Running Head: SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Servant Leadership: A Review of the Literature Michael de Vera Seattle University

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE Abstract This review of the literature connects many leadership articles to Greenleafs work on

servant leadership, a leadership style that commits to the bettering the world by putting the focus on the surrounding community rather than the individual leader. More specifically, the review states that there are common themes that make up servant leadership: perseverance through trialand-error, willingness for systemic change, initiative, and unlimited liability.

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE Introduction

James Hunter (1998) named a thoughtful and active dilemma in todays leadership: It is a shame that so many leaders spend their time pondering their rights as leaders instead of their awesome responsibilities as leaders (p. 63). In other words, there are leaders, and then there are servant-leaders. Servant leadership, primarily thought as a subtopic within the leadership framework, is more pervasive than most individuals realize. In fact, this type of thinking allows for a closer relationship between an individual and ones environment. By prioritizing the self as a servant before a leader, a noticeable change in internal motivations, concentration of energies, and teamwork attitude make a positive impact on the surrounding community. This literature review will focus on four important attributes of a servant leader, primarily discussed in Hickmans Leading Organizations: Perspectives for a New Era (2nd ed.): perseverance through trial-and-error, willingness for systemic change, initiative, and unlimited liability.

Perseverance Through Trial-and-Error First, servant-leaders commit to a cause or community for the long-term, knowing that obstacles will be encountered. These obstacles, which at first may seem like hindrances, can actually be thought of as moments of learning. Greenleaf states that a willingness to learn through trial-and-error is crucial to overcoming the hurdles: The one acts on the hypothesis and examines the result. One continues to study and learn and periodically one reexamines the hypothesis itself (2010, p. 90). Thus, the cyclical nature of strategizing, testing, and restrategizing implies lifelong learning, which will give an organization a better equipped think tank for responding to mishaps.

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE A concrete tool that many businesses use to take advantage of observing surrounding conditions is the SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats). Dess, Lumpkin, and Eisner note that a firms strategy must build on its strengths, try to remedy the weaknesses or work around them, take advantage of the opportunities presented by the environments, and, protect the firm from the threats (2010, p. 27). By looking at these conditions, it forces organizations to be proactive (not reactive) against threats and for opportunities (p. 27). Overall, a servant-leader is able to promote a learning environment that transcends the self: A learning culture would have to assume that the appropriate way for humans to behave in relationship of their environment is to be proactive problem solvers and learners (Greenleaf, 2010, p. 332).

Willingness for Change Another theme connected to servant leadership is willingness for change, regardless of his/her own status for the benefit of the whole community. Greenleaf claims that the best to lead in any given situation has more than inspiration: Why would anybody accept the leadership of another except that the other sees more clearly where it is best to go? Perhaps this is the current problem: too many who presume to lead do not see more clearly (2010, p. 91). The last person the community needs is one who knowingly or worse unknowingly defends the preservation of the system (p. 91). In short, servant leaders act upon where they see gaps within the community. However, servant leaders cannot produce change alone. Not only do servant leaders seek change by paying attention to the community needs; they rely on the community by sharing power with them. Offerman (2010) insists that empowerment does not work by simply

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE delegating. Leaders need to be cognizant of how supporters will create meaning, selfdetermination, self-efficacy, and self-determination without micromanagement. By sharing the power, a commitment to the vision is multiplied as the level of care increases. When thinking

about the push for change, a leader must be willing to instill a transformation in the environment and within each follower.

Initiative The third theme that demonstrates servant leadership is initiative. Initiative means three things to a servant leader: taking risks, building structure, and following through. Greenleaf notes that an integral part of a leaders journey is the unpredictability: A leader says, I will go; follow me! while knowing that the path is uncertain, even dangerous. One then trusts those who go with ones leadership (p. 91). Risk-taking is therefore necessary to move forward. Attached to the invitation is a level of intrigue that captures followers. Den Hand and Bakker (2010) argue that a leader must be equipped with a vision that seeks to deinstitutionalize and reinstitutionalize for institutional change. It does not mean to say that one should lead blindly; building structure will help light the way. In a way, Hackman (2010) emphasizes the creation or building aspect of a leader: First of all, they make sure that they have created a real work team that will have some stability over time. They provide the team with a compelling direction. They fine-tune the structure of the team so it fosters rather than impedes teamwork (p. 212). This constant fine-tuning the teamwork assumes that there are no absolutes in decision-making and the most effective leadership does not overgeneralize but rather is situational.

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Lastly, it is important that the initiative is followed through. As organizations mature, the following questions should be revisited: Does the organization walk the talk in its vision and mission? Do the organizations design principles fit with the surrounding environment? Are stakeholders still present in the conversation? Mitroffpointed out the need to identify the various characteristics of each major stakeholder, such as its motivations, intentions, interests, reasons, power, and knowledge (Boaventura & Fischmann, 2010, p. 273).

Unlimited Liability The last theme adjacent to servant leadership is having an unlimited liability for ones community. Some might call it responsibility, while others might call it love. Whatever the case, servant leaders demonstrate this without bias toward members of the team. In fact, effective leaders prioritize diverse values and opinions as a core tenet of teamwork: For diversity to be a resource, however, the subcultures must be connected and must learn to value each other enough to learn something of each others culture and language (Boaventura & Fischmann, p. 273). Also, Kouzes and Posner discuss that leaders must pay attention especially to the less salient voices in the room (2003, p. 73). Active listening and a strategized flow of channels will improve the clarity of messages between leader and follower. Well-organized communication helps maximize the benefits of ones unconditional care for their people.

