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(ASCD, 2020)

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This article highlights the traits which are necessary for a counselor when serving as an effective leader.

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Far from simply setting up student schedules and administering placement and academic evaluation tests, school counselors are leaders who can have a huge impact on the acceleration and the enhancement of learning. They must possess the ability to negotiate, persuade others their ideas are worthwhile, and collaborate with principals and other school officials.

School counselors have many responsibilities, including counseling students, working with teachers and parents, referring students to outside agencies, participating in student welfare and learning support communities, and evaluating and improving their own school counseling program.

Listening

First and foremost, a school counselor needs to be a good listener. Often, they have several students they work with and may get very few chances to converse with them in a one on one setting. "The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood," said Ralph G. Nichols. "The best way to understand people is to listen to them."

To listen effectively, counselors must be fully in the moment, not thinking of their "to do" list but rather giving their full attention to the issue at hand. Reflecting back to the person, your perception of what they said helps show understanding, and lets them make corrections. The counselor must also keep an open mind, being careful not to make any judgments until they have heard the entire story. ¹

Being Empathetic

Often a part of listening, putting themselves in the shoes of the person speaking, whether that is a student or another school official, helps counselors truly understand the underlying issues.

"Without the ability to understand what the student is experiencing, a counselor cannot truly do an effective job," says Helen A. Hatridge, past president of the Missouri School Counselor Association. "Empathy leads to good listening and a better ability to help the client come up with solutions. It also helps the student feel more comfortable and willing to open up to a counselor." ²

To be more empathetic, it is essential for a counselor to put aside their viewpoint. At the same time, they need to validate the student's viewpoint, which does not always mean agreement. Instead it means acknowledging their right to have an opinion, and that they have valid reasons for it. Asking how that person thinks a situation should be handled or what they would do opens up an even deeper understanding. ³

Building Relationship

It takes time for a counselor to build a relationship with any student or even their peers. However, through listening and being empathetic, that process can be accelerated.

To feel free to talk to a counselor, a student must often "break the ice," and needs to feel trust, comfort, and acceptance. Students need to accept that the counselor is a professional caregiver, and someone they can turn to without fear of judgement.

A counselor who develops this trusting relationship with students can get a lot more done, An understanding of the kid culture and what they care about can go a long way toward providing that environment of trust and understanding.

Performing Assessments

Assessment skills are essential for any school counselor in a number of areas. From academic and skills assessment to personality testing and career advisement, the ability to discern the intersection of talent and desire is essential to offering good counsel.

Assessment also includes determining if a student has special needs and interpreting test and non-test data to decide where the student should be placed, and what programs will most benefit them.

Regardless of the reason for assessment, the steps often include, but are not limited to the following:

Choosing what tests should be administered and when.

Scheduling, preparing, and administering tests.

Scoring tests or sending them out to be scored.

Advising students, teachers, parents, and other staff on test score interpretation.

Evaluating the testing process, results, and subsequent recommendations.⁴

Assessments involve some testing but must also be combined with listening, empathy, and the relationship that has been built to determine how testing outcomes relate to personality, desires, and the goals of the student.

Coordinating Efforts and Activities

Efforts and activities can fall into a couple of different categories. A counselor will have to coordinate Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) for students, and other student specific plans as well. Along with coordinating individual student plans and interacting with teachers and other school officials, the school counselor often coordinates other activities and projects as well.

In many cases, the school counselor is in charge of parent newsletters, school announcements, managing social media accounts, and other community outreach and event planning efforts.

The ability to coordinate and manage these efforts and activities requires strong leadership and organizational skills. Teaching these skills to students by allowing them to take responsibility for their own educational goals and other efforts enables a counselor to show leadership by example.

Exercising Authority

In order to be able to implement programs, direct student activities and coordinate tasks, a counselor must exercise a certain amount of authority.

This means first of all that the counselor must be granted the authority to handle certain tasks by other school officials such as principals and administrators. The more their authority is validated by their actions, the more the counselor will be perceived as a leader by parents and students alike.

Secondly, the school counselor must be willing to wield the authority they have been granted, taking charge of tasks and situations, setting expectations, and holding those responsible to deadlines.

The counselor must also know in any given situation when to cross the line from friend to professional. If a student is being abusive or abused, a more professional response is ethically and legally mandated. It is the counselor's obligation to take charge and follow through, ensuring that student safety comes first.

Being Flexible

If one thing is certain in the field of education, it is that things will change. Interruptions, schedule changes, new programs, and new responsibilities all interrupt a counselor's daily routine.

Student needs and the needs of the school overall often take priority over scheduled meetings. Parent phone calls, staff concerns, talks in classrooms, and unexpected counseling needs can all be disruptive.

A successful counselor should:

Leave gaps in their day for unscheduled needs.

Use good time management techniques.

Set reasonable boundaries. Know what is worthy of an interruption, and what can wait.

Communicate clearly. Inform students, parents, and faculty of schedules and boundaries.

By remaining flexible, a counselor can better manage the stress inherent in the job and be more responsive when needs arise unexpectedly.

Having a Sense of Humor

Being able to see things from the side of humor has a number of advantages. It lets students see that the counselor is human and can not only laugh at situations but laugh at themselves as well.

This is frequently one of the biggest assets in building student trust and developing a relationship with them. It is often how those students relate to adults, whether through jokes or humorous anecdotes that illustrate a point the counselor is trying to get across.

Humor is also a stress reliever. Being able to see the humorous side of interruptions and other daily situations allows a counselor to relax and keep anxiety from taking over many scenarios.

It takes a combination of many leadership traits to make a school counselor effective. They must use listening skills and offer empathy in order to build relationships. A counselor must also perform assessments and coordinate activities and educational efforts. These duties mean they must remain flexible and exercise authority when appropriate.

Not one of these traits alone is enough, and no one is equally adept in all of them. They are taught and can be learned in a Master of Arts in Counseling with an emphasis in school counseling like the one offered by Wake Forest University. This graduate degree will prepare you for a career as a school counselor in almost any setting.
Sources: 1 2 3 ⁴ American Counseling Association, Assessment Skills for School Counselors Mind Tools, Empathy at Work Education World, School Counselors Reflective On What Makes Them Effective Fast Company, 5 Ways To Improve Your Listening Skills

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Leadership Traits Every Counselor Should Have

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Far from simply setting up student schedules and administering placement and academic evaluation tests, school counselors are leaders who can have a huge impact on the acceleration and the enhancement of learning. They must possess the ability to negotiate, persuade others their ideas are worthwhile, and collaborate with principals and other school officials.

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This article speaks to the ways in which a school counselor serves as a leader within the school.

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School counselors are uniquely equipped to bridge the gaps between administration, teachers, parents, and students. As the demands placed on everyone in a school community increase, it's vital that we view and include school counselors as part of our leadership teams. Let's make sure we recognize all they do and put their strengths to work for our students! Here are 11 ways school counselors serve as leaders in your building.

1. School counselors recognize and showcase diversity.

In many buildings, school counselors are considered the "heart" of the school. They help create an inclusive environment that is respectful, welcoming, kind, and open to all.

2. School counselors develop community partnerships.

Counseling staff work collaboratively with universities, community colleges, technical schools, local unions, military reps, and apprentice programs to provide a variety of opportunities for students. They are especially vital in ensuring underserved and first-generation students have access to and the tools to reach all possible post-high school options.

3. School counselors help during difficult situations.

Strengths such as listening, reflecting, and high emotional intelligence make school counselors valuable allies when trying to get buy-in from staff or the greater community on difficult issues. Counselors foster a culture of change via strong lines of communication and valuing input from all parties involved.

4. School counselors maintain strong home-school connections.

Counselors tend to be the liaison for parents when it comes to communicating with the school. This leadership role is especially important when assisting families who are not familiar with the school setting or have issues trusting staff.

5. School counselors maximize educational success.

School counselors can help to maximize the educational attainment of all students by providing students with mental health services (school or community-based) and developmental guidance that takes a proactive approach in helping students set and reach academic goals.

6. School counselors lead staff trainings.

Administrators who use their counseling staff (rather than outside contractors) to lead building-wide trainings can save a lot of money and gain quicker buy-in from staff. School counselors are experts on topics such as student engagement, positive discipline, suicide/self-harm, students-as-leaders, peer mentoring programs, and academic/social interventions for low-performing students.

7. School counselors protect and advocate for disadvantaged students.

Counselors identify and amend policies and practices that negatively impact disadvantaged students and advocate for equitable services for all students.

8. School counselors use expertise to bring data to life.

Like administrators, counselors are trained in data collection and analysis. They are skilled at using this information to drive decisions about placement, intervention, and overall student health and wellbeing.

9. School counselors mediate difficult situations between parents/students and staff.

Counselors are consistently looking for ways to support the relationship between school staff and parents. Acting as a mediator when one or both parties are upset about a situation is a critical way in which school counselors serve as leaders.

10. School counselors organize and lead crisis response.

Counselors are on the front lines after a tragedy has happened in a school or community. Staff, students, parents, and community members look to the counselors for guidance and support immediately following an event. Because of their training in emotional/mental, the counseling staff is critical in advocating for and teaching self-care to staff, parents, and students during a crisis.

11. School counselors empower and inspire.

School counselors inherently believe in people and work tirelessly to communicate that. By being visible and accessible at all times, their calming, caring, and encouraging presence helps support and empower staff in the building.

School counselors serve as leaders in many ways and we need to value their perspectives and strengths. They are vital to building positive learning environments in which students thrive.
Join our Facebook group Principal Life for more conversation about and insights into the challenges of school leadership.

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11 Ways Your School Counselors Serve as Leaders - WeAreTeachers

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School counselors are uniquely equipped to bridge the gaps between administration, teachers, parents, and students. As the demands placed on everyone in a school community increase, it's vital that we view and include school counselors as part of our leadership teams. Let's make sure we recognize all they do and put their strengths to work for our students!

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The article points to the benefits of participative leadership in the workplace.

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Participative leadership offers a host of benefits to an organisation willing to use it. By involving employees in company decisions you raise their awareness, encourage their contributions, and raise their morale.

If this sounds like something you would like to bring to your workplace, then read on. This blog post shines a spotlight on participative leadership, exploring its nature, its strengths, and its potential weaknesses.

After reading you'll have a solid understanding of what participative leadership can offer.

What is Participative Leadership?

It's useful to have a participative leadership definition in mind while reading about the topic, especially considering that there are differences of opinion.

When we use the term, we are referring to a situation where subordinates are invited to participate in the decision-making process traditionally confined to the leadership.

In one study, a large group of managers whose traits they thought best defined this leadership style. By nature, leadership styles are broad nets with consensus on what they entail being hard to come by.

The five key traits of participative leadership were:

Giving subordinates a share in decision making.

Keeping subordinates informed of the true situation, good or bad, under all circumstances.

Maintaining awareness of the state of the organisation's morale, with action taken to keep it as high as possible.

The leader is approachable.

Counselling, training, and development opportunities are offered to subordinates

In short, employees are involved much more heavily in the organisational activities than they would be in other leadership styles, with greater efforts taken to keep them informed, and greater priority placed on their development.

Participative and Democratic Leadership Styles

You may hear this style referred to as democratic, participative, or democratic/participative. Some theorists argue that the two styles are subtly different, but wider consensus agrees that they are the same. Both have firm foundations in mutual respect; both require effective collaboration between the leader and those being led.

One difference you may see stated as distinguishing between the two is how decisions are ultimately made:

In participative leadership, the team's input is considered during the decision-making process, but the decision is ultimately made by the leader.

In democratic leadership, a vote is taken where each team member has equal say in the ultimate decision.

Other people refer to the above as - respectively - the consultation and joint decision-making styles of participative/democratic leadership. Our definition of participative leadership encompasses both of these decision making processes, with the organisation and situation determining which is used.

The term "participative" has received more attention in management training circles in recent years, and as a result may be more common amongst younger leaders.

For a more comprehensive rundown of the different leadership styles, check out our guide.

The Benefits of Participative Leadership

As we've seen, participative leadership seeks to involve subordinates in the decision making process, and to furnish them with the skills and information they need to make contributions required to arrive at said decisions.

This approach has several benefits:

Participative leadership encourages collaboration. Employees in some organisations can feel stifled or unheard if their attempts to contribute - based on their opinions or experience - are ignored. In participative leadership, there is a forum for these ideas to be heard.

Participative leadership opens up an organisation. In an age where more scrutiny is placed on how businesses operate, this is especially important. Involving employees in decisions means more transparency.

Participative leadership facilitates a free flow of ideas. Each employee has something to contribute. While all contributions may not be valuable or actionable, creating an environment in which they can be discussed invites others to contribute their ideas: things can then be refined, evaluated, and built upon.

Participative leadership decreases competition. If employees know that ideas will be evaluated by a group and possibly incorporated into company practice, there is less concern about original ownership of an idea.

Participative leadership improves morale. If people know they will be heard, they are more likely to contribute, and to feel like their contribution is valued. This is a fundamental requisite for a happy, motivated workforce.

Participative leadership improves retention. All of the factors above combine to create a workplace where people feel valued, feel less pressure to stand out, and feel a part of their organisation. People are less tempted to leave a workplace with such qualities.

