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Servant Leadership: The Key to Fostering Community and Teamwork

Tom Darrow • April 30, 2009

SHRM Staffing Management Conference & Exposition

©SHRM 2009

Tom Darrow

• Founder and Principal of Talent Connections, LLC and Career Spa, LLC> Talent Connections, Inc. 500 company in 2007 and 2008

• 20 years in HR/Recruiting

• 10 years with Price Waterhouse and Andersen Consulting

• BBA in Accounting, University of Notre Dame• Past President, SHRM-Atlanta (2006-2007)

> Grew by 1,000 (60%) members to 2,600 members> Won 2 Pinnacle Awards

• SHRM Georgia State Council President-Elect• Member, Advisory Council, SHRM Foundation Board

• Former Member, SHRM Staffing Management Expert Panel• Resides in Roswell, GA with wife Anne

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Why?

Why do we have a topic on

Servant Leadership

at a Staffing Conference?

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Leadership

• What is the root cause of most challenges in companies today?

A. Lack of technology

B. Lack of available cash

C. Lack of leadership

D. Lack of efficient processes or

strategies

• Are effective leaders born or made?

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Leadership Styles

• Heroic - unplanned crisis

• Courageous – bold

• Authentic - transparent

• Laissez Faire – hands off

• Autocratic – top down

• Participative – empowerment

• Situational – changes

• Emergent – new leader

• Transactional – by the rules

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Leadership Styles

• Transformational – change agent

• Strategic – competitive

• Team – collaboration

• Facilitative – consensus

• Cross cultural – diversity/inclusion

• Coaching – teach and train

• Level 5 – good to great

• Servant – others first

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Servant Leadership

• Robert K. Greenleaf is credited with introducing the concept in 1970

• Definition: “Servant Leadership begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve; to serve first.”

Robert K. Greenleaf

• Ultimate test: Do those served grow as persons; become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants?

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The power of servant-leadership

• Lies in one’s ability to combine the best of being a leader with the best of being a servant

• Not something you do, but something you are

• About creating the right environment to get the best out of people and unleash their true potential

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Servant-leadership, paradox?

• “Servant” and “leader” usually thought of as opposites> Both logical and intuitive > The process of balancing the two concepts is not

either/or, but both/and

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Servant Leader

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What is servant leadership?

• The need for a better approach to leadership, that puts serving others first> Employees, customers, community

• True leadership, unlike management is not just a set of skills and learned behaviors. What you do as a leader depends on who you are. Through your behavior, people can determine who you are.

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Who do you most admire?

Who do you most admire?

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Who are servant leaders?

• The servant-leader is a servant first

• Servant leaders are hard working

• Servant leadership is a conscious choice

• Servant leaders aren’t just legally compliant, they are ethically sound and morally aware

• Servant leaders care for people; not control people

• Servant leaders build a community at work12

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The characteristics of servant leaders

• Authentic

• Vulnerable

• Accepting

• Present

• Useful

Let’s investigate each one…

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Authentic

• Be who you are

• Honor what is good in people

• Don’t tell people what they want to hear…tell them the truth

• Communicate bad news…not just good news

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Vulnerable

• Be honest with your feelings in the context of work

• Be open about your feelings and concerns > Employee performance reviews> Your performance> Admit mistakes

• Be courageous!> “Courage Goes to Work”, Bill Treasurer

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Accepting

• Abandon notion of winners and losers

• Don’t just say that mistakes are ok, celebrate them!

• Trust on good faith without requiring others earn it first

• Don’t micromanage subordinates

• Re-define success

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Be Present

• Notice what you are thinking and feeling

• Concentrate on the task at hand…even when chaos reigns

• Give others your full attention

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Be Useful

• Listen first

• Perform your core responsibilities to a high level; then you will have earned the right to be given more> The Theology of the Hammer, Millard Fuller

• Be a resource for others

• Don’t do for people what they are capable of doing themselves

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More characteristics of servant leaders

• Empathy

• Listening

• Healing

• Awareness

• Persuasion

• Commitment

• Conceptualization

• Foresight

• Stewardship

• Building Community

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SERVE

S…See the Future

E…Engage and Develop People

R…Reinvent Continuously

V…Value Results and Relationships

E…Embody the Values

Source: “Leading at a Higher Level”, Ken Blanchard

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The Impact of Servant Leadership

• Servant-leadership principles are being applied by a wide variety of people working for-profit, non-profit, churches, universities, health care organizations, and foundations

• Servant-leadership impacts the health and effectiveness of your organization and community

• It builds trust between you and the employees

• It results in loyalty to the leader and the organization

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In practice

• Starbucks> Workshops> Activities> Employees join the Starbucks team because of their

core purpose, great people and customers

• Chick-fil-A> Spiritually focused> Corporate Purpose: To glorify God by being a faithful

steward of all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A.

> Closed on Sundays> Truett Cathy’s acts of forgiveness

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Simple Advice

• Build relationships at every opportunity. The results could be endless.

• Allow time for good ideas to emerge.

• It is not change people fear; it is loss.

• Meaningful communication is critical. No amount of e-mail, faxes, text messages can equal the value of face-to-face meetings.

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Servant Leadership at Work

• Focus on you first, your team second and the company third

• Volunteer to help in other departments

• Be an innovative business partner; not just order taker

• Seek to train company leaders in the art and practice of servant leadership

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Servant Leadership in the Profession

• Give back to the HR/Recruiting Profession

• Mentor someone

• Help those who are in transition

• Become a leader in a professional organization> SHRM

• Staffing Management Affiliate• Staffing Management expert panel• Local Chapter

> Local recruiting organization

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Servant Leadership in the Profession

• Share what you have learned> Speak> Write> Webinars

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Servant Leadership in the Community

• Volunteer in a significant role with a significant organization

• Mentor

• Church/ministry

• Neighborhood

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How do you become a servant leader?

• By studying and practicing servant leadership skills

• Study> Reading, observations> Lessons, workshops, conferences> Discuss

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Concluding thoughts

• How will you use what you have learned today and become more proactive in your leadership development?

• Will you strive to be a servant leader?

• What will it take to cultivate a genuine desire to serve?

• Remember the first sentence in “A Purpose Driven Life”

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Homework

• Get to know yourself

Assessments

• Research servant leadership concepts

• Commit to be a servant leader

• Secure a mentor

• Seek feedback to assess your progress

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Thank you!

Tom Darrow

Founder and Principal

Talent Connections, LLC

and

Career Spa, LLC

175 Inverness Approach

Roswell, GA 30075

770-552-1550 ext. 111

TomDarrow@talentconnections.net

www.talentconnections.net

www.careerspa.net

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