servant leaders - praxis framework...servant leadership goes against the tradi tional grain, but...

mTEAMWORK

I11III

'Up-to-date Imowledgeis crucial in any modernorganisation.Withholdingknowledge is likewithholding funds. '

and dialogue begins. Some leaders feelthreatened by this. They stiffen and nod po­litely before rejecting an idea that isn'ttheirs. Servant leaders are more confidentand can open their minds wide. They ask asmany questions as they give answers. Theteam feels more valued, and expects andwants to contribute more.

Good dialogue requires good knowledge.These days, knowledge is a problem becausethere is just so much of it, criss-crossing theglobe in milliseconds. The best way to siftthrough it all is to interact with others onthe same mission.

Up-to-date knowl-edge is crucial in anymodern organisation.Withholding knowledgeis like withholdingfunds.

When there are mis­takes, the temptation isto look for someone to

blame. With servant leadership, blame is notimportant. We learn a great deal from mis­takes, as long as we don't hide them. Hier­archies tend to make people defensive, somistakes are covered up as much as possi­ble. As a result, little is learned.

Post-it notes are an example of a mistakethat led to huge success. Somebody made aglue that just wouldn't stick. If the inventorhad been too frightened of authority toadmit it, the glue would have landed in thebin. Instead, we have a cheap and ubiqui­tous indispensable product. Servant leader-ship encourages just that sort of enter- .....prise from apparent failure. .....

ervant leadership, a concept de­veloped by Robert Greenleaf1,utilises the collective brainpower of the entire team. The

term 'servant' in this case means helpingothers in the team in the pursuit of the goal.

It is a process that ignites motivation. Onaverage, people dislike being told what todo, but want to achieve. Give them a com­mon goal, ask for their help, and that goalbecomes the motivator.

Servant leadership goes against the tradi­tional grain, but it does work. The ContainerStore in Texas is listed as the top companyto work for in America<Fortune 2001), andfi rm Iy espouses servantleadership principles.There are th ree othersthat do this in the For­tune top ten, and all arehighly successful enter­prises.

The move to servant leadership takes afundamental shift of attitude but if it can beachieved, it will bring a parallel shift of atti­tude in the employees.

The traditional leader wants the trap­pings of power and visible respect, of a typenot far removed from fear. This attitude en­genders rebellion or submission. Rebellion isactively obstructive. Submission may be su­perficially fine, but a team that avoids ini­tiative has a stultifying effect. Servant lead­ers seek to dismantle the barriers of hierar­chy, to release ideas that have been lockedup by the wrong kind of respect.

As barriers fall, interactive attitudes grow

Author profileDr Mil<e Bagshaw is a specialist inthe development of "PeoplePotential" and runs a company,Trans4mation Training ltd., inEvesham, Worcestershire, UI<.Caroline Bagshaw is the company'swriter of articles and leadershipprogramme materials.

By Dr Mil<e Bagshaw &

Caroline Bagshaw

Servant leadersdon't just leadfrom the top

PROJECT MANAGEMENT REVIEW SEPTEMBER 2001

mTEAMWORI<

Servant leadersdon't go forauthority, or seeksuperior status

PROJECT MANAGEMENT REVIEW SEPTEM BER 2001

Autocratic leadership, on the other hand,sets a scene where mistakes can only bemade by underlings. One tragic example ofthis is the Challenger disaster, where sevenpeople fell to their deaths, 73 seconds afterlaunch off. 1Afterwards, it was in everynewspaper that the cause was simple - lowtemperature had an adverse effect on one ofthe components. The people in charge knewthis beforehand, and there was a move todelay the launching till the weather im­proved. However, the leadership was too de­termined to go ahead to give credence to thedissenters. The leaders saw themselves asleaders, and the workforce as servants. Ithappened despite the fact that some teamshad a history of collaboration and seekingfull agreement before making major deci­sions. It's frightening how quickly leaderswho demand that their authority be re­spected can defeat that.

Servant leaders don't go for authority, orseek superior status. They know it's impor­tant that all the team gain self-develop­ment. After all, who wants a team ofdullards getting nowhere? The better theybecome at their jobs, the more they con­tribute. It's true they also become more at­tractive to other employers, but then, theyare less likely to want to. Surveys find that

self-development and job satisfaction rankabove money in retaining key talent. If youmake it easier for people to go, they aremore likely to stay.

The atmosphere in an organisation of ser­vant leadership is informal, exciting andfun. Laughter and enjoyment are lubricantsfor good relationships, self-confidence, andthe desire to work. Enterprise needs fun ascars need oil.

One of the top ten companies cited byFortune 2001 as being good to work for, isSouthwest Airlines. This organisationspecifically aims to create a culture whereemployees love coming to work. "Apprecia­tion of nuttiness" is a job requirement, andnuts to eat are provided! They find this atti­tude more productive than one where theemployees do enough work to avoid gettingthe sack, then go home. This is one of thecompanies that specifically have a policy ofservant leadership. It is just one example ofa principle that might look like just altru­ism, but in fact has high commercial valid­ity.

REFERENCESI On Becoming a Servant-Leader; thePrivate Writings of Robert I< Greenleaf(Jossey- Bass, 1996)

CI 2001 Project Maroager Today All rights reserved By downl(M{Jiog thrs pdf me the redp~flt agrees to use thrs information forpersoroal use Oflly arKl may print Ofle copy Thrs pdf may flOt be cop~d. a~ered or distributed to other part~swilhoutthe permrssionof the plJblishers. First plJblished inthrs form in Project Marlager Today