Get these ingredients right, and you lay the groundwork for a high-performance workplace. People enjoy working in environments where their participation is respected. It is a way to feel validated: to be shown that your presence, opinions, and contributions matter.

We've written more about promoting teamwork in the workplace, too. You can read that here.

When Does Participative Leadership Work Best?

There are a few factors that help participative leadership to thrive:

When your team are sufficiently informed about - and invested in - the inner workings of the organisation and its wider goals. The responsibility to keep informed falls on both parties: employees must express a willingness and ability to learn, but the information must be made readily available.

The problem at hand must also be defined clearly enough that the route toward a solution can be at least imagined. If your team cannot comprehend the issue at hand, it is unlikely that they will be equipped to make meaningful contributions toward a solution. This perceived lack of ability can quickly unravel all of the benefits we outlined above:

They will be put off of collaborating.

This will, in turn, close off group participation.

The free flow of ideas will stop.

Team members may feel more competitive, as a sense of urgency begins to build.

Morale will likely decrease as the previously open and collaborative environment turns sour.

If left unchecked, people will look for a way to extricate themselves from this situation.

While the above is a worst-case scenario that can be alleviated at every step, it shows the potential downfall of a participative leadership situation. It is prudent that a participative leader remain aware of these risks and take suitable steps to stop them from taking place.

Participative leadership works best when this intersection between leaders and their team is nurtured, and where an ongoing back and forth between both sides exists.

In Conclusion

Participative leadership can bring myriad benefits to an organisation. A leader who uses this style effectively will be able to involve their entire team in the running of the organisation. By crowdsourcing opinions and contributions, decision making becomes a collective endeavour that taps into the skills, ideas, and expertise of every member.

Though there are risks to the deployment of participative leadership, these can be nipped in the bud by an effective leader. Awareness of the potential weaknesses of a leadership style are just as important as an understanding of its strengths.

If you want to understand the benefits of different leadership styles - and the situations where a change might be warranted - check out our content exploring the pros and cons of changing yours.

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How Participative Leadership Brings The Workplace Together

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Participative leadership offers a host of benefits to an organisation willing to use it. By involving employees in company decisions you raise their awareness, encourage their contributions, and raise their morale. If this sounds like something you would like to bring to your workplace, then read on.

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This link offers insight into how relational leadership benefits students in schools.

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At our Presidential Leadership Scholars weekend in College Station, Texas, John Sununu, former governor of New Hampshire and George H.W. Bush's chief of staff, recounted President Bush's first meeting with French president Francois Mitterrand upon assuming office in 1989. U.S. relations with France were strained, and while there was no immediate need for joint U.S. and French action at the time, President Bush knew that sometime he would need America's old ally and wanted to repair relations with its leader.

As recorded in Sununu's The Quiet Man, President Bush invited Mitterrand to his home in Kennebunkport, and over two days he began to win over the veteran statesman, developing a lasting friendship and professional partnership. This relationship, authentically cultivated, paid extraordinary dividends when President Bush was able to use his partnership with Mitterrand to negotiate financial assistance to Poland and Hungary in 1989 and the eventual reunification of East and West Germany.

This "relational" approach to leadership was core to President Bush's values and personality. And in the broader world, relational leadership-the longstanding and almost instinctive cultivation of close personal and professional relationships as an entre to building alliances and partnerships-is common. It's prevalent in politics, where relationships among legislators and community members often lead to compromise, and in business, where trust is such an essential component of partnership.

So, how is relational leadership cultivated?

It starts with a genuine interest in others. President Bush's Deputy Chief of Staff and Transportation Secretary Andy Card said of the President, "President George H.W. Bush created personal relationships with everyone he could. That personal connection could become a strategic partnership when it needed to be. It was universal but sincere." I've seen the same in my career. When I was a new business analyst at McKinsey, for example, a senior director in the office took an interest in me and counseled me, even though I would never be useful to him. And most of us have benefited from peers or mentors who have befriended us and then aided us in the cultivation of our careers. These friendships aren't purely instrumental but authentic, sincere and driven by a genuine interest in others.

Relational leadership is further predicated on empathy-understanding others and meeting them where they are. When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, President Bush was criticized for his subdued response. Some wanted the president to celebrate more visibly. But President Bush knew how tense a political moment the event was for Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, and sensitive to his relationship with Gorbachev and the fragility of the moment, the American president avoided the kind of gloating that may have made the situation more challenging for the general secretary to manage. This was an important gesture and one for which President Bush was misunderstood and criticized. But, as Sununu notes in The Quiet Man, it displayed empathy for Gorbachev and strengthened their partnership. Similarly, we're experiencing a heightened cultural appreciation now for former television host Fred Rogers based at least partially on his remarkable empathy. Mr. Rogers is the subject of a new documentary and a forthcoming feature film -and much of what makes him so unique and so compelling is the deep empathy he so regularly displayed for everyone he met, particularly children and the vulnerable. This empathy and kindness left even casual acquaintances transformed by their interactions with him and was a critical foundation of his leadership. It's similarly essential for each of us.

Further, this authentic and empathetic relational leadership is nurtured by small and large gestures of friendship. As I've written elsewhere, I once worked with a woman at a DC-area organization who was exceptional about spending time with even the most junior members of her organization and making them feel special. She took me to lunch and subsequently mailed me a book about which we'd spoken and a handwritten note-a kindness I appreciate to this day. Similarly, President Bush frequently wrote handwritten notes to friends and partners around the world. And while his subdued reaction to the fall of the Berlin wall was a grand gesture, he also made small gestures to reinforce relationships. Genuine interest in and excitement for others manifests in gestures and signals that you value and understand them.

Finally, while relational leadership is personal by nature, it can be powerfully embedded in the culture of an organization or team. Speaking of the Bush White House, Governor Sununu said, "President George H.W. Bush's commitment to collegiality was contagious. We all worked hard to maintain that." A culture that prioritizes authentic relationships starts at the top and cascades through an organization. In my time as a management consultant, I worked for several partners who prioritized collegiality among their teams-hosting kick-off dinners for us to get to know each other, planning team events to encourage bonding and insisting on respectful treatment of all colleagues-and that top-down leadership transformed the groups with which they worked.

Relational leadership can be incredibly successful, particularly when it is authentic, empathetic, reinforced through gestures of friendship and embedded in the culture of a team. It's not the only style of leadership, but can be powerful and personally fulfilling.
This article is part of a six-part series on leadership lessons from presidents that includes "Searching For The Right Leadership Style," "The Power Of Relational Leadership," "The Simple Power Of Connected Communication," "How A President Makes A Decision That Matters," "The Johnson Treatment: Pushing and Persuading Like LBJ" and "Life Is Worth Living In Three Dimensions."

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At our Presidential Leadership Scholars weekend in College Station, Texas, John Sununu, former governor of New Hampshire and George H.W. Bush's chief of staff, recounted President Bush's first meeting with French president Francois Mitterrand upon assuming office in 1989. U.S. relations with France were strained, and while there was no immediate need for joint U.S.

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A model consisted of five components (Purpose, Inclusive, Empowering, Ethical, and Process) that focuses on a group or organization's positive social development and advancement. Each component can be applied into the Knowing-Being-Doing framework of an exemplary leader.
What are the Components?
Purpose - Having an individual commitment to a goal or activity while establishing a common ground with others who share a similar purpose.
Inclusive - Involving not only everyone but also everyone's ideas and different viewpoints.
Empowering - Giving others the ability to not only be involved but feel involved in group decision making.
Ethical - Being 'fair' to yourself as a leader, other leaders, and to the process you take to achieve your goals.
Process - The path you as a group decide to go in along with how well you stay together, communicate, solve problems, and achieve your goals as a group.

Knowing? Being? Doing?
Knowing - The skills needed to perform and knowing process of how to manage yourself and others to achieve goals.
Being - Self awareness of personal beliefs, values, and goals while understanding that your actions can have significant effect on others.
Doing - Using the knowledge and self awareness to lead a group to achieving previously stated goals. Knowing the skills needed is not enough to be a leader, one must be aware of the influence he can potentially have on others. Similarly, being aware that you have the potential to lead is not enough if you don't possess the knowledge of skills. The combination of skills accompanied with the process of doing completes the framework of an exemplary leadership.

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A model consisted of five components (Purpose, Inclusive, Empowering, Ethical, and Process) that focuses on a group or organization's positive social development and advancement. Each component can be applied into the Knowing-Being-Doing framework of an exemplary leader. What are the Components?

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Link provides information about what teachers can bring to the table regarding leadership.

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September 2007 | Volume 65 | Number 1
Teachers as Leaders Pages 26-29

Gordon A. Donaldson Jr.

Teacher leadership means different things to different people. Team leaders, department chairs, and respected teachers live it every day: They experience the pushes and pulls of their complex roles, located somewhere between administrative leadership and almost invisible leadership. Yet many administrators, school board members, citizens, and even teachers don't recognize or understand teacher leadership (Ackerman & Mackenzie, 2006). And this lack of understanding adds to the obstacles many teacher leaders face.

At issue is our understanding of leadership itself. Most of us hold the deep-seated assumption that leaders must have appointments and titles that formalize their leadership and officially confirm their knowledge, traits, and competencies. Our analogy of leader as hero tends to package superior judgment and knowledge with superior authority and power.

Many teacher leaders, however, cannot find a comfortable niche in this analogy. Although schools may be formally structured to support hierarchical leadership, the culture within the education profession supports a rich egalitarian ethic. Within this culture, relationships determine who communicates with whom, who shares professional wisdom with whom, and who ultimately influences the quality of teaching and learning (Darling-Hammond, 2001).

Relational Leadership

An alternative to the hierarchical model of school leadership is the relational model, which views leadership as residing not in individuals, but in the spaces among individuals. This model starts by recognizing that relationships already exist among teachers, principals, specialists, counselors, and support staff. The question to ask is, How do these relationships influence the adults in this school to do good things for students? Leadership is a particular type of relationship-one that mobilizes other people to improve practice.

Relational leadership runs through the daily life of every school as educators attend to the quality of relationships, insist on commitment to the school's purposes and goals, and examine and improve instruction (Donaldson, 2006). Leadership is about how individuals together influence these three streams of school life to make learning better for all students. Although school administrators play a vital role in these efforts, teachers are uniquely positioned to contribute special assets to the school leadership mix in each of the three areas.

Teacher Asset: Building Relationships

Sylvia, an elementary school teacher, recruited colleagues from each grade level to pilot alternative assessments in math. She began by inviting colleagues with whom she had worked closely and then asking each of them to reach out to others in their working networks. Sylvia's strong relational skills pulled colleagues together, a marked contrast to her principal's style of pushing teachers to collaborate. Sylvia's reputation as an excellent teacher attracted others, and her inclusive style sent the message that every team member's opinions counted. Because of her knowledge of her colleagues' working styles, she was also wise enough to let the group's energy and time govern the speed and course of the initiative.

Teacher leaders like Sylvia have earned the trust and respect of other teachers (Bryk & Schneider, 2002). They are in the trenches with colleagues. They struggle with the same instructional issues, and they have demonstrated their success in the eyes of their peers. They are motivated by a desire to help students and support their fellow teachers, not to enforce a new policy or to evaluate others' competencies. Other teachers can go to teacher leaders without fear of judgment or dismissal. Their conversations can be frank, authentic, and caring.

Teacher leaders also have the benefit of working with others in small, intimate, adaptable groups or in one-on-one relationships. They aren't burdened, as administrators are, with setting policy for the whole school. Some of these small units are formal work groups, such as grade-level teams or departments. But many are naturally occurring and informal-clusters of teachers who get into the habit of dropping by one another's rooms, sharing materials, ideas, and challenges or generating a proposal to the principal for a new science initiative. In these less formal clusters, it's often difficult to say who's leading whom. But few would say that leadership doesn't exist among these energetic and closely connected professionals.

Teacher culture based on relationships is hugely influential in schools, often trumping administrative and legislative influence (Spillane, 2006). Although some administrators and policymakers might see this as a problem, strong relationships are teachers' most powerful leadership asset (Goleman, Boyatzis, & McKee, 2002).

Teacher Asset: Maintaining a Sense of Purpose

Patrick, a high school English teacher, became a champion of detracking. His reputation for integrity and commitment among his colleagues enabled him to voice deep-and at first unpopular-concerns that the school was failing its non-college-bound students. His willingness to examine his own teaching and to continue speaking up in conversations and meetings eventually persuaded other teachers to explore ability grouping practices in their own classrooms and to implement more equitable grouping practices schoolwide. His belief in the school's goal of equity drew others, including school administrators, into the effort.

To build on their sense of purpose, teacher leaders like Patrick need to listen astutely to their colleagues and help them sort through many issues, keeping basic goals as the top priority. They need to know how to facilitate professional dialogue, learning, and group process-the keys to mobilizing others to action.

These teacher leaders use their relational base to help their colleagues keep their eyes on the prize. Because they are teaching every day, facing the same challenges and reaping the same rewards as their peers, their singular focus on their own instructional work and their commitment to reaching every student act as beacons to those around them. When the going gets tough and colleagues lose sight of their purpose or begin to question their commitment, teacher leaders' clarity, optimism, and dedication are a powerful antidote.

