description
Semester:
- Fall 2026
Speakers:
Lecture Time:
Fri, October 9, 2026 @ 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm
Lecture Location:
R2240, Ross building
Speaker Webpage(s):
https://lsa.umich.edu/orgstudies/people/faculty/capasb.html
Introduced By:
Youha Shin
Abstract
Insiders who push their organizations to address societal challenges have long had to hold two commitments at once, to the organization and to a cause that sits uneasily with it. Meyerson and Scully called them tempered radicals: people who work for change through moderation and small wins. That approach assumed a middle ground to stand on and organizations moving, however slowly, toward more sustainable futures. What happens to change from within when both assumptions give way? In this talk I draw together several years of collaborative research on these insiders. We have learned a great deal about how they win small victories, but much less about how those victories build into larger change. Today’s overlapping crises and political backlash make that question harder, because the future itself feels uncertain. Insiders are asking what is really changing, whether they still have the standing and allies to act, and whether they have the energy to continue. Some freeze or look away; others find new ways forward, by keeping a low profile, protecting hard-won gains, or imagining very different futures. I then argue for (un)tempering insider radicalism. Insider social change lies in what insiders do, not who they are; and knowing when to temper and when to untemper efforts depends on reading, and reshaping, the organizational opportunity structures where they work. Moving between the two keeps change going and lets small wins add up. I close by reflecting on the roles we may play as insiders at our own university.
Recording & Additional Notes
Sara Soderstrom is a Professor in Organizational Studies & Program in the Environment at University of Michigan (UM). She is Faculty Director of the Program in the Environment and the Undergraduate Fellows Program at the Erb Institute and faculty associate at Center for Positive Organizations at UM. In her research, Sara aims to contribute an organizational perspective on how society develops solutions to critical global sustainability challenges. Sara studies how individuals within organizations mobilize others, develop coalitions, and access key decision makers when they are trying to implement sustainability initiatives. She has published in numerous management journals including Administrative Science Quarterly, Academy of Management Journal, Organization & Environment and Organization Studies.
Sara teaches multiple courses at the University of Michigan that focus on the intersection of organizations and sustainability. She is a passionate teacher and love engaging with students across multiple courses that focus on the intersection of business and sustainability: Business and the Natural Environment; Sustainability and the Campus; and Business, Sustainability, and Justice. She also frequently teaches Negotiations and Advanced Research Methods.
Professor Soderstrom was a Post Doctoral Fellow at the Erb Institute at the University of Michigan. She completed her PhD at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. Prior to obtaining her PhD, Professor Soderstrom worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company serving retail and financial services organizations and led a business transformation team in post-merger activities at The Auto Club Group, a AAA umbrella organization. Professor Soderstrom holds MSE degrees in Chemical and Environmental Engineering and a BSE degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan.