Followers 1st, Organization 2nd & Leader last?

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Scholars, particularly Robert Cialdini, have highlighted the effects of influence on others in his book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. One key concept he discusses is the idea of reciprocity, which suggests that we should strive to give back what has been given to us (Cialdini, 2021). In organizational leadership, a leader can embody this principle by actively giving back to their team and fostering a culture of responding in kind. The hypothesis is that any leader who influences others to achieve a common organizational goal frequently faces challenges related to their personality and those around them. By choice, training, or preference, leaders often pivot to a leadership style they commit to affecting the organization's mission, vision, and goals.

Many viewpoints or philosophies on leadership styles exist. This blog post will focus on servant leadership, which resonates deeply with the author in his current role as a middle manager in a healthcare organization. According to the Center for Servant Leadership, this leadership style is characterized by a desire to prioritize the needs and wants of others above one's own (Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership, n.d.). In other words, servant leaders are oriented toward serving others rather than being motivated by self-interest or personal gain.

It is essential to clarify that prioritizing service over self should not be misconstrued as overly accommodating or submissive. Instead, as explored by other scholars in the field of leadership, the servant leader functions as a regulatory force within the larger organization, promoting its overall health and well-being. Let us review what other scholars have uncovered.

According to Friedman et al. (2017), the playbook for the leader emerges by maintaining the health and integrity of the entire unit. Like how the human body reacts to invasive organisms—such as viruses, allergens, or bacteria—with an immune response, a leader protects the organization from potential threats. In Aristotle's notes in Nicomachean Ethics (Hutchins, 1978), we can learn from the wisdom of past sages. Aristotle argues that credit is given to those who possess knowledge. This wisdom influences individuals to act according to their values, determining what is good or bad for others. As discussed further, an individual's philosophy directly informs their leadership style, benefiting their fellow man. These concepts of interpersonal reciprocation, immune-response qualities, application of wisdom, discernment, and experience influence leaders and their followers. Can these themes be tied to a servant leadership strategy? The following dialogue will investigate what is known in the literature regarding servant leadership.

To wedge a definition from known research, an academic journal titled The Leadership Quarterly will serve as source material for the following. A servant leader symbolizes people connection, virtuosity, soul-stirring, and the belief in a higher power motif to nurture, stimulate growth, and entrust followers (Eva et al., 2019) while not absconding from the responsibility and accountability of holding others to performance expectations. Eva et al. (2019) highlight the promising potential of servant leadership based on their research for more context. They begin their systematic literature review by discussing the tribalism associated with this leadership style. In earlier times, particularly before the current few hundred century, communities that relied on hunting and gathering for sustenance had a clear, social sense of their tribal leaders' roles. This connection to the life of the tribal leader was evident, transparent, and familiar (Eva et al., 2019). In today's capitalist economy, an organization leader needs to be experienced by their direct reports as one who is transparent, as in the old days when an Indigenous chieftain lit the way for the community. The blueprint of servant leadership constitutes the following that Nathan Eva and the co-authors of the article "Servant Leadership: A Systematic Review and Call for Further Research" have outlined three motifs in a servant leader: incentive, method, and mentality (Eva et al., 2019, p. 114).

Incentive

The concept of a servant leader's incentive is imagined as what motivates one to act as a servant leader. The open question is if one is unwilling to be a helper of others, should that individual seek leadership roles? Addressing the incentive for one who seeks to serve, scholars point out that the servant leader is incentivized not through personal ambition or goals; on the contrary, a sense of purpose steered outward to help others is the internal stimulus for the servant leader (Eva et al., 2019).

Method

Next, and arguably most challenging to clinch for anyone aiming to illustrate and represent the archetype of a servant leader, are the techniques and strategies involved in the interpersonal interactions of leaders and their followers. Servant leaders influence followers by arranging their needs, desires, and aspirations in order of importance that are predominately worthier than the leaders (Eva et al., 2019). In simple terms, the servant leader puts the direct report needs first before themselves and, to a greater extent, that of the organization, which debatably is open for conjecture.

Mindset

Lastly, the way a servant leader thinks is meaningful. It is often understood that how a person thinks impacts the actions a person carries out. Servant leaders' firsthand thought processes are focused on something other than the betterment of themselves. Instead, self-interests are set aside again; the idea and focus are on empowering followers, building up others, and instilling a sense of trust, which, in turn, at least theoretically, direct reports themselves will bring the image of servant leadership style to the more excellent organization or community (Eva et al., 2019).

Finally, Nathan Eva and associates highlight areas such as business, management, selling, education, the healthcare industry, and hotel services, where leadership is addressed in the literature (Eva et al., 2019). A thought to consider or contrast is what applications, if any, where the servant leadership motif would be less valuable or relative, for instance, in government, military, or law enforcement? More analysis and inquiry are needed in these settings where leadership is undeniably present via rank, classification, and pay grade.

To summarize the blog, it is understood that logically, scores of duties for a leader abound, to the infinite sum innumerable but not limited to the least that involves coaching. Any aspiring leader needs to unblock interpersonal boundaries through coaching; however, leaders should recognize instances when coaching becomes therapy and refer direct reports to counseling professionals with empathy and care. How do we differentiate our leadership style from those divergent to servant leadership? Questions such as this kind and more are undoubtedly precarious and puzzling and garner more attention given the multidimensional nature where leadership manifests. As covered above, setting an example and reciprocating attitudes and behaviors will follow when done altruistically. Secondly, leaders are the immune system and set point for their units or organization, and by applying core experiences and personal and professional acumen, followers become empowered to imitate, as evidenced by improved organization culture.

References:

Cialdini, R. B. (2021). Influence: The psychology of persuasion. Harper Business.

Eva, N., Robin, M., Sendjaya, S., van Dierendonck, D., & Liden, R. C. (2019). Servant leadership: A systematic review and call for future research. The Leadership Quarterly, 30(1), 111–132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2018.07.004

Friedman, E. H., Treadwell, M. M., & Beal, E. W. (2017). A failure of nerve: Leadership in the age of the quick fix. Church Publishing.

Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership. (n.d.) What is servant leadership? (n.d.). www.greenleaf.org

Hutchins, R. M. (1978). Aristotle II. In Great Books of the Western World (Vol. 9, pp. 389). Encyclopedia Britannica.