Teacher Asset: Improving Instructional Practice

Clarissa, a middle school teacher, has always pushed herself to improve. She has also freely shared her struggles with colleagues, often discussing them in weekly team meetings. Her influence has been different from Patrick's; instead of seeking a broad program change, Clarissa informally shares ideas, techniques, and problems from her classroom that cover the spectrum of daily teacher practice-for example, goal setting, assessment, instructional delivery, student management, and use of technology. Over time, she has helped cultivate in her teaching team a spirit of openness and a focus on developing more effective instructional practices.

Clarissa has influenced her colleagues to improve their practice in part through her instructional expertise: her capacity to understand students and their learning needs, to analyze her own instructional choices, and to continually monitor effectiveness. But her leadership assets also grow from her capacity to share professional inquiry with colleagues. She is comfortable revealing her failures and worries, soliciting these in others, and facilitating professional sharing and learning. It takes both a strong cognitive foundation and skilled interpersonal capacities to exercise leadership in improving practice.

Traditionally, we have viewed school improvement and reform as a matter of wholesale replacement of dysfunctional practices with new, "proven" practices. The current reform era, however, has taught us that permanent improvements happen in a much more piecemeal manner (Darling-Hammond, 2001; Elmore, 2004). Teachers have an extraordinary opportunity to exercise leadership because they are the most powerful influence, next to students, on other teachers' practice (Darling-Hammond, 2003). Whereas principals can shape teachers' beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors, other teachers do shape them. Teacher leaders understand this and are deliberate about shaping their environment in a positive, responsible way. They draw on their relationships and their strong sense of purpose to help colleagues explore, share, and improve the practices they use daily with students.

Teacher leaders like Clarissa both model and cultivate professional improvement. They take pains to share what they do with others and to be accessible to colleagues concerning their own issues of improved practice. The power of their leadership stems from the fact that colleagues find these teacher leaders helpful. They are leaders because their own capacity to teach and to improve is infectious and helps others learn more effective ways of working with their own students.

A Complementary Mix of Leaders

The relational model of leadership obligates us to look first at leadership relationships and second at the individuals who are leaders. The leadership litmus test is, Are the relationships in this school mobilizing people to improve the learning of all students? If that test comes up positive, then we can ask, Who's contributing to that leadership-to strong working relationships, to a robust commitment to good purposes, and to relentless improvement of practice?

We must start by disposing of our old assumptions about leadership and about who can lead. We have placed too much responsibility and too much power with the few individuals whom we label "leaders" in our school systems. Superintendents, curriculum directors, and principals cannot on their own generate leadership that improves education.

Principals need teacher leaders of all kinds. Although principals are better positioned than teacher leaders are to influence the goal-directed areas of school life, they often have more difficulty leading through positive relationships. Their position and authority give them a platform for promoting vision and mission and focusing on improvement. But their power over reappointments, assignments, resources, and policies can undercut their working relationships; and their management responsibilities, can distance them from teaching and learning. In this respect, the assets that teacher leaders bring to schools are an essential complement to principal leadership.

We can strengthen school leadership and performance by acknowledging and supporting the vital roles of teacher leaders. Administrators, school boards, and state and federal policymakers should

Identify and support those clusters of teachers in which professional relationships and commitments are fostering instructional innovation.

Respect the judgment of these professional clusters and be willing to adjust their own strategies and initiatives to complement such teacher-led innovations.

Put resources behind the efforts of teacher leaders by supporting shared practice, planning, and professional learning focused on their purposeful improvement of practice.

Acknowledge that their own goals and initiatives can best be addressed by treating teacher leaders as vital and powerful partners.

Great schools grow when educators understand that the power of their leadership lies in the strength of their relationships. Strong leadership in schools results from the participation of many people, each leading in his or her own way. Whether we call it distributed leadership, collaborative leadership, or shared leadership, the ideal arrangement encourages every adult in the school to be a leader. Administrators, formal teacher leaders, and informal teacher leaders all contribute to the leadership mix. They hold the power to improve student learning in the hands they extend to one another.

References

Ackerman, R., & Mackenzie, S. (Eds.). (2006). Uncovering teacher leadership: Essays and voices from the field. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Bryk, A., & Schneider, B. (2002). Trust in schools: A core resource for improvement. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

Darling-Hammond, L. (2001). The right to learn: A blueprint for creating schools that work. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Darling-Hammond, L. (2003). Enhancing teaching. In W. Owens & L. S. Kaplan (Eds.), Best practices, best thinking, and emerging issues in leadership (pp. 75-87). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Donaldson, G. (2006). Cultivating leadership in schools: Connecting people, purpose, and practice (2nd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.

Elmore, R. (2004). School reform from the inside out: Policy, practice, and performance. Cambridge MA: Harvard Education Press.

Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & McKee, A. (2002). Primal leadership: Realizing the power of emotional intelligence. Cambridge MA: Harvard Business School Press.

Spillane, J. (2006). Distributed leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Gordon A. Donaldson Jr. is Professor of Education, University of Maine; 207-581-2450; gordon.donaldson@umit.maine.edu.

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September 2007 | Volume 65 | Number 1 Teachers as Leaders Pages 26-29 Gordon A. Donaldson Jr. Teacher leadership means different things to different people. Team leaders, department chairs, and respected teachers live it every day: They experience the pushes and pulls of their complex roles, located somewhere between administrative leadership and almost invisible leadership.

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(Doctor Misterio, 2019)

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This article discusses the key concepts of servant leadership and the benefits it has on an organization.

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"If your actions inspire people to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader." - John Quincy Adams

When Nathan and I started TeamGantt, we decided to buck tradition and take a different approach. As leaders of the company, we care more about being part of the team and setting people up for success than making sure everyone knows who's boss.

That's why servant leadership is our go-to leadership style.

Let's take a closer look at what servant leadership is and the 10 characteristics that define a servant leader.

What is servant leadership?

Servant leadership is a management style that prioritizes the team's growth and well-being over the organization's or leader's own ambitions. Unlike traditional leaders, a servant leader focuses on coaching and developing individuals, not just achieving the goals of the organization.

Servant leadership traces its origins to Robert Greenleaf. In his 1970 essay "The Servant as a Leader," he described servant leadership like this:

"The servant-leader is servant first... It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first."

A lot of companies look at employees as cogs in a wheel who exist solely to help the organization advance its goals. Leaders act as taskmasters who dole out authority and don't care how work gets done, as long as it's delivered on time. Servant leadership flips the typical leadership script by putting people ahead of power.

10 key principles of servant leadership

So what does it take to be a servant leader? Servant leaders share a common set of core characteristics. Follow these 10 principles to put servant leadership to work with your team.

1. Listening

Listening is at the heart of servant leadership. If a team member's talking, give them your full focus and attention-no interruption allowed! It's a simple way to make your team feel valued so they know you care.

2. Empathy

A lot goes into empathy, but when it comes to servant leadership, it basically comes down to getting to know your team. Find out what makes them tick, and learn their strengths and weaknesses. That way you can let your team members shine and maybe even help them turn their weaknesses into strengths.

3. Healing

Some team members may come to you from a previous job that had a really toxic work environment-and you have the privilege to help them heal.

Don't worry: It's not as hard as it sounds. Healing is as simple as creating a healthy work environment that has work-life balance built in. It's also about giving people the tools they need to succeed so they feel like a valued member of the team.

4. Self-awareness

I've already mentioned the importance of understanding your team's strengths and weaknesses. But it's just as important to do a little self-reflection of your own.

Take inventory of your own strengths and weaknesses, and figure out how you fit into the overall team. Then use yourself in ways that benefit the team and the company. Recognizing your own limitations can help you see opportunities to leverage your team's strengths more clearly.

5. Persuasion

Slick sales tactics may come to mind when you think of persuasion. But that's not what we're talking about here.

Servant leaders use persuasion to build consensus and get buy-in from their team. That way everyone feels like they have a stake in the team's success.

6. Conceptualization

You've got to know where you're going as a leader and a company. After all, how else will you carve a positive path for your team?

TeamGantt enables you to keep the big picture in mind without losing focus on the day-to-day. For example, the Project Health Report makes it easy to see how all your projects are tracking, while Workloads enables you to keep a finger on the pulse of your team.

7. Foresight

Another key characteristic of servant leadership is taking the knowledge you've learned in the past and applying it to the future so you and your team can continue to grow.

Project post-mortems or retrospectives are a great tool for figuring out what worked-and what didn't-so you can fine-tune your process with each project. You can also use TeamGantt's baselines feature to compare your original plan to your actual timeline and pinpoint opportunities to improve.

See how baselines work in TeamGantt.
8. Stewardship

Stewardship is simply leading by example. It's your job to set the tone for your team, so don't ask people to do things you wouldn't do yourself.

At TeamGantt, I lead the development team. One way I put this into practice is by being the first person to sign up for 2:00 a.m. deployments. If something goes wrong, I'll take the heat. This goes a long way toward building trust-a must for any well-functioning team.

9. Commitment to the growth of people

If you want your team to grow, you've got to invest in people. One simple way we do this is by providing an annual conference budget so team members can develop the skills they need to thrive in their role.

We also conduct 360 performance reviews each year. As a leader, you can only see so much. A 360-degree review brings peer and even direct report feedback into the process so you have a more complete picture of performance and can identify meaningful opportunities for growth.
Watch this video to learn how we build unity and morale on our remote team.

10. Building community

Teams who trust each other work together to get more done. That's why it's important to cultivate relationships among your team.

As a fully remote team, we have to be extra-intentional about this. We bring the whole team together once a year for our annual team meetup, while smaller teams get together more often. We make sure to build in time for fun between business strategy so trust has room to grow. It's worth the investment!

Apply the servant leadership style to project management

Servant leaders know there's always more to learn-and we can help you out with that. The Art and Science of Project Leadership is an online video course that can help you embrace the servant leadership style as you grow your project management skills. Watch the classes anytime, from anywhere-and it's totally free!

I recommend starting with An Introduction to Project Leadership-not just because it's the first in the series-but because it lays the foundation for what it means to be a great project leader.

Lead the way!
Remember: You don't have to have a manager title or a team of direct reports to be a servant leader. If you lead projects in any way, you have the power of positive influence and can set your team and organization up for success.

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The 10 Principles of Servant Leadership | TeamGantt

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"If your actions inspire people to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader." - John Quincy Adams When Nathan and I started TeamGantt, we decided to buck tradition and take a different approach.

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View Abstract View PDF Share Article

Introduction

The importance of teacher leadership in our educational systems cannot be understated. The teacher leader is identified as being in a "unique position to make change happen" (Lieberman & Miller, 2004, p. 12) and their leadership is associated with school improvement, increased teacher agency, the democratization of schools, teacher learning, and developing a collaborative culture (Muijs & Harris, 2006; York-Barr & Duke, 2004). Different approaches have been taken to strengthen or expand this form of leadership in our school systems. Examples include teacher leader programs under state or ministry initiatives, post-secondary education programs or research that identifies barriers and enablers to teacher leadership. We propose a different approach: this paper explores the connections between servant leadership and teacher leadership through the lens of the ten characteristics identified by Spears (2010) and it considers the implications of informing and strengthening teacher leadership through a servant leadership framework. In our analysis we attempt to answer the following questions:

What connections can be made between the characteristics of servant leadership and teacher leadership?

What are the implications of these connections?

How can these connections be used to inform and strengthen teacher leadership?

Servant Leadership

Robert Greenleaf coined the term servant leadership in his 1970 essay "The Servant as Leader", where he explained that a "servant leader is servant first" (Greenleaf, 1970, p. 15). Greenleaf credits the idea of the servant as leader from his reading of Journey to the East by Herman Hess. The main character in Hess' story, Leo, is a man who accompanies a group on a mythical journey and does their chores, but he also keeps them upbeat and positive through songs and interactions with the group members. Leo disappears in this story and the group falls apart, the journey discontinues. The story's narrator comes across Leo some time later only to discover that he was actually the leader of the Order that had sponsored the journey and not the servant the narrator had thought him to be. The notion espoused in this story that a servant and a leader could be embodied by one person was something that Greenleaf believed could exist in today's world as a form of leadership. The idea of a servant as a leader is a very different perspective on leadership as it focuses on the needs of the followers and the focus of the leader is ensuring that those needs are being served (Greenleaf, 1970, p. 15). The priority for a servant leader is not their aspirations as a leader, nor the goals of the organization, but to the people that they serve as a leader. To know if a servant leader is achieving success as a leader is to simply administer what Greenleaf referred to as the best test: "do those served grow as persons, do they while being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants" (Greenleaf, 1970, p. 15)?

Teacher Leadership

Defining what teacher leadership is can be quite challenging as there are overlapping and competing ideas of what it constitutes (Muijs & Harris, 2003). Our own definition of a teacher leader includes those who inspire, encourage, and empower their colleagues. This might be through sharing the interesting and innovative learning experiences of their classrooms, through participating in a mentoring project with a colleague, or through giving workshops on ideas that they are passionate about. These teachers are offering thoughtful ideas and suggestions to schools and school district challenges, they are letting their voice be heard in different contexts and they are developing new and innovative programs or structures collaboratively with colleagues.

