Stewardship and Agency in Leadership Philosophy

Introduction

While there are many theories of leadership, in the end leadership is always about practice: it is about being present, engaged, and building relationships. Leadership does not exist in the minds of scholars, isolated from the real world as an abstract ideal. It exists in reality, demonstrated day in and day out by individuals who apply everything they know and possess — their traits, skills, understanding, and ability to communicate — to the challenge at hand. A philosophy of leadership, therefore, has to be a philosophy of action and, more to the point, a philosophy of life. Great leaders are great because they have discerned what all the great philosophers of the past have discerned — namely, that in order to be successful, one needs to order one's life toward its proper end.

For a leader in an organization, that means ordering the ecosystem within that organization in such a way that it becomes easier for the organization to thrive and achieve its goals. This philosophy of leadership focuses on the contributions stewardship brings to leadership theory and how stewardship and agency relate in the larger scheme of leadership perspectives. It will show that sometimes the best leaders are those who simply get out of the way, provide support for others, and facilitate outcomes that make good things happen for everyone.

Biblical Foundations of Stewardship and Their Contribution to Leadership Theory

What is a good steward? Everyone knows the parable of the good steward and the parable of the unjust steward. These two parables shed light on what it means to take care of another's business, to serve another's interests, and to act as another's agent. One parable offers an example of an excellent steward who understands his place and whom he must serve. The other offers an example of a shameful steward who demonstrates no charity or trust toward others, even when such things have been extended to him by his employer.

The parable of the good steward is found in Luke 16:1–13. It is, in essence, a parable of a prodigal steward. The steward was to be dismissed from his post for having neglected his duties. Reasoning that he could not go out and beg, he wondered what he could do so that he might be received into another household. He hit upon the idea of taking the bonds owed to his master and offering the debtors a discount if they paid in full immediately. The scheme worked: the debts were paid, and the master ended up being pleased with the steward's shrewdness. The steward found a way to collect debts that had been sitting unresolved on the books. The master was grateful, and so were the debtors. The steward found a solution that worked for all parties even after he had been put out. He had no way of knowing his master would welcome him back; he acted as he did because he understood it would serve the interests of all involved. He embodied the very definition of a good steward.

The parable of the bad steward is found in Matthew 18:21–35. In this story, a servant is forgiven a debt he owes. Instead of extending the same mercy to those who owe him, he harasses them and has them imprisoned until the debt is paid. He was shown mercy but showed none to others. The two stewards can be contrasted in terms of character: the good steward puts others first; the bad steward puts himself first. In Luke 12:42–48, Christ describes the good servant as one who does his master's will even when the master is not present and does not know when he will return — the good steward is faithful, and knowing he is entrusted with overseeing his master's business, he takes that responsibility seriously.

Stewardship is about caring for others and looking after the business that has been entrusted to one. Leaders can often let their position go to their heads — as happens with the bad steward, who perceived himself as superior to those indebted to him and felt no compunction about abusing them. The good steward, by contrast, understands that his position does not make him superior to others; rather, his position places him in service to others. It is his duty to serve others and their interests. He is entrusted with overseeing an organization not because he is a visionary or has a commanding presence, but primarily because he has character and sound judgment.

Many researchers describe leadership in terms of what a leader does: they state that leadership is the ability to communicate a vision, to motivate others, to demonstrate high levels of social and emotional intelligence, and to show a willingness to think critically and innovatively (Boyd & Goldenberg, 2013; Hendon et al., 2017; McCleskey, 2014, p. 120). Theories of leadership, such as the Five Colors Theory, offer different frameworks for understanding how leadership operates. Five Colors Theory posits, for example, that the leader should decide how to frame a given situation using one of five color-coded approaches and act accordingly (Vermaak & de Caluwe, 2018). The Inside the Box leadership theory posits that every situation in which a leader must act will be different, and the best approach depends on the situation (Boyd & Goldenberg, 2013).

Stewardship contributes to these theories by advancing the notion that leaders can adapt to their situations — or frame the situations in which they lead — by placing the interests of key stakeholders front and center. The dark side of leadership is a topic too often neglected in leadership discussions, yet it is real. As the parable of the bad servant illustrates, when a steward puts himself first or neglects the will of the master, he embraces the dark side of leadership and will not be successful. Numerous real-world examples abound — from the stewards of Arthur Andersen and Exxon to those of Boeing — and they all share the same failing: they neglected the interests of key stakeholders and focused instead on benefiting themselves. Stewardship of the kind promoted in the Bible can be an effective approach to leadership precisely because it posits that the best leader is one who serves others rather than himself. By serving others, he keeps the dark side of leadership at bay.

Key Personal Beliefs and Values

A core personal belief underlying this philosophy is that everyone can be a leader. Indeed, one of the foundational principles of stewardship is that every person must be a leader of himself. The good steward, therefore, leads best when he helps others lead themselves and govern themselves in accordance with the values and principles of the master. As Xiang et al. (2021) point out, empowering followers can promote autonomy, accountability, and a sense of personal responsibility. Likewise, as Salas-Vallina (2020) notes, good leadership — or stewardship — fosters good followership, which in turn reinforces and helps to create good leaders among followers.

The principles of Christian ethics hold significant value here, as they derive from a transcendent moral source. Spirituality is also regarded as a great asset for a leader in all situations because it provides a way to focus and frame every circumstance with the aim of ensuring each person's interests are cared for. Van Der Walt and De Klerk (2014) explain that spiritual formation should play a part in leadership theory because "organizations need to be spiritually based" (p. 379). A spiritual basis can refer to values, aims, the approach to objectives taken by leaders and followers, the code of ethics, and the ideals professed (Eginli, 2017). Consider what a workplace overseen by a bad steward would look like — and then imagine how different that same workplace would be if overseen by the good steward of the parable. Good stewards empower the people around them, and everyone of good will appreciates being empowered and made better than they were before.

The values of personal accountability, authenticity, honesty, trustworthiness, commitment, and perseverance are likewise essential to effective leadership. A leader who is not personally accountable will not hold himself to the high standard that the biblical model of good stewardship demands. A strong leader must be authentic, open, and forthright — a person with a code of ethics who not only talks the talk but walks the walk. A good leader must be honest with himself and with others, because everything else is deception. As Christ Himself says, one cannot serve two masters; one either serves honestly the good master, or serves dishonestly a destructive one. The former path leads to success; the latter leads to chaos and ruin.

Conclusion

Various components of leadership — authenticity, humor, culture, wisdom, spirituality, and others — interact with and reinforce one another in practice. These components combine to create a seamless capacity for enabling employees to achieve their maximum potential by building strong bonds among them. Inevitably, details change and organizations must grow in new directions. Leaders must be responsible for guiding change and cultivating a culture that empowers followers, giving them reason to find meaning and joy in their work. Leaders should therefore focus on the spiritual nature of the organization, on how to develop followers so that they can think critically, and on how to apply wisdom so that the organization benefits from the intuitive capacities of both leaders and followers.