Ask people to share their mental image of a Montessori school, and invariably, it goes something like this: Children are gathered in a small groups around the room, often sprawled on the floor, engaged in some sort of a project.  They have materials in their hands and strewn around them.  Usually the teacher isn't mentioned.  Students are focused, interacting, engaging, creating.  It's a sharp contrast to the traditional model of students sitting at desks listening to a teacher at the front of the room.  

This Montessori model looks and sounds remarkably like the most innovative workplaces of today: small groups of people, gathered together in ever more home-like spaces with sofas, kitchens, lounges and sticky notes scattered on walls and whiteboards.   The most successful modern workplaces are abandoning the command-and-control leadership style in favor of new ways of working, and they are grounded in Montessori methods.