Looking to the literature, the idea of teacher leadership has developed over a number of waves: the first wave was limited to positions of authority or thinking of the teacher in a more managerial role such as a department head; the second wave was more aligned with the classroom context, but still gave influence to formally created positions such as curriculum coordinator or team leader. The third wave recognizes leadership as a process rather than a position (Silva, Gilbert, and Nolan, 2000). For example, Muijs and Harris (2003) describe teacher leadership as relationships between the players rather than a role, position or status. This third wave of teacher leadership is harder to delineate; "when teacher leadership is conceived of as a process rather than a positional concept, it is more difficult to articulate because it comprises an array of behaviours and characteristics rather than formalized positional duties" (Pounder, 2006, p. 534).

Connections Between Servant and Teacher Leadership

Not only does the idea of servant leadership force us to change how we think of leadership, it also demands a different model of leadership: not the traditional, hierarchical mode of leadership, but a model based on community, team-work and involving others in decision making (Greenleaf, 2003). Similarly, the understanding of teacher leadership is often described as a process and behavior, rather than a position of authority. This form of leadership is emergent and can be seen in the actions one takes rather than a position or title (Supovitz, 2018, p. 55). Teacher leadership has been closely aligned with a distributed leadership model where leadership is shared and not held within a specific position. Teacher leadership has been documented to thrive in schools that more readily embrace this distributed model (Mujis & Harris, 2003 & 2006). This form of leadership also challenges traditional authoritarian systems in schools: that females dominate the teaching staff and males lead through administrative positions and that teachers work with students and administrators work with adults (Taylor et al, 2011).

Similarly, servant leadership is not dependent on a role or formal authority to lead, it is much bigger than that. In Greenleaf (2003), Larry Spears describes servant leadership as an approach to both life and work that is on-going, enduring, and transformational. It can be thought of as a philosophy that radiates into everything that a servant leader does in their lives. While teacher leadership is much more specific and a limited form of leadership due to its context compared to servant leadership, it has also been described as a different way to think about leadership and a way of being (Kajitani, 2015, p. 123).

The nature of the teacher leader context is that many teacher leaders are demonstrating leadership while working as full-time classroom teachers. As Burns (2003) points out, the key distinctive role of leadership is that leaders show initiative. In the case of teacher leadership, there is more going on than just initiative. Teacher leaders are often well regarded as knowledgeable colleagues who are collaborative and reflective and as a result of this, rather than simply becoming leaders, as Snell and Swanson (2000) explain, they are allowed by their peers to lead. Similarly, servant leaders earn the trust and respect of the people around them and they then choose to follow. The followers have a choice as this leadership is not about a role or a title (Ferch & Spears, 2015). Sipe and Frick (2009) further this idea by explaining that a servant leader does not use positional authority or coercion to lead, but rather moral authority.

Characteristics of Servant Leadership as a Comparison to Teacher Leadership. Spears (2010) distilled Greenleaf's original writings into ten characteristics of servant-leaders: listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, commitment to growth and community building. These characteristics describe a servant leader, what they do, how they are with their followers, and what typifies them as a leader. They also provide a comparison or connection point between teacher leadership and servant leadership, as both forms of leadership are described through the characteristics that such leaders exemplify. The literature documents many similarities between servant leadership and teacher leadership through this analysis.

Listening. One characteristic that servant leaders exhibit is listening: listening first, listening deeply and reflectively. "Only a true natural servant automatically responds to any problem by listening first" (Greenleaf, 2008, p. 18). Servant leaders demonstrate respect, warmth, and genuine interest while they are listening as they know that true listening builds strength in those being listened to (Sipe and Frick, 2009). This characteristic has been identified in teacher leaders in the Teacher Leader Model Standards developed by the Teacher Leader Exploratory Consortium (TLEC)[1]. The consortium identified effective listening skills as an important component of how teacher leaders foster a collaborative culture. As described earlier, teacher leaders have earned the respect and trust of their peers and have developed strong collaborative relationships; listening is a very important part of building these relationships.

Empathy. Characteristics of servant leaders include striving to fully understand and empathize with others. This includes assuming good intentions of colleagues and others (Greenleaf, 2003). Servant leaders understand others and their circumstances or challenges and through this they build confidence and trust with their followers (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). As with listening, demonstrating empathy has been documented in teacher leaders. For example, Supovitz (2018) reported themes of empathy in his study of teacher leaders; he also connected this to how teacher leaders earn trust and rapport with their colleagues. Earning trust and confidence with colleagues is a central part of how teacher leaders lead.

Healing. An important characteristic of servant leader is that they "have the potential to heal themselves and others" (Crippen, 2010, p. 30). Through their actions as servant leaders they are facilitating a healing process and followers often look to them for support when times are difficult or something traumatic has occurred (Barbuto and Wheeler, 2007). As Robert Greenleaf also observes, this healing is to become whole and there is an awareness that this "search for wholeness is something they share;" both followers and leaders (Greenleaf, 2008, p. 37). Teacher leaders work to create a collaborative culture in an environment that is traditionally isolating and individualistic. Typically, teachers have closed their doors and taught in isolation (Taylor et al, 2011). Supovitz (2018) suggested that the teacher leaders he worked with had to develop strategies to get beyond the privacy norms that exist in schools and between teachers to gain trust and develop strong relationships. This included a focus on encouragement and support for teachers, which reflected the understanding that teachers rarely receive reassurance or acknowledgement in their work or when they went above and beyond. With this focus, these teacher leaders are filling that void in the system. Creating a connection across a culture of isolation is one example of how teacher leaders are healing themselves and their colleagues. They are also adding to the culture of the organization by actively filling what they viewed was lacking. As York-Barr and Duke (2004) explain, "the isolated culture of teaching diminishes teacher growth and professionalism" (p. 256). Teacher leaders are healing this divide with their attention to relationships and connections.

Awareness. Being open and aware of as much as possible strengthens effectiveness as a leader; especially having a high degree of self-awareness. This awareness allows servant leaders to step aside from context and detach in order to be able to fully see all of the intricacies at play. As Greenleaf explains (2008), it is important to keep the doors of perception wide open as "able leaders are usually sharply awake and reasonably disturbed" (p. 29). Often teacher leaders are very aware of their role as a leader and are concerned with how this might affect their relationships with their peers. The awareness of this tension informs how they operate in their leadership (York-Barr & Duke, 2004). For example, Supovitz (2018) found that teacher leaders prioritize their role as teacher and approached their leadership role from a teacher perspective. He also explained how teacher leaders are aware of the legitimacy this teacher focus brings to this role, especially with the teachers they are working with or leading.

Persuasion. The servant leader does not use coercion, nor their positional authority, but rather they seek to convince others through influence (Greenleaf, 2003). They never force anyone to do anything, but provide genuine, compelling reasons for action (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). As Greenleaf (2006) points out, the advantages to leading by "convincement rather than coercion" are obvious (p.31). For a teacher leader the relationships that are central to their role as a leader are their primary means of influence (York-Barr & Duke, 2004). Muijs and Harris (2006) explain that teacher leaders use a form of collaboration based on collegiality that they lever "for the prime purpose of securing certain outcomes linked to improving teaching and learning" (p. 964). Supovitz (2018) also describes how teacher leaders use strategies such as leading by example, earning their colleagues trust and encouraging and collaborating with their peers. They do not use traditional administrative approaches that are more coercive in nature.

Conceptualization. Servant leadership requires creativity and the ability to look at a problem or an organization from a wider perspective. This requires servant leaders to think beyond the day-to-day realities (Greenleaf, 2003) and encourage others to dream big (Babuto & Wheeler, 2007). This can be seen in teacher leaders where they are encouraging teachers to go beyond their traditional teacher roles (Supovitz, 2018). Teacher leaders have also been recognized as skilled in possessing a solid understanding of organizational diagnosis and the "big picture" issues facing a school or school district (York-Barr & Duke, 2004).

Foresight. A servant leader is able to use the information and understandings available to them to reflect and predict happenings in the future. According to Sipe and Frick (2009), a servant leader is able to create and imagine possibilities while anticipating future likelihoods, then move ahead with purpose. Barbuto and Wheeler (2007) also describe servant leaders as being able to anticipate consequences of decisions correctly. Foresight involves being connected to the present as it is informed by the past and as it informs the future. Greenleaf (2006) explains that the ability to view the past, present, and future in this way is a central tenant of leadership. Acker-Hocevar and Touchton (1999) observed that teacher leaders can envision the broader impact of decisions made by administrators and teachers. There is also the clear connection between teacher leadership and school improvement (Muijs & Harris, 2003, 2008; York-Barr & Duke, 2004; Wenner & Campbell, 2017). Teacher leadership is seen as a strong driver for moving educational change forward in a school system. Muijs and Harris (2003) identify some of the main reasons teacher leadership is associated with school improvement; including how it empowers teachers, how activities such as collaborating with peers strengthened morale, and how shared leadership can lead to higher recruitment and retention. It has also been noted that teacher leaders often do not associate their actions with the term leadership, rather they identify as teachers first, not leaders first (Supovitz, 2018; Muijs & Harris, 2006). This positions them in a very strong place as they are more able to make decisions based on what is best for students and supports their colleagues. Their perspective and foresight make for strong leadership.

Stewardship. Service is central to the work of a servant leader and that includes being a steward for the organization so that it may contribute to the greater good of society and make a positive impact (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2007). Servant leaders consider the good at all times, including potential impacts on individuals, families, communities and the natural world from decisions made within the organization (Greenleaf, 2003). Teacher leaders demonstrate stewardship by advocating for their colleagues as well as student learning and the profession (Muijs & Harris, 2006; Supovitz, 2018; Teacher Leader Exploratory Consortium, 2011). They also are stewards through their active participation in school improvement initiatives and teacher professional development (Muijs & Harris, 2006).

Commitment to Growth. This characteristic of servant leadership is the commitment to the growth of individuals. This relates to Greenleaf's "best test" as a leader and is a focus for servant leadership: helping those whom you serve become more confident and capable (Greenleaf, 2003). This is often a direct focus for teacher leaders: promoting growth among colleagues. Teacher leaders report seeing their role as helping teachers become better teachers and doing this through collaboration (Supovitz, 2018). The primary concern of teacher leaders is to support professional learning in their schools through organizing learning communities, leading professional development programs and assisting teachers in their classrooms (Mujis & Harris, 2006; Margolis & Huggins, 2012). It is through this focus that they demonstrate a commitment to the growth of others.

Community Building. Servant leaders find ways to build community and strengthen relationships (Greenleaf, 2003). Teacher leaders build community when they work collaboratively and lead and develop professional learning opportunities. Teacher leaders are able to deal with process and have effective group processing skills (Yarger & Lee, 1994), they establish social linkages and networks among peers and community (Acker- Hocevar & Touchton, 1999), and they facilitate communities of learning through organization-wide processes (Crowther, 2002). Teacher leadership often extends beyond the school. Teacher leaders strive to make connections to the community outside of the school through collaboration with families, communities, and colleagues. (York-Barr & Duke, 2004; Teacher Leadership Exploratory Consortium, 2008).

Implications

There are clear links and similarities between servant leadership and teacher leadership represented in the literature when one applies the individual characteristics developed in detail by Spears (2010). These connections indicate a strong potential for integration of servant leadership and teacher leadership for the purpose of strengthening teacher leadership. Nonetheless, the two forms of leadership are quite different contextually: teacher leadership is relatively narrow and confined to the role of a teacher operating within a school system (although this description of leadership may be extrapolated to other similar roles), whereas servant leadership can be practiced anywhere and in any position. Servant leadership as a philosophy of leadership has the potential to inspire, guide and provide purpose to the role of teacher leaders. It is an overarching way of approaching leadership that has the potential to support the more specific context of the teacher leader. A teacher leader who is consciously practicing the qualities of servant leadership will not only strengthen their role by building onto the characteristics of successful leaders identified in this paper, but, will so with a new sense of purpose and guidance. Sipe and Frick (2009) look to Aristotle to explain how consciously and consistently making decisions and actions based on guiding principles strengthen our character. An awareness and understanding of servant leadership principles by teacher leaders would potentially make a powerful synergy between role and philosophy. Therefore, our recommendations going forward are to integrate discussions and information on servant leadership in teacher leadership courses. This would include being part of university preparatory programs, graduate level programs, teacher workshops, or seminars with the goal of developing a curiosity and understanding of the practice and philosophy of servant leadership as it is linked to teacher leadership. Through these types of courses, participants would develop an identity as a leader and recognition of their actions as leadership.

The importance of developing and strengthening teacher leadership can be seen in the growing number of courses or programs in this field (Allen, 2018; Taylor, Goeke, Klein, Onore & Geist, 2011), including the development of the Teacher Leadership Model Standards (Teacher Leadership Exploratory Consortium, 2011). Taylor et al. (2011) stress the importance of such programs to help develop teacher leadership specifically because teacher leaders often do not associate themselves as leaders, nor associate their actions as providing leadership: "without the recognition that one is already a leader, the fulfillment of one's own potential and the capacity to influence others is diminished" (p. 925). These programs develop understanding of leadership theory, which in turn helps teacher leaders to develop their identity as leaders.

