Servant Leader

Notes from The Servant Leader, by James Autry

Because of my new roles and responsibilities, I have been extremely interested in leadership styles.  I have been a fan of Steven Covey’s work but this past month I read James Autry’s book titled Servant Leader and was extremely impressed.  Later I will include my personal notes and observations, but this entry provides some insights.  I am happy to recommend the book.

One Review from Facebook that I tended to agree with:

About a year ago I went to a presentation by James Autry about his book, “The Servant Leader: How to Build a Creative Team, Develop Great Morale, and Improve Bottom-Line Performance.” I thought his presentation was moderate, and I was not immediately motivated to read the book. The book sat on the shelf for about a year. I picked it up last week for no apparent reason and I read a chapter or so. I thought … this is a really good book! 

The essence of “The Servant Leader” is to help everyone that works for you in an authentic manner. The command and control management style is not effective as it does not create an environment that is creative and has a positive morale. Mr. Autry also stresses the importance of balancing the human factors and the pure business side of things. He really emphasizes the importance of a manager being connected and engaged with their staff. The management method he recommends boarders on being over the top California new age style, and frankly I struggle with this a little personally and philosophically. I did like the book and I agree with most of what he is suggesting. He also drilled down on how to deal with each different scenario, sort of like a how to book. I am not sure this was necessary, but I suppose it helps drive the tactical details of the methodology. I would recommend the book, especially the first 100 pages!

Wikipedia provides a good description of the Characteristics of being a Servant Leader, albeit a bit traditional with regard to gender language:

More can be seen at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servant_leadership

Characteristics of being a servant leader

Larry C. Spears, who has served as President and CEO of the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership since 1990, has extracted a set of 10 characteristics that are central to the development of a servant leader:

▪                Listening: Traditionally, and also in servant leadership, managers are required to have communication skills as well as the competence to make decisions. A servant leader has the motivation to listen actively to his fellow men and supports them in decision identification. This applies particularly to pay attention to unspoken. This means relying on his inner voice and find out what the body, mind and spirit are communicating.[4]

▪                Empathy: A servant leader attempts to understand and empathize with others. Workers may be considered not only as employees, but also as people who need respect and appreciation for their personal development. As a result, leadership is seen as a special type of human work, which ultimately generates a competitive advantage.[5]

▪                Healing: A great strength of a Servant Leader is the ability for healing one’s self and others. A servant leader tries to help people solving their problems and conflicts in relationships, because he wants to develop the skills of each individual.[6] This leads to the formation of a business culture, in which the working environment is characterized by dynamic, fun and no fear from failure.[7]

▪                Awareness: A servant leader needs to gain general awareness and especially self-awareness. He has the ability to view situations from a more integrated, holistic position. As a result, he gets a better understanding about ethics and values.

▪                Persuasion: A Servant Leader does not take advantage of his power and his status by coercing compliance; he rather tries to convince them. This element distinguishes servant leadership most clearly from traditional, authoritarian models and can be traced back to the religious views of the inventor Robert Greenleaf.

▪                Conceptualization: A servant leader thinks beyond day-to-day realities. That means he has the ability to see beyond the limits of the operating business and also focuses on long term operating goals.[8] A Leader constructs a personal vision that only he can develop by reflecting on the meaning of life. As a result, he derives specific goals and implementation strategies.[9]

▪                Foresight: Foresight is the ability to foresee the likely outcome of a situation. It enables the servant leader to learn about the past and to achieve a better understanding about the current reality. It also enables to identify consequences about the future. This characteristic is closely related to conceptualization. In contrast to the other characteristics, which can be consciously developed, foresight is a characteristic which one may be born.

▪                Stewardship: CEOs, staffs and trustees have the task to hold their institution in trust for the greater good of society. In conclusion, servant leadership is seen as an obligation to help and serve others. Openness and persuasion are more important than control.

▪                Commitment to the growth of people: A servant leader is convinced that people have an intrinsic value beyond their contributions as workers. Therefore, he should nurture the personal, professional and spiritual growth of employees. For example he spends money for the personal and professional development of the people as well as having a personal interest in the ideas form everyone and involving workers in decisions making.

▪                Building community: A servant leader identifies means to build a strong community within his organization and wants to develop a true community among businesses and institutions.[10]

As a result it has to be emphasized that these 10 characteristics are by no mean exhaustive.[11] They should not be interpreted as a certain manner to behave and they do not represent the best method to gain aims. Rather every person shall reflect, if these characteristics can be useful for his personal development.[12]

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The Governor's Educational Promises

I was re-reading the Education policy statement Governor Kitzhaber provided during his campaign for Governor.  We as a District need to anticipate and be prepared to provide input on these proposals as legislation and preliminary implementation transpires.  Re-read this statement and others linked to the following and provide your reactions.  There will be a day down the road where the best thinking will need  to be given both the Legislature and the Governor.

http://www.johnkitzhaber.com/transforming-education/

Performance Questions for Board and District Goal Setting

At my first official School Board meeting, July 6, I presented to the Board and Superintendent a list of questions for our consideration at our August retreat with the intent of establishing some District Goals.  The Superintendent will be providing answers to these questions and we will be able to use them for determining baselines.  Some of these questions may not be included in any long range goals, but they will provide important information the Board, and the community, should know.

As you read these questions, what ones do you want the Board and the District to focus on?  Perhaps you have other issues you want us to explore as well.  Please ponder this list and provide your suggestions for other baseline questions we might want to include in our discussions.  Your input will be greatly appreciated.

