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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