The philosophy of servant leadership has the potential for teacher leaders to become self aware of their identity as leaders. As stated earlier, teacher leaders are often reluctant to identify as leaders. Lieberman and Friedrich (2010) assert that this reluctance is due to the widely held definition of leader as being hierarchical, decision-making, and have a formal title. This definition stems from the system in which teachers exist where teachers are treated the same and it is the administration of schools that have more authority. Teacher leaders did not identify with that definition of leadership. Servant leadership provides a philosophy of leadership that is much more aligned with teacher leadership (as evidenced through the comparison of characteristics stated earlier), it also challenges the traditional concept of leadership that teachers often do not identify with. Bennis and Goldsmith (1997) argue that by changing the lens with which we view leadership we can change ourselves as leaders. The concept of service-focused leadership is in direct opposition to, and challenges, the traditional, hierarchical concept of leadership (Crippen, 2005).

Our recommendation that servant leadership be included in teacher leadership programs as a valuable component to developing a teacher leader identity is further supported in that it not only provides an overarching philosophy to guide teacher leaders, but it strikes at the heart of being a teacher, of taking on the teacher identity and role. Sipe and Frick (2009) explain that the idea of servanthood can be thought of as a value and a belief and that individuals generally would like to be a part of an organization that makes a positive difference in the world. This is very true of teachers; most teachers go into the profession for primarily altruistic reasons (Fray & Gore, 2018). As Crippen (2005) points out, when one takes on the title or identity of teacher, they become a leader, first a leader in their classroom, then a leader in their school and beyond. With this role comes great responsibility, especially moral responsibility. She then expands this idea to assert that servant leadership provides a moral way of serving and addresses the moral imperative demanded of teachers and leadership in education (Crippen, 2010). For teacher leaders, the philosophy of servant leadership includes values that closely align with the profession and take it further. For example, Sun (2013) explains "leaders with a servant identity are able to consciously refer to a set of servant attributes when the situation requires servant behavior" (p. 555).

In an analysis of teacher leadership programs through the lens of the Teacher Leadership Model Standards, Berg, Carver, and Mangin (2014) observe that the standards do not include the importance of the teacher leaders developing a shared vision. They identify that this is an integral part of the role of a teacher leader, especially when navigating instructional change and as such, is regularly included in administrative leadership programs and courses. Including a focus on servant leadership in teacher leadership programs could address this issue. Sun (2013) describes the visioning that servant leaders are associated with through the characteristic of persuasion. He points out that servant leaders need to develop a clear way forward to persuade followers to act. Sun also points out that servant leadership visioning is characterized by what would be best for the individuals in an organization, not the interests of the leader or the organization.

As stated previously, teacher leadership is associated with a distributed model of leadership. Mujis and Harris (2006) explain that teacher leadership thrives in environments that have a more distributed model of leadership where power is shared and where teacher leadership is valued, encouraged, and promoted. Similarly, Van Dierendonck (2011) found that an organization with a lower power distance (or a leadership model closer towards a distributed leadership model), not only facilitates servant leadership behaviours, but also encourages them. Therefore, we also recommend, not only incorporating servant leadership into teacher leadership programs, but include education on this partnership for school district administrations, emphasizing the importance of distributed leadership structures to promote and help to facilitate both teacher leadership and servant leadership within their districts.

Further research that is able to measure or track the effect of including servant leadership principals and characteristics in teacher leadership programs is warranted in this area as well. For example, Fields, Thompson, and Hawkins (2015) completed a study over the course of three years that documented the development of servant leadership in cohorts of students enrolled as social work and child and family studies majors. They incorporated servant leadership instruction into a weekly seminar session and analyzed students' written reflections, capstone project (an internship), and a self-reflection using a conceptual framework. Student reflections from their internship reflected "a deep, contextualized understanding of servant leadership within a professional setting" and based on the results, the team supported incorporating servant leadership instruction in programs for such professions (Fields et al, p. 101). We recommend embedding servant leadership and teacher leadership understandings and characteristics into teacher education programs and workshops to explore the effect of such programs over time. Tracking an increase or strengthening in teacher leadership is a complex endeavor; for example, looking for evidence of sense of identity as a leader in teacher participants and noting evidence of characteristics described in the Teacher Leader Model Standards (Teacher Leader Exploratory Consortium, 2011) or the ten characteristics outlined by Spears (2010) in the teacher participants' schools. This could be done through reflective journaling before, during, and after attending a program; as well as interviews with teacher participants and their peers or administrators to investigate the long-term impacts.

Conclusion

Spear's (2010) ten characteristics of servant leadership provided a framework for comparing the characteristics of teacher leaders and servant leaders as outlined in the literature. While there are many similarities between the characteristics of the two forms of leadership, there are also similarities around how they are defined and described. Neither teacher leadership nor servant leadership are dependent on a role or authority; both are described as a set of behaviours, a mindset or way of being as a leader. However, teacher leadership and servant leadership differ in that one is confined to a specific context while the other is a broader philosophy and practice. Connecting the two in meaningful and intentional ways in teacher leadership programs and workshops has the potential for creating a synergistic partnership. Servant leadership provides an overarching philosophy that could enhance teacher leadership programs and in turn strengthen the role of teacher leadership in our educational systems.

References

Acker-Hocevar, M. & Touchton, D. (2011). Chapter Twenty-Four: A model of power as social relationships: Teacher leaders describe the phenomena of effective agency in practice. Counterpoints, 408, 239-264.

Allen, L. (2018). Teacher leadership and the advancement of teacher agency. Foreign Language Annuals, 51, 240-250. doi:10.1111/flan.12311

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Connecting Teacher Leadership and Servant Leadership: A Synergistic Partnership - Journal of Leadership Education

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Introduction The importance of teacher leadership in our educational systems cannot be understated. The teacher leader is identified as being in a "unique position to make change happen" (Lieberman & Miller, 2004, p. 12) and their leadership is associated with school improvement, increased teacher agency, the democratization of schools, teacher learning, and developing a collaborative...

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This link offers a description of transformational leadership and how transformational leaders can be of influence in the field of education.

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A transformational leader is one who encourages others to find ways to grow and change. Although you might think of it as a strategy for business leaders, transformational leadership can be useful even beyond the corporate world. In education, this leadership style helps educators, from teachers and administrators to counselors and coaches, motivate each other to improve and innovate within their classrooms. It can even help educators find solutions to conflicts within their educational organizations.

We discuss the many applications and rewards of transformational leadership in education below.

What Is Transformational Leadership?

Traditionally, managers simply ask employees to complete assigned duties and expect compliance. A transformational leader, though, pushes team members to get creative.

Transformational leadership became popular in the 1970s and 1980s, following the publication of James MacGregor Burns's Leadership. The book, according to Sage Publishing, "is still considered the seminal work in the field of leadership studies. [Burns's] theory of transactional and transformational leadership has been the basis of more than 400 doctoral dissertations."

In any field, transformational leadership helps teams improve their performance. Here are some specific advantages of this leadership style in education.

Encourages Differences

Consider the following situation. An elementary school hires three math teachers. Each instructor uses the same lesson plans and curriculum. But each of them is different in an important way: each holds valuable knowledge and a perspective about the world that's unique to them. One was a statistician at a top government agency before deciding they wanted to help students understand math. Another recently worked with underprivileged children in the Peace Corps. And the third was an actor and performer before deciding to become a teacher.

A transformational leader wouldn't ignore these new math teachers' diverse skills and abilities. Instead, a transformational leader would encourage these new instructors to share their unique insights. This leader might encourage the former statistician to find engaging ways to teach statistics. They would motivate the Peace Corps volunteer to share their experiences abroad. They would ask the actor/performer to use their creative skills in the classroom.

Any organization is made up of a diverse group of individuals. Some of these individuals may follow unique religious or cultural customs. Others may have valuable skill sets and professional experiences. An organization that embraces differences enables staff members to use their diversity to the benefit of all. This also includes parents and families, who can benefit from the unique education their child is receiving. This approach lends itself to education as well as to the corporate world.

Fosters Participation in School Decisions

How does transformational leadership affect decision making in schools? Suppose a superintendent is considering adjusting the start time for middle schools. They have heard that starting school 30 minutes later leads to better educational outcomes for middle schoolers, and wants to try this in their district. The superintendent could simply make this decision without any teacher input. Instead, they hold a forum on the topic within the school district so educators, parents, and other family members can share thoughts.

The superintendent is showing transformational leadership by encouraging individuals to participate. Participants appreciate that their concerns are being heard and acknowledged and are willing to contribute their ideas.

Emphasizes Morals, Communication, and Authenticity

Over the front entrance of a high school hangs a banner that reads, "Speak your mind. Be part of the school community." But educators and students at the high school, as well as students' families, don't believe the banner actually reflects their school's real attitude toward speaking out.

How would a transformational leader change this view? The leader could use traditional methods to encourage educators, parents, and students to share their feedback. But these traditional methods might not work in actual practice.

For example, the school could create a suggestion box where students, parents, and educators share their thoughts and concerns. But the suggestions might never be addressed, or even collected, by school leadership. Another traditional method is asking educators directly about their concerns. In this case, educators may mention specific problems-for example, the period between classes is too short to give them enough time to prepare for the next class. But when educators point out the problems they see, leaders often don't follow through with solutions.

Whether suggestions come in the form of anonymous notes in a suggestion box or directly from polling educators about their concerns, administrators at high schools like this one often fail to address the complaints raised.

Suppose the high school used transformational leadership. Transformational leaders would understand the importance of authenticity and practicing what they preach. Encouraging, listening to, and responding to feedback shows the school cares about the concerns of teachers and students. Also, it communicates the message that the school has strong morals, such as trustworthiness and respect, and sticks to them.

Allows Students to Make their Own Decisions and Have Autonomy

Here's another case illustrating transformational leadership in education. In this scenario, two science instructors are teaching physics and engineering basics. Each has assigned the same activity- students build toothpick towers and notice the results. The first instructor gives students an extensive set of guidelines for completing the class project, such as how many toothpicks they can use. Their students follow the guidelines and achieve the expected results. The other teacher encourages students to find new approaches to the project on their own. Their students experiment with alternative materials and find innovative ways to design and build their toothpick towers This is possible simply because they, a transformational leader, allowed students the freedom to make their own decisions.

Teachers can't always give students choices in the classroom or grant them a voice in every aspect of their educational experience. But when they get an opportunity to give students autonomy, it allows both educators and students to thrive.

Transformational Leadership in Education

Educators can choose between two leadership styles: transmissional or transformational. A transmissional instructor focuses on conveying information to students, without inviting their participation. A transformational leader, on the other hand, finds ways for students to share their viewpoints. This open communication then improves student understanding.

Educators who are transformational leaders get positive results, including higher student engagement with their course material and other school pursuits. "Subordinates of transformational leaders have less role conﬂict, higher task performance, and higher satisfaction with a task than subordinates with non-transformational leaders," according to an article published in the Journal of Instructional Psychology.

For example, suppose a history instructor wants to teach a lesson about the 2019 protests in Hong Kong. They encourage their students to participate in a classroom discussion regarding the protestors, how the United States should help or respond, and if actions by the Hong Kong government are justified. The lively discussion sparks student engagement. And their engaged students end up doing better on their assignments and showing a deeper understanding of current events in context.

This type of leadership can also positively impact parents of students. For example, an educator may be concerned that the Hong Kong protests are too divisive of a subject to cover in class. That educator could reach out to parents and families to gauge their thoughts on how the topic should be covered.

A component of transformational leadership is celebrating the unique elements that make individuals different. Suppose an elementary school teacher plans a lesson on the holiday Diwali, which is celebrated by Hindus as well as members of other faiths. Merely explaining the customs of Diwali could lead to low participation or engagement. But if a student in the class celebrates this holiday, a transformational leader will encourage that student to share their personal experiences with the holiday. Again, students are engaged and end up doing better work and understanding more as a result.

Professionalism vs. Direct Leadership

Even though transformational leadership is more dynamic and its counterpart, direct leadership, is more rigid, both are equally appropriate choices for educators. Educators who are dedicated and professional can choose either path if they understand that transformational leadership doesn't mean anything goes and direct leadership doesn't mean an authoritarian stance that kills student enthusiasm.

In fact, in education, transformational leadership might actually promote a more professional atmosphere. This is because direct leadership can stir up conflict in classrooms, with students and teachers alike pushing back against strict rules and formulaic directions. It can also encourage parents and families to voice their opinion about their child's educational process. So by encouraging transformational leadership and embracing differences, educators can achieve greater progress and a more positive school and classroom atmosphere. Despite not using a direct style of leadership, educators can still maintain a high degree of professionalism, leading students by modeling trust and respect.

Discover How American University Inspires Educators

Transformational leadership motivates educators and students alike to share insights and opinions that can change the classroom. Graduates of American University's Master of Education in Education Policy and Leadership program understand how to empower others without overpowering them. They know the importance of helping students to make their own decisions. They can attest to how transformational leadership can help schools evolve. Graduates of this program are prepared to land distinguished positions with competitive salaries in the education field, all while making the educational landscape a creative and inspiring place to bring about exciting changes.

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Transformational Leadership in Education | American University

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A transformational leader is one who encourages others to find ways to grow and change. Although you might think of it as a strategy for business leaders, transformational leadership can be useful even beyond the corporate world.

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(Projectmanager.com, 2018)

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Leadership style where leaders inspire followers with a vision and then encourage and empower them to reach their goals.

