Personal and Organizational Excellence through Servant Leadership

This introductory chapter addresses the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of servant leadership. Following a brief outline of the servant leadership definition, it discusses a rationale for servant leadership encompassing five reasons – contextual, anecdotal, empirical, philosophical, and cross-cultural. First, contemporary organizations today are plagued by systemic problems associated with various forms of toxic leadership which deepens a longing for moral-based leadership. Second, anecdotal evidence suggests that servant leadership has been applied in the best workplaces which serve as an anomaly to the majority of today’s corporations. Third, empirical research suggests that servant leadership better predicts key organizational outcomes relative to other leadership approaches such as transformational leadership. Fourth, servant leadership is built on a distinct philosophical basis that encompasses the leader’s self-concept, service orientation, and standard operating procedure. Finally, the salient values of servant leadership are much more culturally universal hence is likely to be more generalizable to various cultures.

This chapter provides an overview of research on servant leadership. The origin of servant leadership is outlined primarily on the basis of the philosophical support found in the Bible. Based on key qualitative and quantitative studies of servant leadership, this chapter also presents a comparison of servant leadership and other value-laden leadership theories, including charismatic, transformational, authentic, and spiritual leadership. Next its predictive ability relative to major outcomes such as creativity and innovation, trust, organizational citizenship behavior, job satisfaction, and employee engagement is delineated. The development of the Servant Leadership Behavior Scale is briefly outlined in the subsequent section. Finally, the chapter concludes by addressing major objections typically erected against the servant leadership construct.

This chapter discusses the first dimension of servant leadership, Voluntary Subordination, which signifies the leader’s conviction to renounce the superior status and privileges attached to leadership in order to embrace greatness by way of servanthood. Examining how servant leaders view and treat power show why the willingness to selflessly serve others is the defining dimension of servant leadership. The first two servant leadership values associated with Voluntary Subordination, Being a Servant and Acts of Service, are subsequently elaborated. The chapter concludes with a contrast between self-serving leaders and servant leaders, and seven actionable commitments pertinent these values.

This chapter provides an in-depth examination of the Authentic Self dimension of servant leadership. The contrast between true self and false self is outlined to arrive at a proper understanding of the construct as distinct from the authentic leadership theory. The following sections expound the five values associated with Authentic Self, namely humility, integrity, accountability, security, and vulnerability. The actionable commitments of servant leadership pertinent to these values are presented in the concluding part of this chapter.

The need for moral leadership is no doubt urgent in light of the prevalence of destructive leadership, but many still consider it an oxymoron. Arguments for moral leadership are presented in this chapter followed by discussion on the two values attached to Responsible Morality, namely moral reasoning and moral action. Key commitments for managerial practice are outlined at the conclusion of this chapter.

Transcendental Spirituality is perhaps the most disputed dimension of servant leadership. As this chapter demonstrates, however, the misconception springs from ignorance of the construct rather than an intellectually persuasive position. To that end, the four values of Transcendental Spirituality – transcendental beliefs, interconnectedness, sense of mission, and wholeness – are elucidated to clarify its meaning and relevance. Key commitments for managerial practice are outlined at the conclusion of this chapter.

This chapter examines the sixth and final dimension of servant leadership, Transforming Influence. Servant leaders exist to transform followers in multiple areas of growth into servant leaders themselves. The five values of Transforming Influence explicated in this chapter are vision, empowerment, modelling, mentoring, and trust. Actionable commitments derived from these values are discussed at the end of the chapter.

This chapter introduces a framework of servant leadership development comprising the three triangles of leadership development. The first triangle demonstrates that servant leadership development elevates both the leaders and followers in a positive atmosphere of learning and growth. The second triangle depicts the notion that since leadership is a lifetime journey of self-discovery, servant leaders should continue embarking in this journey with a keen awareness that only when their past and future self are aligned would they be able to transform their present lives profoundly. The last triangle refers to the dimensions of servant leadership development within individuals – being, knowing, doing – with a particular emphasis on the first dimension.