Have You Considered Servant Leadership?
In my 22 years in Human Resources (HR), I have encountered countless managers, many of whom were natural leaders. As many start to grow in their individual careers, some might start down the management path. With that many may have the drive to define their leadership style. But how do you start to define the way you want to manage and lead? And how do you know what type of leader to be? Have you ever considered servant leadership?
What is servant leadership? Servant leadership is a leadership philosophy built on the belief that the most effective leaders strive to serve others, rather than accrue power or take control.
Why servant leadership? In my career, I have always led with the mindset that finding what drives an employee or finding what they love to do, makes the workplace so much better. Being there for an employee, understanding their perspective, and truly nurturing career aspirations of those who report to you is the most rewarding thing I have ever done in my own career. These are all aspects of servant leadership, the cornerstone of my leadership style.
What does a servant leader look like and why should you consider adopting it?
Your staff is skilled – This is the reason you hired your staff in the first place – they are talented and have the skill to get the job done. At times it might be that you need to help your staff find this talent or skill-set. How do you have even start this? I have always managed to skill and expertise versus job description. And by doing this you want to ensure we are encouraging diversity of thought which generates the most results.
How do you find this in your team? Start by better understanding what your team loves to do. By better positioning what your team is best at, the rest of the work does not seem as arduous and you might be able to fill the gaps by thinking outside of the job description. Start by chatting with your team.
Listen to your team. As we talked about the fact that your team is skilled, it is best to listen to them. They have phenomenal ideas and need to be heard. There is a reason you hired the staff, your experts on your teams. Diversity of thought is key to the success of any team initiative or engagement of your team overall. Discover how to motivate them through awards or incentives, especially when they go above and beyond what is expected of them.
Consider hosting an annual priorities team session to explore thoughts and operationalize priorities as outlined by the organization. This can be done through a method used by many called, “dotocracy”. See instructions for this tried-and-true method at the end of this article.
Building a supportive community – As a servant leader, it is key that you build a team environment on trust and open communication. Everyone on the team must know they can lean on each other for ideas, amd backup.
Consider creating a staff ownership grid with an outline of ownership areas and ways to support each other. This is a simple tool that can be used in conjunction with your annual team priorities sessions. It also helps to operationalize those large initiatives.
Being Self-reflective - This is having a selfless mindset. We are all human and when you are wrong you need to apologize to your staff and make sure they know, we can all make mistakes and help each other learn from this.
Consider a Just Culture – instilling a Just culture is one where everyone can learn from mistake and improve the work, they do every day.
Trust the team – Creating a culture of trust is critical. Being open and transparent with staff will always create a culture of trust. This will also in turn allow your staff to be open and honest about their feelings, their struggles, and in-turn creates a foundation of trust. It is also key to follow through on promises and make sure staff knows that you are willing to have their back whenever needed.
Try this – Solicit feedback whenever you can. Make sure staff see your demonstrated trust in each of them and transparency at every turn.
Coach and Mentor Others – Fostering leadership in others and encouraging team commitment is also key to servant leadership. This also instills a commitment to the growth of your team. Many of your direct reports may have natural leadership and that should be honed with your encouragement. Also, those we are not all destoned to lead, mentoring team members in their career goals is key to servant leadership.
Try this – During every one-on-one session, make sure to explore professional development with your team? This also might be seen through debriefing on lessons learned.
Whatever your approach to leadership is, considering each of these aspects just might allow you to gain more insight from your team, improve engagement, and create a phenomenal culture. Get expert support developing human resource initiatives that increase team cohesion and trust.
To help address these topics, and anything related to HR Operations, Communications, or Recruitment, feel free to reach out to BlueFire HR by FutureSense. We are adept at helping organizations tailor programs to enable growth and success and offer support and guidance to manage your workforce. If you are interested in learning more about how we can help, need assistance with your workforce strategy, strategic planning, or HR operations; or you need an executive coach to talk to, contact us info@futuresense.com.
About FutureSense
FutureSense is a management consulting firm that provides integrated solutions to build and sustain human capital capacity. The firm can work with you by offering support and guidance to manage your workforce. To learn more about FutureSense, please visit FutureSense.com.