Gurumurthy Kalyanaram, UT Dallas, former professor and Dean, reports on attributes of servant leadership.
Larry C. Spears (2002), who served as the President and CEO of the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership since 1990, extracted a set of 10 characteristics that play a central role to the development of a servant leader. They are listed as:
Larry C. Spears (2002), who served as the President and CEO of the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership since 1990, extracted a set of 10 characteristics that play a central role to the development of a servant leader. They are listed as:
1. Listening: Since time immemorial, leaders have been valued for their communication and decision – making skills. Though these skills also of paramount importance for the servant leader, they need to be reinforced by a deep commitment to listening intently to others and support them in decision identification. The servant leader listens deeply to what is being said and particularly pays attention to what remains unspoken in the management setting. ‘Read in between the lines’ is an important attribute of an effective leader and this skill needs to be mastered by the servant leader. This means relying on his inner voice in order to find out what the body, mind and spirit of the followers are communicating.
2. Empathy: A servant leader strives earnestly to understand and empathize with others. Workers may be considered not only as employees, but also as people who need respect and appreciation for their personal development. They are accepted and appreciated for their special and unique spirits. As a result, leadership acquires a special dimension, which ultimately generates a competitive advantage.
3. Healing: One of the great strengths of a Servant Leader is the ability for healing one’s self and others. Life is a roller coaster ride and these ups and downs tend to break the spirits of many people. Although, this is inevitable, servant leaders see it as an opportunity to heal the souls of these disheartened people. They try to help people solve their problems and conflicts in relationships, because a servant leader works towards the personal development of each individual.
4. Awareness: General awareness, especially self awareness, adds to the effectiveness of a servant leader. He / She has the ability to perceive situations from a more holistic and integrated perspective. And, thus issues/situations pertaining to ethics, values and power are easily grasped by them.
5. Persuasion: A servant leader is a leader whole – heartedly accepted by people, rather than a leader forced down their throat by the top management. Therefore, a servant leader is able to seek cooperation and compliance by relying on his/her own potential, without taking advantage of his/her power or status. It is this very element that makes servant leadership style stand apart from the traditional authoritarian models of leadership. Building consensus within the group is thus an easy task for the servant leader.
6. Conceptualization: Servant leaders seek to nurture and groom their abilities to dream beyond the land of possibilities. The potential to look at a situation from a conceptualizing perspective means that one must think beyond the routine array of activities. The traditional leader is caught in the web of running after short – term operational goals. Whereas, a servant leader stretches his/her thinking to encompass broader – based conceptual thinking. Servant leaders are able to strike a perfect equilibrium between conceptual thinking and day to day operational thinking.
7. Foresight: This refers to the ability to foresee the likely outcome of a situation. Armed with this ability, the servant leader is absorb the valuable lessons from the past, understand the current reality effectively and thus, he/she is able to identify the likely consequences about the future. Foresight as a characteristic is intrinsically inter – woven with the characteristic of conceptualization.
8. Stewardship: Peter Block, in his book Stewardship: Choosing Service over Self Interest, has defined the term ‘stewardship’ as “holding something in trust for another.”(pg 20). The primary responsibility of the top management is to hold their institution in trust for the benefit of the society at large. Servant Leadership, like stewardship, takes on the commitment to serve the needs of others as their prime motto. Thus, servant leadership is viewed as an obligation to help and serve others. It also lays stress on the use of openness and persuasion, rather than control.
9. Commitment to the growth of people: Servant leaders’ thinking strongly rests on the notion that people have an intrinsic value beyond their tangible contributions as workers. Guided by this view, a servant leader leaves no stone unturned for seeking the growth of each and every employee within his or her organization. The servant leader acknowledges that the responsibility to nurture the personal, professional and spiritual growth of employees and colleagues rests on his/her shoulders solely. The servant leader will encourage the ideas and suggestions of everyone, involve workers in the process of decision making, make funds available for personal and professional development, the list is endless.
10. Building Community: A servant leader identifies various means to build a strong community within his/her organization. He / She work towards developing a true community among businesses and institutions.
Please refer to other articles by Gurumurthy Kalyanaram UT Dallas, former professor and Dean on his website: www.gurumurthykalyanaram.com
2. Empathy: A servant leader strives earnestly to understand and empathize with others. Workers may be considered not only as employees, but also as people who need respect and appreciation for their personal development. They are accepted and appreciated for their special and unique spirits. As a result, leadership acquires a special dimension, which ultimately generates a competitive advantage.
3. Healing: One of the great strengths of a Servant Leader is the ability for healing one’s self and others. Life is a roller coaster ride and these ups and downs tend to break the spirits of many people. Although, this is inevitable, servant leaders see it as an opportunity to heal the souls of these disheartened people. They try to help people solve their problems and conflicts in relationships, because a servant leader works towards the personal development of each individual.
4. Awareness: General awareness, especially self awareness, adds to the effectiveness of a servant leader. He / She has the ability to perceive situations from a more holistic and integrated perspective. And, thus issues/situations pertaining to ethics, values and power are easily grasped by them.
5. Persuasion: A servant leader is a leader whole – heartedly accepted by people, rather than a leader forced down their throat by the top management. Therefore, a servant leader is able to seek cooperation and compliance by relying on his/her own potential, without taking advantage of his/her power or status. It is this very element that makes servant leadership style stand apart from the traditional authoritarian models of leadership. Building consensus within the group is thus an easy task for the servant leader.
6. Conceptualization: Servant leaders seek to nurture and groom their abilities to dream beyond the land of possibilities. The potential to look at a situation from a conceptualizing perspective means that one must think beyond the routine array of activities. The traditional leader is caught in the web of running after short – term operational goals. Whereas, a servant leader stretches his/her thinking to encompass broader – based conceptual thinking. Servant leaders are able to strike a perfect equilibrium between conceptual thinking and day to day operational thinking.
7. Foresight: This refers to the ability to foresee the likely outcome of a situation. Armed with this ability, the servant leader is absorb the valuable lessons from the past, understand the current reality effectively and thus, he/she is able to identify the likely consequences about the future. Foresight as a characteristic is intrinsically inter – woven with the characteristic of conceptualization.
8. Stewardship: Peter Block, in his book Stewardship: Choosing Service over Self Interest, has defined the term ‘stewardship’ as “holding something in trust for another.”(pg 20). The primary responsibility of the top management is to hold their institution in trust for the benefit of the society at large. Servant Leadership, like stewardship, takes on the commitment to serve the needs of others as their prime motto. Thus, servant leadership is viewed as an obligation to help and serve others. It also lays stress on the use of openness and persuasion, rather than control.
9. Commitment to the growth of people: Servant leaders’ thinking strongly rests on the notion that people have an intrinsic value beyond their tangible contributions as workers. Guided by this view, a servant leader leaves no stone unturned for seeking the growth of each and every employee within his or her organization. The servant leader acknowledges that the responsibility to nurture the personal, professional and spiritual growth of employees and colleagues rests on his/her shoulders solely. The servant leader will encourage the ideas and suggestions of everyone, involve workers in the process of decision making, make funds available for personal and professional development, the list is endless.
10. Building Community: A servant leader identifies various means to build a strong community within his/her organization. He / She work towards developing a true community among businesses and institutions.
Please refer to other articles by Gurumurthy Kalyanaram UT Dallas, former professor and Dean on his website: www.gurumurthykalyanaram.com