Career & Professional Development

Michigan Expectations Model

The Michigan Expectations Model (MEM) identifies 12 benchmark behavioral standards that all university faculty and staff should demonstrate. The goals of the MEM are to support our shared mission and equip faculty and staff with an understanding of the behavioral expectations needed for success at the University of Michigan. These behavior standards, called “expectations,” will be referenced and used in a variety of ways including customer care, hiring, professional development, and daily conduct. The model is a framework for development and performance management. It is organized into four domains, each with a set of three corresponding expectations.

Michigan Expectations Model Graphic


Development Approach

Our learning and development strategies follow a 70-20-10 approach:

70 Percent: Experience

Seventy percent of an individual's greatest learning moments come from experiences or on-the-job learning. Examples include:

  • Stretch/challenging assignments
  • Special projects
  • Volunteer/community service
  • Rotational assignments

20 Percent: Engagement

Twenty percent of an individual's greatest learning comes from engagement through mentoring and networking. Examples include:

  • Peer-to-peer and formal networking
  • Community of practices
  • Career/performance discussions

10 Percent: Education

Ten percent of an individual's greatest learning comes from education or formal learning experiences like classroom training, web-based training or industry conferences. Other examples include:

  • Instructor-led courses
  • Self-study
  • Conferences
  • Forums
  • E-learning
  • Books

70-20-10 Development Approach Graphic


The Individual Career Development Plan (ICDP) is a tool for faculty and staff that utilizes the Michigan Expectation Model and the Michigan Development Approach to assess where they are currently, identify areas of development, and create a personalized plan for their professional and career development.

Within the ICDP goal-setting section, there are examples for Research and Leadership goals. This medical school-specific example is for our clinical faculty:

GOAL: Clinical Focus for Early Career Faculty

Example Goal: Grow my clinical area of expertise locally and nationally by the end of my fifth year as faculty
MEM Expectation: Lead Innovation and Change

EXPERIENCE (70%)
Example: Work with my colleagues to improve clinical practice and understand best practices and beyond for this patient population

ENGAGEMENT (20%)
Example: Meet with stakeholders and work on improving team-building skills

EDUCATION (10%)
Identify area of patient need and what the infrastructure should look like