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Servant Leadership: Its Origin, Development, and Application in Organizations

May 30, 2003 

"Although the notion of servant leadership has been recognized in the leadership literature since Burns' (1978) and Greenleaf's (1977) publications, the movement has gained momentum only recently.  One reason for the scarcity of research on servant leadership is that the very notion of 'servant as leader' is an oxymoron.  It may be difficult to think and act both as leader and servant at the same time - a leader who serves and a servant who leads. 

 According to Greenleaf (1977), servant leaders are leaders who put other people's needs, aspirations and interests above their own.  The servant leader's deliberate choice is to serve others.  While working as an AT&T executive, Greenleaf (1977) conceptualized the notion of servant leadership and introduced it into the organization context.  Interestingly, his concept has, to a certain extent, some similarities with Burn's (1978) transforming leadership.  Greenleaf claimed that: 'the servant leader is a servant first.'  Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead.

 As appealing and refreshing as Greenleaf's conceptualization of servant leadership is, Greenleaf is not the individual who first introduced the notion of servant to everyday human endeavor.  It was Christianity's founder, Jesus Christ, who first taught the concept of servant leadership.  From the narrative accounts of his life in the Bible, it is evident that servant leadership was taught and practiced more than two thousand years ago.

 Ancient monarchs acknowledged that they were in the service of their country and their people - even if their actions were not consistent with this.  Modern coronation ceremonies and inaugurations of heads of state all involve the acknowledgement of service to God, country, and the people.  Politicians define their role in terms of public service. 

 Levering and Moskowitz (2000) contend that servant leadership has been practiced and advocated in some of the best companies to work for in America, on the basis of the Fortune survey.  According to Levering and Moskowitz (2000), six criteria identify these companies: openness and fairness, camaraderie/friendliness, opportunities, pride in work and company, pay/benefits, and security.  Three of the five best places in Fortune's January 2000 'Top 100 Best Companies to Work for in America" were help by companies that by these criteria, namely Southwest Airlines (#2 in 2000, #4 in 1998, and #1 in 1998), TDIndustries (#4 in 2000, #2 in 1999 and #5 in 1998), Synovus Financial (#5 in 2000, #1 in 1999).  The latest Fortune 2001 annual survey the top employers ranked Southwest Airlines, TDIndustries, and Synovus Financial numbers four, six, and eight respectively (Levering and Moskowitz, 2001). 

 As one of the largest mechanical contractors in American, TDIndustries has employed servant leadership as an organizational-wide leadership development philosophy and program.  CEO and Chairman of TDIndustries, Jack Lowe (1998) asserts that when people become grounded in servant leadership, trust grows and the foundation for organizational excellence is established.  In a similar vein, Synovus Financial Corporation, a multi-billion dollar financial services firm, illustrates the servant leadership through a strong commitment to family-oriented policies such as work flexibility, leave for new parents, work/life balance, and advancing women in their careers.   Under the leadership of founder and CEO Herb Kelleher, Southwest Airlines had one of the most distinguished organizational cultures in America.  The company has been recognized as one of the most admired companies in the world and the most admired airline in the world year after year.  Servant leadership principles provide the foundation for altruism, defined as the constructive, gratifying service to others, and one of the core values of Southwest's culture (Quick, 1992). 

 The distinctive characteristics of servant leaders lie first and foremost in their primary intent and self-concept.  Servant leaders portray a resolute conviction and strong character by taking on not only the role of a servant, but also the nature of a servant.  Recommendations for future research need to be established if servant leadership is to become a valuable leadership theory. 

 In order to develop a theory of servant leadership that systematically draws the concept together into an intelligible whole, there exists a need to explore the following questions:  What are the differences between servant leaders and those who choose not to be?  What does it take for a would-be servant leader to embrace the nature and play the role of servant leader?  Are certain types of people likely to feel more comfortable with the role and nature of servant leader?  Does the practice of servant leadership produce results that differ from other models/paradigms of leadership?  Can servant leadership be measured?  What are the factors that are likely to foster and inhibit servant leadership practices?

 Exploring the above questions requires rigorous quantitative and qualitative research.  As the current leadership on servant leadership is filled with anecdotal evidence, empirical research is critically needed to test and validate these various questions and to create further predictions and hypotheses in order to fully develop the concept and construct of servant leadership (Sendijaya & Sarros, 2002, p. 57-64)."

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Reference: Sendjaya S. & Sarros J.C.. (2002). Servant leadership: its origins, development, and application in organizations.  The Journal of Leadership Studies, 9, No 2.

The Journal of Leadership Studies is available on loan from the OSU Leadership Center.  A complete listing of all the Leadership Center's resources is available on our website http://leadershipcenter.osu.edu

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Created: 2008-01-09, Updated: 2009-02-17