John E. Tropman

Henry J. Meyer Collegiate Professor Emeritus of Social Work, School of Social Work

John Tropman is the director of Leadership in Community Benefit Organizations, a program initiated in the School of Social Work January 1, 2015 to organize and focus management content for management majors and Community Organization and Policy & Evaluation majors. His research focuses on the organizational elements that create high-performing human service (and other) organizations. Topics of special interest are entrepreneurship, effective group decision making, C-level executives, the problem of executive burnout and flameout, and organizational rewards systems.

Tropman is also interested in culture in general, and organizational culture in particular. His book, The Catholic Ethic in American Society, addresses this issue.

Research Interests

Research/scholarly interest: social welfare policy; community organization; non-profit management, entrepreneurship, c-level executives; leadership

Curriculum Vitae

Contact Information

  • [email protected]

  • 4668 SSWB
    University of Michigan
    School of Social Work
    1080 S. University
    Ann Arbor, MI 48109

Education

  • 1967 PhD Social Work and Sociology
    University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • 1963 MA Social Work and Social Service Administration
    University of Chicago, IL
  • 1961 BA Sociology
    Oberlin College, OH

News

Activities

Websites

Publications

Tropman, J., Blackburn, J., Fischer, D. & Hodge., J. (2021). The White House as a Field Placement: Reflections on the Past, and a Future for Policy and Political Practice. National Association of Social Workers.
Tropman, J. E., & Tillotson, A. (2014). Early responders, late responders, and non-responders: The principal-agent problem in board oversight of nonprofit CEOs. Human Services Organizations Management, Leadership and Governance, 38(4).
Tropman, J. (2014). Effective Meetings: Improving Group Decision Making. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.
Tropman, J. & Harvey, T. (2013). Nonprofit Governance: What to Do and How to Do It. ACTA Press.
Tropman, J. & Wooten, L. (2013). The 7C approach to executive leadership in the 21st century. Administration in Social Work, 37, 325-328.
Tropman, J. (2012). Successful Community Governance and Organization (2nd ed.). NASW Press.
Tropman, J. (2012). Successful Community Leadership and Organization (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: National Association of Social Workers.
Tropman, J. E., & Nicklett, E. J. (2012). Balancing the budget through social exploitation: Why hard times are even harder for some. Advances in Applied Sociology, 2(2), 111-119.
Tropman, J. E., & Nicklett, E. J. (2012). Organizational theory. In B. A. Thyer, K. M. Sowers & C. N. Dulmus (Eds.), Human Behavior in the Social Environment: Theories for Social Work Practice. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.
Tropman, J., & Wooten, L. (2010). Executive leadership: A 7C approach. Problems and Perspectives in Management, 8(4).

Honors and Awards

Year Description
2021 BookAuthority Book Award
2015 Lifetime Achievement Award, Association for Community Organization and Social Administration
2014 The Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership &
Governance Mary Parker Follette Award for its outstanding theory-informed
research (with Amanda Tillotson)
2013-2014 Distinguished Professor Award, School of Social Work
2009 Achievement Award for Excellence, Wolverine Human Resources
2007 Social Work Legacy Award (for the Tropman family), National Association of Social Workers, Pittsburgh Chapter
2007 Fulbright Senior Specialist, School of social work, University of Melbourne, AU
2005 Visiting Scholar, Rothmere Institute for American Studies, Oxford University, Oxford, UK
1996 Blackwell's Choice, Outstanding Academic Books for 1996 (For The Catholic Ethic in American Society)
1996 CHOICE Award for Outstanding Academic Books for 1996 (For The Catholic Ethic in American Society)
1995 Dictionary of International Biography, 25th Edition (England)
1995 Prominent Writer, Contemporary Authors, Gale Research, Who's Who in America
1995 Visiting Faculty Fellow, University of Michigan Journalism Fellows
1995 The International Directory of Management Scholars and Research, Harvard Business School Press
1995 Who's Who in American Education, 5th Edition
1992-1993 Fellow, Committee on InterInstitutional Cooperation, Academic Leadership Program
1988 Wilbur J. Cohen Award, School of Education
1986-1987 Chair, Michigan Society of Fellows, University of Michigan
1986-1987 The Bernard Zell/Leonard W. Lurie Prize for the Teaching of Entrepreneurship, School of Business, University of Michigan
1985 The 1985 Monsignor O'Grady Award for Achievement in Scholarly Research in Catholic Social Thought; the National Conference of Catholic Charities and Catholic University of America
1983-1987 Senior Fellow, Michigan Society of Fellows, University of Michigan
1983 Special Lecturer in Social Change, Kwansei Gakuin University, Nishinomiya, Hyogo, Japan
1981 Special Award, Vice President for Research, University of Michigan
1980 Fulbright Lecturer in Social Change, Kwansei Gakuin University, Nishinomiya, Hyogo, Japan
1979 Fellow, Collegiate Institute for Values and Science
1978 Who's Who in the Midwest
1978 American Men and Women of Science, Social and Behavioral Sciences
1977 Honors Examiner in Sociology, Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio
1977 Special Award, Vice President for Research, University of Michigan
1974 Visiting Faculty Associate, Joint Center for Urban Studies, MIT and Harvard University
1969 Horace Rackham Research Fellow, University of Michigan, "Public Welfare Appropriations"
1967 National Science Foundation Fellowship, to Improve the Scientific Quality of Dissertations
1962-1963 Grace Abbot Honors Fellowship, University of Chicago

Presentations

Year Description
2014 Tropman, J. E. (2014). Social exploitation. Presented in Australia.
2014 Tropman J. E. (2014). Effective community leadership. Presented in Tampa, FL.
2014 Tropman, J. E. (2014). Managing ideas in the creating organization. Presented in Australia
2014 Tropman, J. E. (2014). Mentoring doctoral students. Presented at the Society for Social Work Research.
2013 Tropman, J. E. (2013). The 7 C theory of executive leadership. Alliance for Children and Families, Milwaukee, WI.

Courses

Current & Future Courses

Title Instructor Term Course Section Meeting Start Meeting End
Philanthropy, Evaluation, and Performance Measurement Tropman, John E. Spring / Summer 2026 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Budgeting and Fiscal Management Tropman, John E. Fall 2026 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course

Past Courses

Title Instructor Term Course Section Meeting Start Meeting End
Philanthropy, Evaluation, and Performance Measurement Tropman, John E. Spring / Summer 2024 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Budgeting and Fiscal Management Tropman, John E. Fall 2023 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Philanthropy, Evaluation, and Performance Measurement Tropman, John E. Fall 2023 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Philanthropy, Evaluation, and Performance Measurement Tropman, John E. Spring / Summer 2023 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Practicing Policy with Current Events Tropman, John E. Winter 2023 007 09:00 am 12:00 pm View Course
Practicing Policy with Current Events Tropman, John E. Winter 2023 004 09:00 am 12:00 pm View Course
Budgeting and Fiscal Management Tropman, John E. Fall 2022 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Philanthropy, Evaluation, and Performance Measurement Tropman, John E. Spring / Summer 2022 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Theories of Change Tropman, John E. Winter 2022 001 02:00 pm 05:00 pm View Course
Budgeting and Fiscal Management Tropman, John E. Fall 2021 001 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course