Servant Leadership Fundamentals of Servant

Servant Leadership

Fundamentals of Servant Leadership in a Collegiate Environment

At first glance the term servant-leader appears confusing. Many ask how a leader can also be a servant, yet in today's global economy the need is greater than ever for managers to choose first to serve their subordinates and in the process make them stronger contributors. Servant leadership places the development and growth of subordinates and the broader organization over and above the leaders' opportunities for personal gain and self-promotion. A servant leader realizes that the true effectiveness of any manager is in giving each subordinate the guidance necessary to achieve their total potential and contribute both to the organizations' goals and also attain their personal goals at the same time. A servant leader puts these developmental goals and objectives for each subordinate above their own, choosing first to serve and grow others they are responsible for. In this sense, a servant leader is also a steward, or a person who looks out for the welfare of all those they are responsible for over their own self ambitions. The ultimate goal of the servant leader is to guide, develop, nurture and provide the necessary foundations of support for each subordinate so they can attain their potentials while at the same time growing in the responsibilities of their jobs. This highly developmental nature of servant leaders is the most effective when these unique leaders look for the intersection of a jobs' needs and the innate abilities of the people working for them to excel at those specific tasks. An example would be when a servant-leader sees that one subordinate is excellent at managing customer complaints and then specifically aligns their jobs to excel in that role.

Servant leaders are critical for the growth of educational institutions, because by definition any educational institution is focused on the development of students and in providing assistance in getting them to their educational goals. Servant leaders in organizations realize that ongoing education and learning is critical, just as it is within educational institutions, to allow subordinates to find out what their true strengths are. While many pragmatically-mind administrators in college and universities state that the only reason to get an advanced education is to get a job, it's actually more than that to a servant leader. it's critical to go through any college or university and learn how to earn and compete globally, yet it's also critical to find out what ones' core strengths are, those areas of greatest talent. A truly developmental leader in any college or university is going to guide and nurture their students to find those unique strengths and also help students find their passion as well. Because at the intersection of a persons' greatest talents and passion is where anyone can excel beyond what is possible in any other area of their lives. A development leader, a servant leader in any educational institution must see that as their mission in life; helping students find those core strengths and helping the students align them with their passions. That is how any student is given the foundation of excelling in their lives.

A servant leader then is one who looks out for that intersection of talent and passion in others and helps them get to that point. As a result of this focus, servant leaders also have a unique set of traits as well. First, they are highly transparent; people know what their true motives are, and as a result they are highly trusted in many organizations. Second, they are known for having excellent listening skills, empathy, a keen sense of awareness of the organization, and the ability to quickly conceptualize situations and problems. Finally the best servant leaders know how to counsel and solve complex problems both for their organizations and for the individuals they are responsible for. As a result of all these attributes, servant leaders are also seen as very strong at stewardship and the ability to see cause-and-effect results several steps beyond an initiative situation. This foresight is what makes them also very valuable to organizations in an advisory role. As a result of all these attributes, servant leaders are highly prized by the subordinates who work for them, and often servant leaders have unswerving loyalty from their subordinates.