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Have you ever been in a group where someone took control of the situation by conveying a clear vision of the group's goals, a marked passion for the work, and an ability to make the rest of the group feel recharged and energized? This person just might be what is called a transformational leader.

Transformational leadership is a leadership style that can inspire positive changes in those who follow. Transformational leaders are generally energetic, enthusiastic, and passionate. Not only are these leaders concerned and involved in the process; they are also focused on helping every member of the group succeed as well.

Quick Background

The concept of transformational leadership was initially introduced by leadership expert and presidential biographer James MacGregor Burns. According to Burns, transformational leadership can be seen when "leaders and followers make each other to advance to a higher level of moral and motivation."﻿﻿

Later, researcher Bernard M. Bass expanded upon Burns's original ideas to develop what is today referred to as Bass's Transformational Leadership Theory. According to Bass, transformational leadership can be defined based on the impact that it has on followers. Transformational leaders, Bass suggested, garner trust, respect, and admiration from their followers.﻿﻿

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Components

Bass also suggested that there were four different components of transformational leadership.

1. Intellectual Stimulation: Transformational leaders not only challenge the status quo; they also encourage creativity among followers. The leader encourages followers to explore new ways of doing things and new opportunities to learn.

2. Individualized Consideration: Transformational leadership also involves offering support and encouragement to individual followers. In order to foster supportive relationships, transformational leaders keep lines of communication open so that followers feel free to share ideas and so that leaders can offer direct recognition of the unique contributions of each follower.

3. Inspirational Motivation: Transformational leaders have a clear vision that they are able to articulate to followers. These leaders are also able to help followers experience the same passion and motivation to fulfill these goals.

4. Idealized Influence: The transformational leader serve as a role model for followers. Because followers trust and respect the leader, they emulate this individual and internalize his or her ideals.

So what are some typical signs of a transformational leader? Groups led by this type of leader tend to be both successful and loyal. They give a lot to the team and care deeply about the group's ability to accomplish its goals. Turnover tends to be quite low as transformational leaders are able to inspire a great deal of commitment in their followers.

In their classic text, Transformational Leadership, authors Bass and Riggio explained:

"Transformational leaders...are those who stimulate and inspire followers to both achieve extraordinary outcomes and, in the process, develop their own leadership capacity. Transformational leaders help followers grow and develop into leaders by responding to individual followers' needs by empowering them and by aligning the objectives and goals of the individual followers, the leader, the group, and the larger organization."

"Research evidence clearly shows that groups led by transformational leaders have higher levels of performance and satisfaction than groups led by other types of leaders," explained psychologist and leadership expert Ronald E. Riggio in an article for Psychology Today.

The reason, he suggests, is that transformational leaders believe that their followers can do their best, leading members of the group to feel inspired and empowered.

What can you do to become a more transformational leader? Leadership experts suggest that having a strong, positive vision of the future plays a critical role. Not only is it important to believe in this vision yourself; you've also got to inspire others to buy into your vision as well.

Link to Well-Being

According to the results of one study, this style of leadership can also have a positive influence on employee well-being.﻿﻿

The study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine involved surveying workers at several different German information and communication technology companies. Researchers asked participants to answers questions about their employer's leadership style.

A score for transformational leadership was then determined based on qualities such as providing intellectual stimulation, giving positive feedback for good performance, leading by example, and helping employees feel like they were making a contribution toward the goals of the group.

The researchers discovered that employees who identified a higher level of transformational leadership in their employers also had higher reported levels of well-being. The effect stayed significant even after researchers controlled for factors that are linked to well-being such as job strain, education, and age.

"The results of this study suggest that a transformational leadership style, which both conveys a sense of trust and meaningfulness and individually challenges and develops employees, also has a positive effect on employee well-being," the authors summarized.

Real-World Applications

So what impact could such results have for managers and workers?

The study's authors suggest that the results are important and can help companies develop leadership training programs that can be used to teach transformational leadership skills. Acquiring communication skills such as resolving conflicts in the workplace and recognizing the needs of employees are an important part of transformational leadership.

"Such training programs can be seen as another essential component of workplace health promotion and prevention efforts and therefore should receive wide support," explained the study's authors.

A Word From Verywell

The transformational style of leadership can be highly effective when used appropriately, but it might not necessarily be the best choice for every situation. In some cases, groups may require a more managerial or autocratic style that involves closer control and greater direction, particularly in situations where group member are unskilled and need a lot of oversight.

One way to improve your own leadership skills is to assess your own current leadership style and think about ways in which your strengths can benefit the group you are leading. By evaluating your own skills, you will be better able to play to your strengths and work on improving your areas of weakness.

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How Do Transformational Leaders Inspire and Motivate Followers?

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Have you ever been in a group where someone took control of the situation by conveying a clear vision of the group's goals, a marked passion for the work, and an ability to make the rest of the group feel recharged and energized? This person just might be what is called a transformational leader.

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Transformational Leadership in the Workplace

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Transformational Leadership in the Workplace

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This link offers tips for being a transformational leader in the workplace.

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It's no secret that an effective leadership strategy can be the difference between an organization that flourishes and one that fails. What most do not consider, however, is the effort that goes into identifying which approach a leader should take in order to make the biggest impact.

There are eight primary theories of leadership, according to Dr. Les Stein, assistant teaching professor in Northeastern's Master of Science in Leadership program. Each leadership methodology operates on a different set of priorities and can be equally effective when applied to the "correct" situation.

While Stein believes in utilizing different leadership approaches depending on the circumstances, he is partial to employing transformational leadership because the broad and inspiring principles the paradigm is based on have the potential to make a difference in a larger context.

"Transformational leadership offers a little bit of everything," Stein says. "And [it] is generally considered to be extremely effective for leaders who want to get the most from their followers."

What is Transformational Leadership?

Transformational leadership is a model of leadership used across the spectrum of politics, education, entertainment, finance, technology, and other industries.

"When you look at people that are good examples of transformational leaders, you think of the people that have had an impact, whether that's on an organization or on the country," Stein says. "These are the people that can rise to any challenge and bring everybody together collectively to make a difference."

This transformational approach to leadership relies on encouraging and motivating followers to participate in molding a successful future for an organization. This often includes establishing a group's common purpose-a concept rooted in an organization's official "vision" and "mission," which are two aspects leaders use to help define and outline goals. As Stein explains, "[Vision] tells me where I want my organization to be in the future and why. [Mission] explains the reason for my organization's existence-its purpose." He argues that no organization can succeed without a clear vision and mission and that both are vital aspects for leadership to establish early on.

In fact, Stein believes a truly transformational leader can enter a struggling or stagnant organization, analyze the circumstances, and articulate needed improvements almost immediately. He or she should then be able to guide the organization in defining or redefining its core values in a way that unites the group in a common effort.

At the most basic level, transformational leadership is used to inspire employees to look ahead with a focus on the greater good and to function as a single unit with a common goal in mind. It is not until a leader can accomplish these steps that a successful transformation can begin.

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Qualities of Transformational Leaders

Stein considers transformational leaders to be people who can bring an organization together "to understand a common purpose and motivate in a way that creates an organizational culture focused on success." He has found these types of leaders commonly possess a particular set of traits and characteristics.
A transformational leader is:

Visionary

Team-centric

Engaging

Inspiring

Inclusive

Emotionally Intelligent

Collaborative

Leaders who have these skills are also commonly charismatic, empathetic, motivating, Stein says. On a personal level, they possess strong ethical values. They strive to put their teams before themselves without ever thinking about their own power or how their actions will benefit them personally moving forward.

As part of a team, transformational leaders have an innate ability to understand people, define each team member's goals and aspirations, and bring everybody together to make a difference. They are also likely visionary in their own way of thinking and possess communication skills that allow them to not only articulate their thoughts clearly, but to do so in a way that is inspiring to others.

"You hear a lot of people called 'transformational leaders,' and I would question that," Stein says. "[Transformational leaders are] unique individuals with real, honest personal skills [that allow them] to get the job done far better than anyone else."

Transformational leaders must also be able to create a positive work culture for their employees. This requires they assemble the right group of people on a team and create a collaborative environment in which individuals are free to work together, express their thoughts and opinions, and feel safe to share any creative and innovative ideas that might benefit the organization.

Stein describes an effective transformational leader as one who is, "always focused on making the organization the best that it can be." This includes asking for opinions, gathering ideas, and making sure that every person on the team feels included, heard, and valued.

Most transformational leaders are found at the executive levels of organizations because, "they have to be in a position of responsibility to impact the success of their organizations," Stein adds.

Examples of Transformational Leaders and their Organizations

Although it may seem that transformational leaders only come around once or twice in a lifetime, it is likely that you can recognize the names of many of the famous transformational leaders that have made an impact on today's society.
Well-known transformational leaders include:
Companies that have thrived under transformational leadership include many of the most famous names in our culture today, including Apple, IBM, Microsoft, Walmart, and Google.

Some may even argue that-led by President Joseph Aoun -Northeastern University is operating under a transformational leadership model.

"[Aoun] has a very strong vision for the university and is successfully challenging it to change and meet the many social and technological challenges of tomorrow," Stein says. "He has one of the most important skills any leader can possess-the power to influence."

Which Organizations Benefit Most from Transformational Leadership?

Stein believes that every organization, no matter how successful they are, can benefit from the guidance of a transformation leader. After all, he stresses, "Transformation doesn't have to always be from bad to good. It can be from good to great, or simply good to better. The point is, [a transformational leader will] change their institution in a way that's always positive."

Stein recognizes that organizations with a poor culture will gain the most from this type of positive interference, however.

"Organizations will benefit most from a transformational leader when their culture is such that people aren't sure if they buy into the vision of the organization, [or they don't] seem to have that collective enthusiasm for their product."

How To Embrace Transformational Leadership in Your Workplace

Given the many benefits of a successful transformational leadership strategy, it is no wonder so many employees feel inspired to practice these skills and incorporate these values into their work. Academics in the leadership community, however, are divided on whether "choosing" to be a transformational leader is that simple.

"The 'Great Man Theory' is based on the idea that people are born with leadership skills," Stein says. For this reason, many in the community operate under the belief that the qualities required to be a successful transformational leader are not ones that can simply be taught.

Those on the opposite side of the argument, however, believe that society has, "since transitioned to the idea that leadership can be learned," Stein says. From his view, Stein believes that "The transformational leadership model challenges a bit of both."

Stein explains that while many believe the core qualities of a transformational leader-such as charisma and empathy-are ones that people are either born with or are not, with hard work and an honest desire to improve an organization, there are some transformational leadership skills that many individuals can learn to embrace.

Use the following tips to explore transformational leadership and learn the ways you can apply its methods to your workplace.

1. Work on Yourself as a Leader

Before you can start making changes to your team and your organization, it's important to look at how you function as a leader. Successful transformational leaders are empathetic, charismatic, and inspirational. These traits may not appear to be learnable, but there are steps you can take as a leader to develop them.

Empathy -Take the time to sit down and get to know the people you work with on an individual level and in a context that's broader than just their role in your organization. Ask about their backgrounds, their personal goals, and even the concerns that weigh heavy on their minds from day-to-day. You may walk away from this exercise with a better understanding of how they will react to change in the organization, how to approach feedback with them, or even what tactics and tools can be used to motivate them. At the very least, taking time to connect with them on a personal level should allow you to put yourself in their shoes much more easily, a necessary factor when determining how best to inspire them.

Charisma-In leadership coach Olivia Fox Cabane's book titled "The Charisma Myth," she outlines a set of tactics anyone can use to become a more charismatic person. These tactics include being present in every situation, neutralizing negative thoughts, dressing to impress, mirroring body language, and more. Books like this, while not fool-proof guides, do offer future leaders struggling to find their natural charm a starting point for improvement.

Inspiration-There are dozens of guides on how to inspire and motivate, and each offers a variety of viable tools and methods for doing so. For example, this piece outlines nine creative approaches to inspiring people -listing everything from actively listening to using high-powered talent when trying to motivate. However, at the center of all this advice is simply the idea that you must approach every situation with the greater good of the organization in mind. Leaders who truly conquer this skill naturally create a level of trust and accountability among their team, which allows those being led to feel safe and secure in choosing to follow.

2. Create the Proper Culture in Your Workplace

Company culture is an increasingly important aspect of an employee's overall work experience. For that reason, employers tend to put a lot of time and energy into establishing a work environment that their employees can enjoy, incorporating perks, events, and benefits in an effort to make each individual feel appreciated by the organization and thus motivated to work harder.

Putting a similar emphasis on culture from a transformational leadership perspective can go a long way in your workplace. Not only is it important to make sure your team feels appreciated and respected, but those wishing to utilize transformational methods must also take the time to ensure the environment is one which encourages collaboration, innovation, and communication. Establishing each of these will help to create the collective enthusiasm among your team that is necessary for a successful transformation.

Collaboration- Transformational leadership is based on the idea that all employees should be working together towards a singular, common goal within an organization. It is vital that leaders create a collaborative environment in their workplace to accomplish this. Whether this means working as larger groups on projects very clearly tied to the achievement of that common goal, or simply ensuring employees can see how their own daily work contributes to the greater goals of the company, establishing these methods of collaboration early on will help set your organization up for success.

