Servant Leadership
By: Rodrick Chambers & Jennifer Luken
ELI Partner Assignment, Class of 2011
Servant Leadership
 Participative Management Style
 Achieves results for organizations by giving priority attention to
the needs of colleagues and those who the leader serves.
 Servant-leaders are often seen as humble stewards of their
organization's resources (human, financial and physical).
 Highest priority of a servant leader is to encourage, support and
enable subordinates to unfold their full potential and abilities.
Strengths of the
Servant Leadership style
 Increased opportunity to influence or impact leaders who are
more monarch in nature.
 Greater likelihood of reciprocation from those who are being
served.
Greenleaf Center for Servant
Leadership
 The phrase “Servant Leadership” was coined by Robert K. Greenleaf
in The Servant as Leader, an essay that he first published in 1970. In
that essay, he said:
"The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling
that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings
one to aspire to lead. That person is sharply different from one who is
leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power
drive or to acquire material possessions…The leader-first and the
servant-first are two extreme types. Between them there are shadings
and blends that are part of the infinite variety of human nature."
3 Positives to Servant Leadership
 Those who are being served feel more at a mutual
position with their leader(s)
 Humility is generally the primary source of serving
 Increased chances of being relatable and conscious of
the affairs of those around you.
3 Challenges of Servant Leadership
 People may have the tendency to be abused for their
services
 The leader may have the tendency to take on too
much at a time
 Could develop a “savior” complex
Leaders who possess(ed)
Servant Leadership
 Jesus-Lived a life dedicated to serving others; Historically
proven, his mission was to save humanity through his
death.
 Gandhi- through education and a heart of compassion,
Gandhi lived a life of advocacy for civil justice, non-violence
and peace. Giving up his personal freedom through fasts
and other persecutions for the sake of others.
Servant Leaders, cont.
 Harriet Tubman- this woman dedicated her life to
freeing slaves at the risk of losing her own life. She
traveled miles across the southern regions of North
America to free slaves to the Northern states of
America.
 Mother Teresa- A woman who dedicated her life to
traveling the roads less traveled (literally) . She was
known for doing small things with big heart. Among
many great things this woman did, she was recorded
carrying a terminally ill woman to a decent facility to
have a respectable death.
Servant Leaders, cont.
 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.- Similar to Ghandi, Dr. King used his
education, faith, and difficult realities to perpetuate a movement
that had started decades before his birth, however he was very
instrumental in organizing people and serving them to fight for
the USA’s freedom.
 Cesar E. Chavez – Founder of the National Farm Workers Assoc. (United Farm
Workers). Cesar made people aware of the struggles of farm workers for better
pay and safer working conditions. He succeeded through nonviolent tactics
(boycotts, pickets, and strikes) and the union sought recognition of the
importance and dignity of all farm workers.
Defining Characteristics
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Selfless
Humility
Sensible to the human race
Advocate for justice
Caring
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Listening
Empathy
Stewardship
Building community
Commitment to growth of
people
5 of 10 characteristics from R.K. Greenleaf Center
for Servant Leadership