Business and Society with Michigan Ross

This November, tariffs are in effect and in flux, the job market is unstable, and AI continues to impact the way business is done. Consumers and businesses alike are looking out for these trends in the economy as the holiday shopping season approaches.On this episode of Business and Society, Ross professors Ari Shwayder and Michael Speigl discuss the current state of the economy, unpacking the macroeconomic data and the uncertainty surrounding it. Topics covered include the bifurcated nature of today’s economy, the ways tariffs are gradually being passed on to consumers, changes in the labor market, AI, and predictions for the upcoming holiday shopping season.

The rise of short-term contract work and freelance jobs has created a large percentage of workers who work on their own terms, outside of organizations. These freelancers find new ways to deal with autonomy in their work, walking a precarious tightrope between instability and independence. On this episode of Business and Society, Ross Professor Sue Ashford discusses her award-winning research on the gig economy. Topics covered include the connection between productivity and identity for freelancers, how they gauge their own success, and the four main factors for thriving as an independent worker: connection to people, place, purpose, and routine.The conversation ends with a discussion of how the gig economy has transformed in the five years since Ashford’s paper was published. She discusses algorithmic management, how a global pandemic brought society closer to independent work, and the future of her research.

Between 1989 and 2009, fewer than 100 women became CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. In 2014, Aparna Joshi, and her co-authors embarked on a deep dive into every one of these rare events. While the barriers to women’s success in senior roles and the negative industry reactions to their ascension have been long documented, Joshi felt these focuses failed to provide actionable knowledge. Her research thus highlights the “recipes” for women’s post-succession success, and points organizations towards a clearer path forward. On this episode of Business and Society, Professor Aparna Joshi, Michigan Ross Professor of Management and Organizations and recent recipient of the 2025 Academy of Management’s Impact Award, sits down with host JT Godfrey to discuss her research, the factors of success for women in senior leadership, and ways of creating more supportive and thriving environments. Host: JT GodfreyGuest: Aparna JoshiExecutive Producers: JT Godfrey and Jeff KaroubAudio Engineer: Jonah BrockmanEditorial Production: Mads Henke

In 2014, the city of Flint, Michigan, switched its drinking water supply from the Detroit system to the Flint River to save money, resulting in a decade-long public health crisis in which Flint’s residents faced lead contamination and other serious health issues. A major challenge for Flint and hundreds of cities looking to update their aging water infrastructure is efficiently and accurately predicting the location of lead pipes. Enter BlueConduit, a Ross School of Business start-up that originated the approach of using machine learning to do just that. Since the company's foundation in 2016, they've rapidly expanded, working with over 100 customer accounts spanning over 400 different towns and cities in more than 25 states.On this episode of Business and Society, Professor Eric Schwartz, co-founder of BlueConduit and associate professor of marketing at Michigan Ross, sits down with host JT Godfrey to discuss his experience tackling the Flint Water Crisis. Schwartz explains how the company’s machine learning technology works, recounts BlueConduit’s journey from beginning as a community start-up to expanding and impacting public policy, gives insights into the businesses of public utility and infrastructure, and shares his optimism in data science and marketing being used as forces for good.To learn more about the hosts, participants, resources, and research discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/business-society. Host: JT GodfreyGuest: Eric SchwartzExecutive Producers: JT Godfrey and Jeff KaroubAudio Engineer: Jonah BrockmanEditorial Production: Mads Henke 

In the season finale of Business and Society, recorded live at the University of Michigan MaizeXBlue Conference, host Jeff Karoub sits down with a panel of experts to discuss the changing media landscape. Sarah Zimmerman, Lecturer of Business Communication at Michigan Ross and professors Yanna Krupnikov and John Barry Ryan from the College of Literature, Science, and Arts give their insights on the fragmentation of traditional mainstream media, the rise and evolving role of influencers, and the ways they expect the media landscape to continue to change in the coming years. To learn more about the hosts, participants, resources, and research discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/business-society. Host: Jeff KaroubGuests: Professors Sarah Zimmerman, Yanna Krupnikov, and John Barry RyanExecutive Producers: JT Godfrey and Jeff KaroubAudio Engineer: Jonah BrockmanEditorial Production: Mads Henke

Professor M.S. Krishnan of Michigan Ross and Professor Shobita Parthasarathy from the Ford School of Public Policy join this episode to discuss opportunities AI brings to the business world and some of the challenges and functions in which AI needs guardrails. Topics covered include the transformation of labor, developing technology in a way that centers and serves people, and the role of AI in education. The experts discuss interacting with AI critically and with personal responsibility, in a world where widespread adoption is well underway. To learn more about the hosts, participants, resources, and research discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/business-society. Host: Jeff KaroubGuests: Professors M.S. Krishnan and Shobita ParthasarathyExecutive Producers: JT Godfrey and Jeff KaroubAudio Engineer: Jonah BrockmanEditorial Production: Mads Henke

Michigan Ross Professors Andy Hoffman, Cindy Schipani, and Norm Bishara join this episode of Business and Society to discuss their research and expertise related to corporate governance — the systems and regulations that allow a company to operate with accountability, transparency, and fairness. The panel explores how businesses and public policy intersect to set these guardrails, and the importance of supporting innovative regulation for the sake of all stakeholders — shareholders, employees, community members, and the environment. The guests emphasize the importance of clear values and ethical decision-making in business, regulation, and corporate governance, particularly in the current political and economic moment.To learn more about the hosts, participants, resources, and research discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/business-society. Host: Jeff KaroubGuests: Professors Andy Hoffman, Cindy Schipani, and Norm BisharaExecutive Producers: JT Godfrey and Jeff KaroubAudio Engineer: Jonah BrockmanEditorial Production: Mads Henke 

Professors Nigel Melville from the Ross School of Business and Yousif Hassan from the Ford School of Public Policy join this episode of Business and Society to discuss the challenges of artificial intelligence. They explore the varied and emergent nature of risk associated with AI, the challenges of governing a rapidly developing technology, layoffs, human agency, systemic biases, and the environmental toll of data centers. The panel focuses on the desire for transparency surrounding AI’s implementation and the importance of coming to a shared understanding and vision as a society for AI’s positive integration into the business world.To learn more about the hosts, participants, resources, and research discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/business-society. Host: Jeff KaroubGuests: Professors Nigel Melville and Yousif HassanExecutive Producers: JT Godfrey and Jeff KaroubAudio Engineer: Jonah BrockmanEditorial Production: Mads Henke