Here's the document provided at the July meeting:

High School Performance Questions for Goal Setting Consideration

The following questions may serve as a starting point for determining what measurable goals we might wish to establish.  I would ask that the Superintendent provide answers to these questions as a baseline for discussion at our August meeting to assist us un putting into place Policy Code AD/AE.  You may wish to add others or suggest alternatives.

Ron

1.     What percentage of students from North and South graduate in 4 years?  Over 4 years?  How much impact does Central have on the District's total graduation rate?

2.     How many students (both number and percentage) take either the SAT or ACT exams at each school?  What are the average SAT scores for each school?  Is there a significant number that take the ACT's?  Average scores?

3.     What percentage of students at each high school are in some form of special education?

4.     What percentage of students in the class of 2010 (2011 if available) attend a 4-year college?  Community College?

5.     What percentage of students entering each high school graduate?  What is the drop-out rate for each?

6.     What percentage qualify for "free lunch" in the high schools, and District wide?

7.     How many AP courses are offered at each school?  What classes and how many students take each class?  How many students take AP exams?  What percentage of students taking AP classes, pass the AP examinations and receive college credit?

8.     How many students are enrolled in the teen parenting class?  Is this class at just one high school?  Any details available about this program?

9.     How many and what percentage of students (male and female) participate in some form of inter-school competitive sport at each high school?  Numbers for each sport?

10.  How many students take at least one year of a foreign language?  Two years?

11.  What are the most recent scores for the State minimum competency exams?  

12.  How many students from each high school have signed up to participate in classes at RCC?  What classes?

Benefits of Delayed Gratification

A fascinating article:

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/18/090518fa_fact_lehrer

Oregon School Board Association Conference Keynote Speaker

I experienced my first Oregon School Board Association Conference last week-end.  Some portions received mixed reviews, but the keynote speaker, Michele Borba, was excellent.  Here are some of my rough notes.   I suspect my colleagues will have some additional insights they picked up that I missed.  The most important point I can convey is for the reader to go to her website:  micheleborba.com

Notes from Michele Borba, Oregon School Board Conference, July 2011, Bend Oregon

Keynote Address

Challenges:

There are more children needing more attention than any other time in our history.  How can they receive more attention when there are fewer resources?

 Current Troubling Trends:

1.  Increased Aggression—vulgarity, bullying, (study of bully’s: 1 in 4 in prison by 26)

2.  Strong sense of Entitlement—and a corresponding decline in empathy!!

3.  Increased Cruelity, bullying:  43% of kids afraid of going to the bathroom.

4.  Incivility

5.  Substance Abuse:  much of the abuse coming from family medicine cabinets

6.  More cheating—including use of the technology

7.  Increased Promiscuity

8.  Increased Stress

9,  Intolerance

10. Depression

11.  Breakdown of the Family—36% of households with children headed by single parents.

12.  “Rescue Parenting” where parents continue to rescue, even to the extent where new hires in prestigious companies are experiencing parents stepping in and interfering when they believe their ‘child’ is not being fairly treated.  Reflected also in the number of young adults refusing to leave nest

13.  Loss of “face to face” connection.  Young people spend 7.5 hours a day interacting with machines or technology--correlates to lower empathy.

14.  Recession’s impact

Three Thing We Need to Teach to overcome these challenges:   EMPATHY, SELF-DISCIPLINE, AND CONSCIENCE

We are hard-wired for empathy. Without empathy, we do not have tolerance.  But empathy can be learned, cultivated.  Schools are not just a source of information.  We need both our head and our hearts developed.

We can learn these skill and attributes by experiences that teach it.  We need to make them a part of the core curriculum, and this is not from a work sheet or a kit.; when schools have the above as goals, that all buy into, where it is discussed in the faculty room, where the school community makes them genuine priorities, where the students know what the school goals are and also buy into them, these priorities are internalized.  When teachers practice these attributes in their own lives, when new-hires are selected, based on their demonstrated ability to model these attributes, we will change lives.

 Relationships are key from the top down.  We teach by modeling ourselves.

Talk with the kids.  Message frequently is “nobody listens to us.”

Who is the teacher who touched you?  Almost invariably, the quality that is most commonly held:  s/he cared about you. 

Bully’s look for the weak, the easy targets.  We need to teach to look in the eye.  Self confident kids are not as vulnerable.  Hold your head up. 

These three principles (empathy, self control, conscience) can be incorporated into best practices teaching.  One and one half minutes per class period.  Paired sharing. 

Character is a verb, not a noun. 

Note the skills of excellent listerners:  Katie Couric, David Letterman, Larry King, Brian Williams.  They listen, they smile, they ask good questions, they don’t interrupt.

The same best practices can be demonstrated in the faculty meeting:  The SOLER rules

Sit, open, listen, eye to eye, review

School should be a place where everybody knows you and are glad you came.

Conscience

Does the school have community, do the values have visibility, when you walk on campus, do you clearly know what the school stands for?  Does the principal/teacher “walk the talk”?

Ask the community leaders, what traits do you want from our graduates?

Parent Education, getting to them early.

When talking about their work, don’t say, “you’re smart.”  Say, instead, “I like your effort.” 

Self Control—Regulating your thoughts and actions so you act in a way you know is right.

Teach anger management strategies:  1.  Say, “calm down,” 2. Take three deep breathes, 3.  Count slowly to 10. 

Rule of 21:  It takes 21 days to develop a habit.

 ‘’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’

Resources to examine:  Jim Collins, “Good to Great”;

Carol Bleek, Stanford Univ.  “Mindset”

New Yorker Magazine “Don’t”

Richard Kadison, “College of the Overwhelmed”

micheleborba.com