Innovation-More often than not, the most creative ideas will come from employees within your organization who are spending the most time with your product or services every day. Embrace the transformational leadership method by making sure your workplace culture encourages the sharing of suggestions, improvements, and ideas from team members at every tier of the company. Other methods for inspiring innovation in the workplace include embracing failure, offering incentives, and training employees in "design thinking."

(Learn more about these methods by downloading our full guide to introducing innovation in your workplace.)

Communication- Ensure that every member of your team not only feels comfortable enough to voice their opinions and share their innovative ideas, but that they know what they have to say will be heard and valued. This starts with you, as the leader, establishing a flow of open communication with your employees.

3. Practice Identifying and Facilitating Core Values

The first (and often most significant) impact a transformational leader can make occurs by defining and clarifying an organization's values. This may come in the form of cleaning or updating its mission and vision statements or simply ensuring there is a clear difference between the two. Transformational leaders can step into a new organization, identify what isn't working, and come up with a strategy and set of recommendations to solve it.

In order to begin to formulate these skills, aspiring transformational leaders should simply begin to familiarize themselves with this type of process. Identify the vision and mission of your current organization and begin to draw conclusions to determine if, from your position, those values are being supported by every division within the company. If they are being supported, try to identify what strategies executives are utilizing to accomplish this. You may also consider these leaders as potential coaches and mentors and work to mirror their leadership styles. If they aren't, consider ways you might approach rallying the organization together to reach those common goals. While it is important to be wary of your company's leadership infrastructure and how they may react to such suggestions, Stein encourages aspiring leaders to remember that, "transformational leaders don't wait for change to happen-they create it."

Still looking to gather more leadership skills to implement positive change in your organization? Consider enrolling in a Master's of Leadership program like Northeastern's.

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Transformational Leadership: How to Inspire Innovation in the Workplace

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It's no secret that an effective leadership strategy can be the difference between an organization that flourishes and one that fails. What most do not consider, however, is the effort that goes into identifying which approach a leader should take in order to make the biggest impact.

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American School Counselor Association (2019). ASCA School Counselor Professional Standards & Competencies. Alexandria, VA: Author.

Mazzei, M. (2020). Servant leadership. Salem Press Encyxlopedia

Smit, B. & Scherman, V. (2016). A case for relational leadership and an ethics of care for counteracting bullying at schools. South African Journal of Education, 36(4), 1-9. 10.15700/saje.v36n4a1312

Tasker-Mitchell, A. & Attoh, P. (2019). The mediating effect of faculty trust in principals on the relationship between servant leadership practices and organizational health. Journal of School Leadership. 30(4). 297-334. 10.1177/1052684619884784

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ASCA School Counselor Competencies and Standards

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ASCA School Counselor Competencies and Standards

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As a school counselor, it is important to be aware of and follow the national standards and competencies set forth by the ASCA. It is beneficial to keep the standards readily available in order to refer back to them regularly.

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5 Leadership Styles You Can Use & How to Implement Each

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5 Leadership Styles You Can Use & How to Implement Each

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Throughout history, great leaders have emerged with particular leadership styles in providing direction, implementing plans and motivating people. These can be broadly grouped into different categories.

Authoritarian Leadership

Participative Leadership

Delegative Leadership

Transactional Leadership

Transformational Leadership

Despite these definitions, questions still remain.

What is the meaning of each leadership style mentioned above?

What is the difference between the different leadership approaches?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using each of the leadership styles?

By reading this article, you will discover more about the 5 leadership styles, along with their definitions, advantages and disadvantages. Each of the leadership styles will also be differentiated.

5 Leadership Styles You Can Use
1. Authoritarian Leadership
Authoritarian leadership styles allow a leader to impose expectations and define outcomes. A one-person show can turn out to be successful in situations when a leader is the most knowledgeable in the team. Although this is an efficient strategy in time-constrained periods, creativity will be sacrificed since input from the team is limited. The authoritarian leadership style is also used when team members need clear guidelines.
Advantages:

Time spent on making crucial decisions can be reduced.

Chain of command can be clearly emphasized.

Mistakes in the implementation of plans can be reduced.

Using authoritarian leadership style creates consistent results.

Disadvantages:

A very strict leadership style can sometimes lead to employee rebellion.

It kills employee creativity and innovation.

It reduces group synergy & collaboration.

Group input is reduced dramatically.

Authoritarian leadership increases employee turnover rate.

2. Participative Leadership
Participative leadership styles are rooted in democratic theory. The essence is to involve team members in the decision making process. Team members thus feel included, engaged and motivated to contribute. The leader will normally have the last word in the decision-making processes. However, if there are disagreements within a group, it can be a time-consuming process to reach a consensus.
Advantages:

It increases employee motivation and job satisfaction.

It encourages use of employee creativity.

A participative leadership style helps in the creation of a strong team.

High level of productivity can be achieved.

Disadvantages:

Decision-making processes become time-consuming.

Leaders have a high probability of being apologetic to employees.

Communication failures can sometimes happen.

Security issues can arise because of transparency in information sharing.

Poor decisions can be made if the employees are unskilled.

3. Delegative leadership
Also known as "laissez-faire leadership", a delegative leadership style focuses on delegating initiative to team members. This can be a successful strategy if team members are competent, take responsibility and prefer engaging in individual work. However, disagreements among the members may split and divide a group, leading to poor motivation and low morale.
Advantages:

Experienced employees can take advantage of their competence and experience.

Innovation & creativity is highly valued.

Delegative leadership creates a positive work environment.

Disadvantages:

Command responsibility is not properly defined.

Delegative leadership creates difficulty in adapting to change.

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The 5 Leadership Styles you can use & How to implement each

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Throughout history, great leaders have emerged with particular leadership styles in providing direction, implementing plans and motivating people. These can be broadly grouped into different categories. Authoritarian Leadership Participative Leadership Delegative Leadership Transactional Leadership Transformational Leadership Despite these definitions, questions still remain. What is the meaning of each leadership style mentioned above?

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Growing as an emotionally intelligent leader. Realizing the importance of emotional intelligence in the world of leadership, this link provides strategies that would be useful for stimulating emotional intelligence.

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The more that you, as a leader, manage each of these areas, the higher your emotional intelligence. So, let's look at each element in more detail and examine how you can grow as a leader.

Emotional Intelligence in Leadership

1. Self-awareness

If you're self-aware, you always know how you feel, and you know how your emotions and your actions can affect the people around you. Being self-aware when you're in a leadership position also means having a clear picture of your strengths and weaknesses, and it means behaving with humility.

So, what can you do to improve your self-awareness?

Keep a journal. Journals help you improve your self-awareness. If you spend just a few minutes each day writing down your thoughts, this can move you to a higher degree of self-awareness.

2. Self-regulation

Leaders who regulate themselves effectively rarely verbally attack others, make rushed or emotional decisions, stereotype people, or compromise their values. Self-regulation is all about staying in control.

This element of emotional intelligence, according to Goleman, also covers a leader's flexibility and commitment to personal accountability.

So, how can you improve your ability to self-regulate?

Hold yourself accountable. If you tend to blame others when something goes wrong, stop. Make a commitment to admit to your mistakes and to face the consequences, whatever they are. You'll probably sleep better at night, and you'll quickly earn the respect of those around you.

Practice being calm. The next time you're in a challenging situation, be very aware of how you act. Do you relieve your stress by shouting at someone else? Practice deep-breathing exercises to calm yourself. Also, try to write down all of the negative things you want to say, and then rip it up and throw it away. Expressing these emotions on paper (and not showing them to anyone!) is better than speaking them aloud to your team. What's more, this helps you challenge your reactions to ensure that they're fair!

3. Motivation

Self-motivated leaders work consistently toward their goals, and they have extremely high standards for the quality of their work.

How can you improve your motivation?

Re-examine why you're doing your job. It's easy to forget what you really love about your career. So, take some time to remember why you wanted this job. If you're unhappy in your role and you're struggling to remember why you wanted it, try the Five Whys technique to find the root of the problem. Starting at the root often helps you look at your situation in a new way. And make sure that your goal statements are fresh and energizing. For more on this, see our article on Goal Setting.

4. Empathy

For leaders, having empathy is critical to managing a successful team or organization. Leaders with empathy have the ability to put themselves in someone else's situation. They help develop the people on their team, challenge others who are acting unfairly, give constructive feedback, and listen to those who need it.

If you want to earn the respect and loyalty of your team, then show them you care by being empathic.

How can you improve your empathy?

Respond to feelings. You ask your assistant to work late - again. And although he agrees, you can hear the disappointment in his voice. So, respond by addressing his feelings. Tell him you appreciate how willing he is to work extra hours, and that you're just as frustrated about working late. If possible, figure out a way for future late nights to be less of an issue (for example, give him Monday mornings off).

5. Social Skills

Leaders who do well in the social skills element of emotional intelligence are great communicators. They're just as open to hearing bad news as good news, and they're experts at getting their team to support them and be excited about a new mission or project.

Leaders who have good social skills are also good at managing change and resolving conflicts diplomatically. They're rarely satisfied with leaving things as they are, but they don't sit back and make everyone else do the work: they set an example with their own behavior.

So, how can you build social skills?

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Emotional Intelligence in Leadership - Learning How to Be More Aware

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Relating to others is vital in today's workplace. Learn how to build your emotional intelligence (EI) with this article.

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The Importance of Emotional Intelligence Assessments

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The Importance of Emotional Intelligence Assessments

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An awareness that emotional intelligence holds a significant place in leadership provides us with the why; but the emotional intelligence assessment would then provide us with the how. This article examines the importance of an emotional intelligence assessment.

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How well developed are your emotional intelligence skills? You can now have them assessed but are emotional intelligence tests important and are they all the same? Emotional intelligence tests and EQ tests do vary in their approach to measuring EI and EQ, and in the types of emotional intelligence components they cover.
It is therefore important to know what emotional tests and EQ tests are available. Here are five reasons to know about emotional intelligence testing:

1. Emotional intelligence tests give career enhancing information

Emotional intelligence tests and EQ tests can provide you with important information that can assist with your own self-management and self-development.

In particular, knowing your level of emotional intelligence at work can give you valuable information to direct and advance your career.

People with higher levels of emotional intelligence have been found to be more successful, e.g. in how much money they earn, in how good they are at customer sales and service, and in how well they build working relationships and influence others.

Emotional intelligence tests can help you find out how emotionally intelligent you are.

2. Emotional intelligence tests can uncover your blind spots

You may know yourself, but you may not know yourself fully. We all have blind spots.

By using an ability based emotional intelligence test, such as the MSCEIT (Myer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test), you can find a true measure of your emotional intelligence skills rather than self-rating them. This in turn can highlight information that you didn't know about yourself.

Assessment on the MSCEIT is also included in our 5 star emotional intelligence coaching package.
You can then use this to improve the way you are perceived and how you perform at work.

3. Recruitment agents use emotional intelligence tests

Emotional intelligence tests are used increasingly by recruitment agents across Australia. This means that when you apply for a new position you may be exposed to emotional intelligence testing as part of the job selection process.

For example:

When I became accredited in one of the emotional intelligence tests, the MSCEIT, in Sydney, I had expected to find that all course praticipants would be like me, providing emotional intelligence training or emotional intelligence coaching. I was wrong. The majority of people in the course were recruitment agents.

Job advertisements are increasingly listing emotional intelligence skills in their essential criateria. For example, here is an essential criteria for a job I have just seen advertised for the City of Melbourne: "Strong team player, with the ability to demonstrate emotional intelligence and sound judgement whilst collaborating and cooperating on decisions and initiatives".

One of my clients, who is at Director level, came to me after having to complete the MSCEIT as part of his recruitment process and finding his scores were no more than average. If you want to complete the MSCEIT before the recruitment agents get you - we can do that for you.

4. Not all emotional intelligence tests are the same.

Not all emotional intelligence tests or EQ tests are as good as each other. Some are much better and more reliable than others. Some don't even seem to assess emotional intelligence at all but rather a broad mish-mash of skills.

Others are very specific and target the core skills of emotional intelligence and give you practical and valid information about your emotions and emotional intelligence.

It is helpful to know which ones have good reliability and validity measures, and do actually test your emotional intelligence.

By knowing more about the emotional intelligence tests available you can select those that will give you the best results when measuring emotional intelligence in your workplace.

5. HR can use emotional intelligence tests for recruitment.

If you are in HR and in charge of recruitment you'll want to attract and employ good staff. Using an emotional intelligence test may help you do this. The Judgment Index will also help you do this.

It is important not to wait until you have employed someone to find out that they have a negative impact on their team, that they are poor at forming productive working relationships, and that they don't manage their own emotions or read their colleagues well.

Choosing an appropriate emotional intelligence test from the array available could help you overcome these problems and weed out the wrong people before it's too late. Find out how emotionally intelligent they are first.

Emotional intelligence assessment on the MSCEIT is also included in our smart leadership coaching package.
NB: Discount: When the MSCEIT is completed as part of a coaching package the sessional fees are lower.
Have your emotional intelligence assessed now.

To make a booking e-mail us now or pick up the phone and call us.

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The Emotional Intelligence Institute - Measuring Emotional Intelligence - 1. Why are emotional intelligence tests important?

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How well developed are your emotional intelligence skills? You can now have them assessed but are emotional intelligence tests important and are they all the same? Emotional intelligence tests and EQ tests do vary in their approach to measuring EI and EQ, and in the types of emotional intelligence components they cover.

