Robert Greenleaf 's Theory Of Servant Leadership

According to Greenleaf, service-leadership involves service to others. He argues that service-leadership starts when a leader takes up the position of a servant in his or her dealing with the followers. He states that truth leadership originates from an essential yearning to first assist others rather than the use of power. It implies that the drive and goal of servant-leadership are to support greatness

Servant leadership is a theory based on Robert K Greenleaf’s belief that all men have a primary motivation to serve others and through this service they aspire to lead (Parris & Peachey, 2012). Although this leadership model has very little in common with charismatic and situational does however compare to transformational leadership in several areas. The main area of commonality between the two can be found as transformational leaders serve as stewards to change enable the followers to accept the change and move forward with the organization (Tichy & Devanna, 1990, p. 75). In essence, servant leadership becomes the long-term transformational approach to life and work.

Introduction Servant leadership is an emerging leadership principle that was developed by Robert K. Greenleaf in 1970 (Keith, 2015). The main idea behind this principle is based on the assumption that in order to become an effective leader, one must first become an able servant. In his essay ‘The Servant as Leader,’ Greenleaf posits that man, in nature, is a servant (Greenleaf, n.d.). And being a servant, man will also follow leaders that are servant, themselves.

Dr. Kent M. Keith was a presenter on behalf of the Greenleaf Seminar on Servant Leadership at the 53rd annual conference for the Arizona School Boards Association in December, 2010. He correctly pointed out that servant leadership is about serving others, about becoming distinguished through the altruistic desire to serve, and about the "…universal recognition of the importance of serving others" (Keith, 2010).

Servant leadership is not just a Christian philosophy. As defined by Robert K. Greenleaf, a servant leader is “a servant first….It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first” (What is Servant Leadership, n.d.). Servant leadership is global, not relegated to the United States. China is home to over 1 billion people that represent 56 ethnic minority groups including Han Chinese, Tibetans, Mongols and the Manchus (Sanders, 2014).

The shared themes discussed in these articles aligned with my thesis – caring for the least able, service before leading. Liden, Wayne, Chenwei, and Meuser (2014) suggest a servant leader must guide followers to emulate the leader’s behaviors by prioritizing the needs of others above the leaders'needs. Liden et al. (2014) further attest that servant leaders cultivate servant leadership attributes among those they lead, creating a serving culture which influences performance and enhances followers’ traits and skills through mediating influence of personal identification. For leaders to operate under ethical leadership framework, the leader must possess character, competence, and commitment. The leader must also lead by example, thrive on the

He further explains that servant leaders are not motivated by material possessions and are not usually driven to lead for the power that comes from the position (Greenleaf et al., 2002). Instead, the servant leader will ensure that the needs of their followers, the organization, or the community are met first and are treated with the utmost priority over their own needs (Greenleaf et al., 2002). Northouse (2016), also notes that servant leaders are attentive to the needs, concerns, and the wellbeing of their followers. Servant leadership also helps to promote employee satisfaction through helping them grow, succeed, and empowering them to be more independent and successful (Northouse,

If one is to succeed in leading, they must put others first. Author Robert K. Greenleaf said, “The difference manifests itself in the care taken by the servant-first to make sure that other people’s highest priority needs are being served. The best test, and difficult to administer, is: Do those served grow as persons? Do they, while being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants? And, what is the effect on the least privileged in society?

Servant leadership is leadership that starts with a vision. Servant leaders are optimists with empathy for individuals (Gill, 2015). Servent leadership involves putting the needs of others at the forefront of every business, organization, department or group. For example, servant leadership addresses the accountabilities and relations between employees and customers, and its investors and shareholders. In theory, servant leadership is a set of practices that improves the lives of many individuals, develops better businesses, and overall fashions a more caring and just world (Leadership?, 2015 ).

Greenleaf believed that man could better his organizational management environment by being a servant leader. While these tenets and traits are important in serving others first, Greenleaf’s model, grounded in a humanistic approach, cannot be achieved effectively through the altruistic attempts of man. When one leads for personal gain, the result is destruction. In order to maintain such leadership, one is obligated to do whatever it takes to keep that power. Dr. Khalib Fischer (2017) from Liberty University states that “our striving for recognition can become a subtle idol that takes our focus off of others and places the focus on our agenda and aspirations.” The key challenges of being a servant leader are 1) the need for recognition, 2) letting your career become your idol, and 3) being a workaholic thinking everyone else is not as smart in whatever you are currently doing (Fischer, 2017). The traits that describe a true servant-leader is a Christ-centered, biblical leader that embraces acts of service, welcomes criticism, seeks to transform themselves, and is not afraid to serve with their hearts while elevating and edifying others (Liberty University, 2017).

Servant leadership offers a distinct viewpoint on leadership that differs from any other type of leadership. “Servant leadership goes beyond the focus of the organization and instead focuses on the needs of followers” (Carroll & Patterson, 2014, p. 15). The priority is placed on serving others and making others needs the most significant factor. “A servant-leader focuses primarily on the growth and well-being of people and the communities to which they belong. While traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the “top of the pyramid” (Carroll & Patterson, 2014, p. 16).

The philosophy of servant leadership began with Robert K. Greenleaf in 1977. He first came about the idea of servant leadership while reading Journey to the East by Herman Hesse (Keith, 2016). This is a story of a group of travelers who were served by a man named Leo. He performed their menial chores and lifted their spirits with his song and his spirit (Keith, 2016). Leo disappeared one day, throwing the travelers into disarray (Keith, 2016). This ended the journey of the travelers. Many years later, one of the travelers saw Leo in a new job role—as the head of the order that once sponsored the journey (Keith, 2016). Once a servant,

Servant leadership is defined as, the process through which a leader or even an organization, identify the need to serve others first, and then use this aspiration to lead others. It is more of a situation of serve-first then leads (Greenleaf, 2007). This concept is credited to Robert Greenleaf, who is said to be the ‘father’ of servant leadership. This type of leadership prioritizes on the need to use relevant leadership skills and techniques, so as to efficiently and effectively serve others. Servant leadership is closely related to the participative leadership style, where other people including employees, are involved in the decision-making process in an organization or even in a country (Hawkinson & Johnston, 2013).

In our textbook, Leadership Theory and Practice, chapter 10 discusses servant leadership. Servant leadership is described as “…the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first” (Northouse, page 226). Robert K. Greenleaf coined the term servant leadership and declared ten characteristics that make up a servant leader. Many of these imperative ten characteristics were found in East Lincoln Elementary on that Saturday afternoon.

Although Robert K Greenleaf’s Servant leadership philosophy is almost 40 years old, only in the past decade an upsurge in the research pertaining to servant leadership has carved a niche in the leadership literature. The past decade witnessed, focused theory development, development of validated instruments and an increased number of empirical studies in peer reviewed literature. However, to build the