Barry Johnson

In his 30+ years as an organization and leadership development consultant, Dr. Barry Johnson has shared the “gift of polarities” with tens of thousands of individuals and hundreds of organizations around the world.

His authorship of the Polarity Management® approach, founding of Polarity Management Associates, and his enthusiasm and passion have created a world-wide learning and practice community. Barry’s own evolution and learning have meant that his model and its applications are growing, too, and he has included enhancements from people who have been inspired by Barry’s ideas, approaches and applications. Barry not only acknowledges but also emphasizes that Polarity Thinking® is the deliberate tapping of wisdom found in human culture for thousands of years. Bringing this wisdom into conscious, active use for the advantage of all people has been Barry’s mission, as represented by Polarity Management Associates’ motto, Enhancing our quality of life on the planet through leveraging polarities.

Barry’s clients include some of the world’s largest businesses and industries; educational organizations and universities; and government agencies in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, South Africa and the United Nations. Countless leaders, consultants and individual users have participated in Polarity Management Associates’ programs and presentations. His 1992 book, Polarity Management®: Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems (HRD Press) is in wide use in businesses and community organizations. Barry has written several articles relating Polarity Management® to a variety of issues, and his work has been highlighted in several other business books and articles. His latest book, with Roy Oswald, Polarities in Congregations, Eight Keys to Thriving Faith Communities, applies Polarity Thinking to the lives of Christian faith communities. Barry is currently working on The Infinity Factor: Tapping it for Ourselves, Our Families, Our Organizations, Our Nations, and Our Planet.

In addition to his Ph.D. in organization development from International College, Barry has organization and system development training from the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland and has devoted considerable amounts of his time to community activism, community building, and trust building in organizations. He is devoted to his family, is an avid outdoorsman and intrepid traveler, and he brings head and heart together in his presentations, teaching and consulting. Barry and his wife, Dana, have 5 children and 11 grandchildren.