The greatest leaders are those most interested in surrounding themselves with what they call 'great people.' They are people who are not only great professionals but also great human beings." -James C. Hunter
WHAT IS SERVANT LEADERSHIP?
The concept of servant leadership was first introduced by Robert K. Greenleaf in his 1970 essay. According to Greenleaf, a servant leader is someone who puts the needs of their team members and the community first. They focus on fostering growth and well-being and work to help others reach their full potential. This approach emphasizes sharing power and showing humility, rather than commanding and brandishing authority.
One of the key benefits of servant leadership is that it leads to increased engagement, trust, and stronger relationships between leaders and their team members and other stakeholders. It also promotes innovation and creativity, as it encourages people to reach their full potential. It is also considered a complementary leadership style with democratic leadership and transformational leadership which are effective in business situations.
The journey to servant leadership: How to prioritize the needs of others and empower your team
Empathy, humility, authenticity, vision, foresight, strategic thinking, decisiveness, empowerment, service-oriented, and self-improvement are the key characteristics of a servant leader, which can be developed over time by anyone willing to put the needs of others first.
Empathy:
Empathy is an essential aspect of servant leadership. It enables leaders to understand and relate to the needs and perspectives of their team and community, fostering a culture of trust and collaboration.
Humility:
Humility is a crucial characteristic of servant leadership, it enables leaders to put the needs of their team and community first, fostering trust, and creating a positive work environment by being open to feedback, suggestions, and ideas. this approach leads to a collaborative and productive team.
Authenticity:
Humility is a crucial characteristic of servant leadership, it enables leaders to put the needs of their team and community first, fostering trust, and creating a positive work environment by being open to feedback, suggestions, and ideas. this approach leads to a collaborative and productive team.
Visionary:
A visionary leader is essential for servant leadership, as they have a clear and inspiring vision for the future that motivates and guides their team and community towards success.
Foresight:
Foresight in leadership is a critical aspect of servant leadership. It allows leaders to anticipate future challenges and opportunities, which enables them to make strategic decisions and plan for long-term success. This approach ensures that the organization is always prepared for the future and is able to make the necessary adjustments to remain competitive.
Strategic thinking:
Strategic thinking for servant leaders involves considering the needs and goals of both the organization and its stakeholders, balancing short-term and long-term objectives, and taking action to bring about positive change for all parties involved. It's about having a clear vision and being able to translate it into action to achieve the best outcome for all.
Decisiveness:
Decisiveness as a servant leader requires balancing the needs of all stakeholders and making fair and just decisions that are in the best interest of the organization and those it serves. It also means being willing to take responsibility for the consequences of those decisions and being accountable for the results.
Empowerment:
Empowerment for servant leaders means creating an environment where team members are encouraged to take ownership of their work, make decisions, and develop their skills and abilities to achieve both individual and organizational goals. This also includes removing obstacles and providing support for their growth and success, while staying aligned with the organization's vision and mission.
Service-oriented:
A focus on serving others and creating value for the community. Service-oriented servant leaders emphasize putting the needs and well-being of others before one's own. It involves actively seeking to understand and meet the needs of stakeholders, fostering a culture of service, and making decisions based on what is best for the organization and those it serves, rather than personal gain.
Constant self-improvement:
It is a commitment to personal growth and development. Constant self-improvement for servant leaders involves regularly evaluating one's own leadership style and effectiveness, seeking feedback and learning opportunities, and actively working to improve skills and abilities in order to better serve and lead the organization and its stakeholders.
"Achieving Success through Strategic Thinking: The Key to Effective Servant Leadership"
It's important to note that becoming a servant leader is a journey, not an end goal and these characteristics are not necessarily innate, they can be developed and nurtured over time. It takes time, effort and practice to become a servant leader. And also, it's not a one-size-fits-all approach, different people may have different strengths and weaknesses, and will have to focus on different areas of improvement to become a servant leaders.
About Advance Agility
We, at Advance Agility, are the new-age Agile Coaching, Consulting, and IT services company. We enable end-to-end Digital Transformation. Agile execution is integral to our being. We are doing SAFe implementation with small, medium, and large organizations across the globe.
Our vision is to be the leading Agile execution player globally. To keep adding value at every process stage. We are on a mission to empower our clients and move from concept to cash in the shortest sustainable lead time by adopting the human-centric approach to business agility. Embracing change is in our DNA.
Things that keep us apart are Quicker and Seamless execution with End to end gamut of services. Our Global presence and Stellar Track Record give us an edge over our competitors.
Connect with us at advanceagility.com to learn about SAFe and SAFe Implementation. Write to us at contact@advanceagility.com for any agile training or consulting needs. We are always looking for competent agile trainers as well. So if you are the one or want to become one, do get in touch with us to that we can learn, grow and achieve together.
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