The Servant Leader

The Servant Leader

Welcome back my fellow theorists. Which leadership style best describes you? Authoritarian, delegative, participative? This week we will take a look at the concept of the servant leader. Alexander the Great was revered by his troops and is said to have lead them into battle from the front; doing the job that he asked of his subordinates. The idea of the servant leader has been around for quite some time. Leadership that turns the dial way up in the empathy, humility and constructive criticism departments and conversely turns the dial way down on reprimanding, public embarrassment, and distrust. There are different ways to lead subordinates. As President and Chief Executive Officer of the Deseret Book Company, Sherri L. Dew knows something about leadership and motivating others to accomplish a goal. According to the Bloomberg article, titled ‘How the Mormons Make Money, How the Mormon Church Makes Its Billions’, Ms. Dew took a struggling company and made it profitable. (Winter, 2012) In her book, ‘Say It Like It Is’, she states “True leaders understand that leadership is not about them but about those they serve. It is not about exalting themselves but about lifting others up”. (Dew, 2009) This profound statement embodies this week’s Germaine Theory discussion. Let’s flip the current model upside down and see if it works.

 

The Traditional Model

In the traditional leadership model the power is placed at the top of the organization with everyone at the subsequent lower levels performing a task as directed from the top because that is what the structure dictates. It is a directive form of leadership with the focus on the top of the pyramid. Working to make the CEO and Board of Directors happy with the job well done. Employees perform the task at large because they are compensated monetarily for their time. At the end of the shift, the employee heads home for the day with the idea that they will pick up where they left off the following day. If an employee makes a mistake their supervisor reprimands them, sometimes publicly to ensure that other employees don’t make the same mistake. In the traditional system the employees are more like mercenaries; they work for money and will start working somewhere else if the pay is better. There is no employee buy-in. Employees don’t see themselves as an integral part of the organization therefore they’re not invested in making the company better with innovative ideas or creative means. They are there to get paid and nothing more.

The Servant Leader Model

In the servant leadership model the power is placed with the employees. Leadership understands that a happy, well treated employee is an asset to the organization. You tend to see more of the small but impressionable moments that Drew Dudley speaks of in the TED Talk titled, ‘Everyday Leadership’. Employees know that they are more than a position filler. Managers take time to know and better understand what motivates their employees. This allows managers to know their employees and better place them in positions of maximum effect, which is ultimately better for the organization. Employees feel that their voices will be heard and are more open to sharing ideas and innovations that could potentially increase efficiency and profitability. Employees are also not so quick to leave an environment that is supportive and positive; this model increases employee retention. The model also facilitates employee growth as there tend to be more teachable moments. Errors made by employees are not used as weapons against them but tools for them to learn from and become better. The servant leader understands that the humiliating the employee will do more damage than good. This allows employees to feel comfortable asking questions and at the same time continue to feel unafraid to take initiative. At the root of servant leadership is the empowerment of the employees. “Empowered staff will perform at a high, innovative level. Employees feel more engaged and purpose-driven, which in turn increases the organization's retention and lowers turnover costs. Well-trained and trusted staffers continue to develop as future leaders, thus helping to ensure the long-term viability of the organization”. (Tarallo, 2018)

The Outlaws

I was assigned as the station commander to a recruiting station known as the Outlaws. The Outlaws had been grossly underperforming in comparison to the award-winning station they had been not that long before. They had recently lost their previous station commander and his deputy for ‘toxic leadership’. I was charged with getting the station back to the level that it should be performing. There was no trust in the station. The next higher echelon of leaders would visit the station and spill rhetoric and the Soldiers would listen but would all but forget it as soon as they left the building; they didn’t trust each other and they definitely didn’t trust the leadership. I had to earn the trust of the team and do a root-cause analysis to get to the bottom of the situation so we could find our way out of the muck. Through clear communication of intent and pointed questions, used to find their motivations, I got my answers. I scheduled a group meeting and everyone got everything off of their collective chests. I told them that respect was big with me and trust was everything and that I understood that both had to be earned. I told them that my job was to earn their trust. I told them all to take care of any issues that they may have had but previously not been allowed to deal with it. The Soldiers took the time to take care of family, finances, vehicles, school, medical issues and more. When they were done, we got to work. I put a dry erase easel in the middle of the office and put an inspirational quote at the bottom every day. The board was for any ideas, actions or grievances that anyone might have. I also told them that my door was always open and if they ever needed to talk, all they needed to do was walk in. The change wasn’t overnight but the team became a team again and the production increased. In 3 months the station was among the top stations in the Battalion. Listening to the Soldiers and understanding what motivated them was important but letting them know that they were the most important asset in the organization was key to them buying in. I also did what I said I was going to do for them. I earned their trust by doing the things that I asked of them and I was first in the office and last out. I will never subscribe to another form of leadership because I see the inherent effectiveness of following the golden rule: treat others as you want to be treated.

References

Dew, Sherri L. (2009). Saying It Like It Is. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Books.

Tarallo, Mark. (2018). The Art of Servant Leadership. SHRM. Retrieved from https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/organizational-and-employee-development/pages/the-art-of-servant-leadership.aspx  

Winter, Caroline. (2012). How the Mormons Make Money, How the Mormon Church Makes Its Billions. Bloomberg. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-07-18/how-the-mormons-make-money