Reflection Today, I feel that I do possess these servant leader traits, though at various levels. My experiences show that I am stronger in perseverance through trial and error and unlimited liability and could improve in initiative and willingness for change. Given a deadline, I persevere

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

and finish projects. According to my supervisor and coworkers, I am seen as reliable, especially during times when someone needs to step up. Not only am I good at getting things done on time, but I am in constant assessment mode. After each program that I coordinate, I evaluate it with plus, minus, delta technique, where I state the pros, cons, and potential ways to improve. Fundamentally, I understand that if I were strong in one category that I am somehow not as present in another. Also, I hold highly a care for my community. I tend to think it is unbiased, though I can never be for sure. When I run for leadership positions, I do it because I spot a gap in the community and wish to fill it as a way to bring everyone closer. I am introverted and feelings come to mind before logic during almost any situation, so I am sensitive to how others feel about my leadership (at times to a fault). My unlimited liability for the community can get it in the way of my initiative. It is difficult for me to act and lead amidst the various critics. Risk taking is like pulling teeth for me, since I do not want to step on others feet. Furthermore, I utilize the structural leadership framework the least, so building templates does not come easy. This is an area of improvement for me. Lastly, willingness for change is another area for improvement. The willingness is there, but the confidence is not. Standing up for my own morals or ethics is difficult if done by myself. For instance, facilitating conduct hearings is not innate to me. If I am having trouble with the transformation of one individual, then it is seemingly impossible for me to seek transformation amongst a community.

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE Chapters Read

PART I 3. Creating the Environmentally Aware Organization (Dess, Lumpkin, & Eisner) 4. How to Make Sense of Weak Signals (Schoemaker & Day) 6. Leadership (Excerpts) (Burns) PART II 7. The Transformational Model of Leadership (Bass & Riggio) 8. Servant Leadership (Greenleaf) 9. Charismatic Theory (Conger) 10. Contingency Theories of Leadership (Hughes, Ginnett, & Curphy) 11. Strategic Leadership: Top Management Teams (Finkelstein, Hambrick, & Cannella, Jr.) 12. All Those Years Ago: The Historical Underpinnings of Shared Leadership (Pearce & Conger) PART III 13. Followership (Kelley) 14. Empowerment (Offerman) 15. Leadership and the Problem of Bogus Empowerment (Ciulla) PART IV 19. What Do we Know About Vision? (Kantabutra) 20. Is Your Vision Consistent? A Method for Checking, Based on Scenario Concepts (Boaevntura & Fischmann) 21. The Mission Statement: A Corporate Reporting Tool With a Past, Present, and Future (Williams) 22. Do Firms Practice What They Preach? The Relationship Between Mission Statements and Stakeholder Management (Bartkus & Glassman) 23. What Is the Right Organization Design? (Anand & Daft) PART V 24. Influencing Organization Culture (Yukl) 25. The Learning Culture and the Learning Leader (Schein) 30. Making Meaning of Being Bad (Kellerman) PART VI 32. Unlocking the Benefits of Diversity: All-Inclusive Multiculturalism and Positive Organizational Change (Stevens, Plaut, & Sanchez-Burks) 37. The Multigenerational Workforce: Opportunity for Competitive Success (HR Magazine) PART VII 40. Organizational Change Practices (Hickman) 45. The Tenets of the Democratic Enterprise (Gratton) PART VIII 47. Leading Corporate Citizenship (Waddock) 49. Ideologically Motivated Activism: How Activist Groups Influence Corporate Social Change Activities (Den Hond & De Bakker)

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

References Boaventura, J.M., & Fischmann, A.A. (2010). Is your vision consistent? A method for checking, based on scenario concepts. In G.R. Hickman (Ed.), Leading organizations: Perspectives for a new era (2nd ed.) (pp. 270-288). Los Angeles: Sage. Dess, G.G., Lumpkin, G.T., & Eisner, A.B. (2010). Creating the environmentally aware organization. In G.R. Hickman (Ed.), Leading organizations: Perspectives for a new era (2nd ed.) (pp. 21-36). Los Angeles: Sage. Hond, F.D., & Bakker, F.G. (2010). Ideologically motivated activism: How activist groups influence corporate social change activities. In G.R. Hickman (Ed.), Leading organizations: Perspectives for a new era (2nd ed.) (pp. 618-641). Los Angeles: Sage. Greenleaf, R. (2010). Servant leadership. In G.R. Hickman (Ed.), Leading organizations: Perspectives for a new era (2nd ed.) (pp. 87-95). Los Angeles: Sage. Hackman, J.R. (2010). Leading teams: Imperatives for leaders. In G.R. Hickman (Ed.), Leading organizations: Perspectives for a new era (2nd ed.) (pp. 209-238). Los Angeles: Sage. Hunter, J. C. (1998). The servant: A simple story about the true essence of leadership. Rocklin, Calif: Prima Pub. Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2003). Encouraging the heart: A leader's guide to rewarding and recognizing others. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

SERVANT LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

10