Servant Leadership – Incompatible with Success???

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Sure, the concept of servant leadership sounds great: putting your duty to serve others first ahead of your duty to lead. Who wouldn't want to work for a boss that ascribes to this philosophy? But does it really work? Is it truly effective, particularly in the context of achievement orientated for profit firms? Prior to this course, I was absolutely convinced that servant leadership does not work, other than in the not-for-profit sector and organizations more concerned with hugs than their bottom line.

Thanks to this course, my opinions started to shift, and my cynicism started to fade. My team chose to develop personal vision statements for our first Learning Circle Assignment. After we had each developed our own statement, we sat down together to provide feedback to each other. Admittedly, I was not expecting to gain much from this exercise. Sure, reflection is good, but it seems like a stretch to say that this one simple exercise could result in tangible leadership growth. As I began reading my teammates' statements, though, I was struck by how heartfelt, selfless and genuine they were. Most surprisingly, the common theme seemed to be enabling others to succeed. They were describing a servant leadership style in their vision statements. At first, this seemed inconsistent to me. These statements were authored by people that I consider to be highly accomplished, driven professionals, and yet they aspire to be, and already are, servant leaders.

Perhaps I've been jaded by my career experiences to date. Most leaders that I've interacted with seem very focused on leading first, serving later, and based on their stature and title, it seems to be working. The one example that I can think of that was a true servant leader was unfortunately downsized. It is easy to conclude, therefore, that this style does not work well in a real work context. However, upon closer inspection, this is likely a case of false causality. Similar to the People Express example in, "The Art of Seeing the Forest and the Trees," there were many variables at play leading to this leader's untimely exit from the company. People Express' unique, people focused culture and business model were key drivers of its success, but contrary to popular opinion, underinvestment, not this "soft" culture, was to blame for the company's demise. In the case of the leader I referred to, it is also important to see the forest and the trees. The economy was beginning to falter, and the banking industry was particularly hard hit, so the macro-economic climate was the likely the primary driver, not the leader's servant focus.

After further reflection, I think that my example is actually evidence that being a servant leader is consistent with success. There were many other leaders who lost their job at my company, and I would argue that most were using a leader first, servant.... somewhere much further down the list philosophy. Unlike many of his peers, the leader I mentioned was able to land a new job quickly, arguably because of his leadership style. This servant style enabled him to build goodwill internally, strong ties in the industry and a solid reputation in the community, as he had developed and aided many people along the way. Had he instead focused on a leader first philosophy, he might not have landed on his feet so quickly.

So where do I stand now on servant leadership in regards to success? I think that being a servant leader means being committed to the long term development, success and well being of those you lead. It does not mean neglecting your responsibilities, disregarding performance or being too soft, but it does mean prioritizing the needs of other ahead of your own drive for power. In most organizations, I'd bet that this type of behavior is actually rewarded, as the more successful your direct reports become, the brighter your own star shines. If you develop a reputation as someone who excels at developing and enabling others, and fostering an environment that allows your teams to succeed, personal success and opportunities to lead will surely follow. Being a servant leader seems like a compelling way to get the most out of the teams that you're trying to lead, even if you happen to work for a cut-throat for profit firm. So, as a result of this class I've changed my perspective; servant leadership and success do not have to be mutually exclusive concepts - they really go hand in hand.