Servant Leadership

Barry Gane

If you were asked to list the top ‘leaders' of our time, who would you nominate?

Winston Churchill? Mother Teresa? Nelson Mandela? Wally Lewis?

Over the past few millenniums, the church and its institutions seem to have lost sight of the model for leadership that Jesus not only lived but endorsed. We struggle with the concept of a combination of the terms servant and leader. However in the last few decades big businesses, government organisations and not-for-profit organisations have begun to look for new models of leadership that better achieve their vision/mission.

Larry Spears, the current director of The Robert Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership identifies a number of characteristics of the Servant Leader.

Listening

Spears highlights the first characteristic as Listening, and spends time admonishing the leader to go beyond reflective and active listing to the place where they are using positive Reactors that tell their colleague they are listening and that encourage them to continue talking. Rather than "we've tried that before and it . . . " to "That's interesting - how can we build on that

Empathy and healing

The second characteristic, Empathy, grows out of ones ability to master the first. The servant leader develops the capacity to enter another's feelings and ideas as they strive to understand those they work with and for. Healing follows. Here the servant leader addresses the spiritual side of leadership with the desire to help make whole.

Awareness

Awareness means taking the time to renew the passion that drew you to your job in the first place. Steven Covey encourages leaders to begin with the end in mind in order to understand the big picture of both the organisation and our personal lives.

Persuasion

When the above characteristics are in place then Persuasion is that much more effective. The servant leader persuades rather than coerces, he/she builds consensus rather than exerts power. They are passionate about what they do and it is passion that persuades. Persuasion involves dialogue if it is to be effective. It is not a one-way process.

Conceptualisation

Conceptualisation involves seeing the whole and recognising that it is more than the sum of its parts. The servant leader sees the big picture by looking beyond the need to achieve the short term operational and financial objectives.

Foresight

Foresight is closely related to conceptualisation but it demands that the leader understand the past, engage the future, and remove the blinders in order to develop creativity. Others look to the servant leader because of their ability to relate their actions to the future. They are capable of articulating this into vision and inspiring others to think about what is coming and how it could be and should be addressed.

Stewardship

Stewardship in this context is about being accountable and sharing control. The servant leader does not seek position but is called to it. Ken Blanchard puts it well: "Leaders who are servants first will assume leadership only if they see it as the best way to serve. They are called to lead, rather than driven, because they naturally want to be helpful. They aren't possessive about their position."

Commitment to growth of people

Most leadership theory draws a distinct line between the leader and the follower. The servant leader concept turns this on its head as the servant leader is committed to putting the needs of the follower first, they want to see them grow, they believe that they are gifted and able to make an even greater contribution than they do presently. Blanchard attempts to spell out what happens when the process is turned upside down.

"With the traditional pyramid, the boss is always responsible and the staff are supposed to be responsive to the boss. When you turn the pyramid upside down, those roles get reversed. Your people become responsible and the job of management is to be responsive to their people. This gives rise to the final characteristic of one who is concerned about Building community."

Buliding community

The community around the servant leader is enriched by his/her leadership both in the organisation where they serve and within the world around them. There is a real hunger for community and when people find it they will do all they can to remain within it. Real community is contagious. Being part of a community and doing a "good job" are seen as more important by workers in an organisation then are "getting ahead," or "making a good living."

"The values and interests of freedom , self-actualisation, learning, community, excellence, uniqueness, service, and social responsibility truly attract people."

The model for servant leadership

It would be strange not to go back to the original model for servant leadership - Jesus Christ. Jesus did not ask of his followers what he himself would not do. In Matthew 20:20-28, we have the story of two brothers who tried to sneak into leadership positions ahead of their colleagues. It really created terrible animosity.

Jesus said, "You've observed how godless rulers throw their weight around, how quickly a little power goes to their heads. It's not going to be that way with you. Whoever wants to be great must become a servant. Whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not be served-and then to give away his life in exchange for the many who are held hostage."

"To become a centre of influence holding people together is a grave matter and fraught with great responsibility. It requires greatness of spirit, consistency and strength. Therefore let him who wishes to gather others about him ask himself whether he is equal to the undertaking..." (I Ching)

The Christian knows that outside of Christ he is not equal to the task. So let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. Become first a servant then a leader!

Barry Gane is the director of leadership and professional development for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the South Pacific.

This article first appeared in the June 2009 issue of Career Connections, a newsletter from the Human Resources department of the Adventist Church in the South Pacific.

Visit the department's website for the full article, and other leadership and professional development tips and podcasts.

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