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A study examining the relationship between servant leadership and the health of an organization.

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Ways in which strategic leadership is beneficial in the world of education. As a school counselor, there may be times I would need to use strategic leadership to maintain the system structure, i.e. referral process for special services for students.

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Understanding Strategy and Strategic Leadership

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Strategy leadership involves decision-making aimed at shaping the direction of the organization. In a school, creating strategy takes time, three to five years and beyond. Strategy also includes considering broader core issues and themes for development in the school, instead of day-to-day issues. Strategic planning is held to be one among a number of development approaches.

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As a future leader in education, it is important to examine various leadership styles as there may be times for using different type of leadership styles to effectively lead others for the success of students.

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Leadership in education can play an integral role in creating a positive school culture. It can also influence student learning and achievement. Effective school leadership is increasingly viewed as the key to far-reaching education transformation. With the right leadership approach, education heads can turn an average school into a successful one. Here are effective leadership styles in education that will prepare you to lead for impact.

Instructional leadership

The OECD report, Improving School Leadership suggests that effective school management generally comes from engagement in instructional leadership. There's a growing body of evidence which shows that schools with instructional leadership outperform others. This coaching style of leadership concentrates on student learning outcomes by improving teaching quality. To realise this goal, school leaders adopt the responsibility for the professional development of teachers.

Instructional leadership involves the practice of planning, evaluation, coordination and improvement of teaching and learning. According to the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, instructional leaders define the school's mission, manage the instructional program, promote high expectations and provide incentives for teachers and students.

Working directly with teachers, instructional leaders evaluate teacher performance and help advance their skills through mentoring and coaching. Becoming an instructional leader entails time spent solving pedagogical problems, taking action to improve teachers' instruction, as well as holding teachers accountable for improving their instructional skills. This pursuit to improve learning within the school community requires leaders to have an in-depth understanding of pedagogy and practice themselves.

Transformational leadership

Taking a collaborative approach, transformational leaders empower their school teams to have a say in decision-making processes and enable collective goal-setting. Through role modelling, these leaders create a culture of innovation and improvement and a shared sense of purpose. This sets the foundations for growth and success.

Transformational leaders are able to influence school outcomes by outlining high-performance expectations, developing people through individual support, building productive relationships and providing instructional support. According to researcher Bernard Bass, the four attributes of transformational leadership are defined as idealised influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation and individualised consideration.

Transformational leaders instil trust, admiration, loyalty and respect - which inspires teacher motivation, morale and performance. The influence exerted by transformational leaders has been described as " the generating of feelings." Using charisma, compassion and emotional intelligence (EI), transformational leaders are able to monitor and manage not only their own emotions but those of others as well. This gives them the ability to energise their teams and drive successes.

Studies have shown that transformational leadership has a direct impact on teacher performance, with teachers willingly taking steps to improve their classroom practice. The findings also show that transformational leadership increases teacher job satisfaction and strengthens their commitment to professional growth. The result is improved student outcomes and lasting progress across the school system.

Constructivist leadership

This type of leadership is about facilitating the learning process, rather than directing it. At the core of the constructivist approach is that learners control their own learning, not teachers. Acknowledging that every learner understands, processes and gives meaning to lessons through their own reality, constructivism places a priority on customised teaching approaches that take into consideration individual learning needs.

School leaders who embrace the constructivist model shift the focus within their school, from knowledge as a product to knowing as a process. Instruction and curriculum design under their leadership encourages the sharing of big ideas and challenging other's perspectives. The classroom is seen as a place where ' inquiry and co-construction dominate.' Constructivist leaders expect teachers to engage in reflective practices and processes with their students and peers. The purpose of reflection is to challenge previous assumptions about teaching and learning and to rethink and reframe student participation.

Constructivist leadership is about immersing teachers in a culture of learning and enabling them to take risks. It's not about dictating to teachers on how to deliver instructions - it's about educating teachers that we are all learners.

Servant leadership

This participatory style of leadership pushes the ego aside and considers the needs of others, rather than focus on self-interest. The philosophy behind servant leadership is that a "great leader must first serve others and that this simple fact is central to his or her greatness: true leadership emerges from those whose primary motivation is a desire to help others." School leaders who practice servant leadership maintain high expectations; however, they also help teachers and students to develop their skills to improve their performance. These leaders instil the desire for improvement while maintaining a focus on both results and relationships.

The former president of the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership identified the ten characteristics of servant leaders as: listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualisation, foresight, stewardship, commitment to the growth of people, and building community. Servant leaders are able to cultivate high-performance teachers by removing barriers, providing resources and opening communication channels with the whole school community.

Sharing the power in decision-making, servant leaders motivate and persuade their school community to fulfil their long-standing vision. By engaging with teachers and students on what the school's future should look like, servant leaders can implement structural changes that keep an eye on the bigger picture. Research shows that in the long-term servant leadership creates a positive and productive school environment.

Strategic leadership

Strategic leadership is based on long-range planning. Through analysis, evaluation and monitoring, strategic leaders assess current school performance and take the necessary steps to improve future results. These leaders not only set the direction of the school by having an organisational vision, they create frameworks, set up interventions, allocate resources and maintain systems for reforms to take place.

There are seven guiding principles of strategic leaders. Rather than focussing on day-to-day issues, strategic leaders are future-orientated and prepare for an uncertain destiny. These leaders base their decisions on evidence and research. Drawing on data that demonstrates school learning outcomes, strategic leaders will respond with the most suitable approach - whether that's staff training, reviewing policies and procedures, or fostering a culture based on achievements. Innovation is at the heart of a strategic leader's mission - they're always looking for ways to improve the school environment - whether that's relationship building, embracing diversity or creating partnerships with parents. Strategic leaders invest in partnerships across the school community and use the power of collective thinking to build a values-based school were transparency, ethics and accountability are the cornerstones of their leadership.

Studies show that using strategy as a tool to manage an educational organisation is at the heart of developing successful schools in the long term. Aligning organisational structures, processes, culture and people behind a strategic focus is critical to this success.

Why does leadership matter?

Great school leadership is the bedrock for great schools. Evidence suggests that effective leadership is essential to creating a learning environment where every student has access to high-quality education. Teachers who pursue postgraduate education in leadership will be able to support effective teaching and learning strategies, keep pace with transformation across the education industry and inject new thinking into schools.

Find out more about learning these skills and more by studying a Master of Education with ECU Online.

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5 Effective Leadership Styles in Education | ECU Online

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Leadership in education can play an integral role in creating a positive school culture. It can also influence student learning and achievement. Effective school leadership is increasingly viewed as the key to far-reaching education transformation. With the right leadership approach, education heads can turn an average school into a successful one.

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A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better. - Jim Rohn, American entrepreneur.

Everyone on Samit's team knows that he's "there for them." He checks in with them often to see how they are, and he helps them develop the skills they need to advance their careers, even if this means that they may move on.

Samit also makes an effort to see situations from others' perspectives. He makes decisions with the team's best interests in mind, and ensures that everyone has the resources and knowledge they need to meet their objectives.

As a result of this, his team is one of the most successful in the department, with low staff turnover and high engagement.

Samit is an example of a "servant leader." In this article, we'll explore what servant leadership is, and the advantages it can bring you as a leader. We'll also look at situations where it isn't appropriate.

What Is Servant Leadership?

Robert K. Greenleaf first coined the phrase "servant leadership" in his 1970 essay, " The Servant as a Leader." However, it's an approach that people have used for centuries.

As a servant leader, you're a "servant first" - you focus on the needs of others, especially team members, before you consider your own. You acknowledge other people's perspectives, give them the support they need to meet their work and personal goals, involve them in decisions where appropriate, and build a sense of community within your team. This leads to higher engagement, more trust, and stronger relationships with team members and other stakeholders. It can also lead to increased innovation.

However, servant leadership is problematic in hierarchical, autocratic cultures where managers and leaders are expected to make all the decisions. Here, servant leaders may struggle to earn respect.

Important:

Remember that servant leadership is about focusing on other people's needs - not their feelings. Don't avoid making unpopular decisions or giving team members negative feedback when this is needed.

Also, do not rely on it exclusively - use it alongside styles like Transformational Leadership, where you develop an inspiring vision of the future, motivate people to deliver this, manage its implementation, and build an ever-stronger team.

How to Become a Servant Leader

According to Larry C. Spears, former president of the Robert K. Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership, these are the 10 most important characteristics of servant leaders:

1. Listening.

2. Empathy.

3. Healing.

4. Awareness.

5. Persuasion.

6. Conceptualization.

7. Foresight.

8. Stewardship.

9. Commitment to the growth of people.

10. Building community.

Once you've decided to prioritize other people's needs over your own in the long term, you can work on developing your skills in each area. Let's look at how you can do this.

1. Listening

2. Empathy

3. Healing

This characteristic relates to the emotional health and "wholeness" of people, and involves supporting them both physically and mentally.

4. Self-Awareness

You can become more self-aware by knowing your strengths and weaknesses, and asking for other people's feedback on them. Also, learn to manage your emotions, so that you consider how your actions and behavior might affect others.

5. Persuasion

There are many tools and models that you can use to be more persuasive, without damaging relationships or taking advantage of others. You should also build your expert power - when people perceive you as an expert, they are more likely to listen to you when you want to persuade or inspire them.

6. Conceptualization

This characteristic relates to your ability to "dream great dreams," so that you look beyond day-to-day realities to the bigger picture.

7. Foresight

Foresight is when you can predict what's likely to happen in the future by learning from past experiences, identifying what's happening now, and understanding the consequences of your decisions.

You can use tools such as SWOT Analysis and PEST Analysis to think about your current situation and environment, while Scenario Analysis helps you understand how the future could play out. Use the ORAPAPA checklist when you make a decision, to learn from experience and make sure that you've considered all the angles.

Also, learn to trust your intuition - if your instinct is telling you that something is wrong, listen to it!

8. Stewardship

Stewardship is about taking responsibility for the actions and performance of your team, and being accountable for the role team members play in your organization.

9. Commitment to the Growth of People

Servant leaders are committed to the personal and professional development of everyone on their teams.

10. Building Community

The last characteristic is to do with building a sense of community within your organization.

You can do this by providing opportunities for people to interact with one another across the company. For instance, you could organize social events such as team lunches and barbecues, design your workspace to encourage people to chat informally away from their desks, and dedicate the first few minutes of meetings to non-work-related conversations.

Encourage people to take responsibility for their work, and remind them how what they do contributes to the success and overall objectives of the organization.

Tip:

See our article on Leadership Styles to explore popular leadership approaches and the advantages and disadvantages of each one.

And see this Expert Interview for a valuable discussion on the misconceptions and realities of servant leadership.

Key Points

You are a servant leader when you focus on the needs of others before you consider your own. It's a longer-term approach to leadership, rather than a technique that you can adopt in specific situations. Therefore, you can use it with other leadership styles such as Transformational Leadership.

You can become a servant leader by working on these 10 characteristics:

1. Listening.

2. Empathy.

3. Healing.

4. Awareness.

5. Persuasion.

6. Conceptualization.

7. Foresight.

8. Stewardship.

9. Commitment to the growth of people.

10. Building community.

Servant leaders are likely to have more engaged employees and enjoy better relationships with team members and other stakeholders than leaders who don't put the interests of others before their own.

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Servant Leadership: Putting Your Team First, and Yourself Second

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A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better. - Jim Rohn, American entrepreneur. Everyone on Samit's team knows that he's "there for them."

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Becoming a participative member of the group, the leader encourages trust, adherence to the group goals, and engagement of the team members.

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The democratic leadership style is based on mutual respect. It is often combined with participatory leadership because it requires collaboration between leaders and the people they guide.

The democratic/participative leadership style places significant responsibility on leaders and their staff. This is true for all organizations - from private enterprises and government agencies to educational institutions and nonprofit entities.

Read on to discover more about democratic/participative leadership:

It's difficult to imagine democratic leaders accomplishing their goals without direct participation from others. Participation is key to all successful democratic enterprises. This includes:

Attentive constituents in a congressional district

Concerned parents of students at a school

Active members from a nonprofit organization

Engaged employees at a prospering company

What is the definition of democratic/participative leadership?

One of the clearest definitions of democratic leadership comes from John Gastil. His 1994 article, "A Definition and Illustration of Democratic Leadership" for the Human Relations journal remains relevant to private industry and the free market.

Gastil, a professor at Penn State University, has written extensively about jury selection and democratic participation in the deliberations process. His succinct definition of democratic leadership explains that it is conceptually distinct from positions of authority.

Gastil's definition of democratic leadership:

"Distributing responsibility among the membership, empowering group members, and aiding the group's decision-making process."

What is participative leadership?

Edwin A. Locke, a professor emeritus of leadership and motivation at the University of Maryland, offers an expanded definition of democratic leadership by adding participative to the equation.

Participative leadership is "any power-sharing arrangement in which workplace influence is shared among individuals who are otherwise hierarchical unequals" Locke and his colleague David Schweiger explain in "Participation in Decision-Making: One More Look."

The authors warn that leaders should be careful when using the participatory style because it can backfire. If people feel their input is being ignored, the democratic/participative style "can actually lead to lower employee satisfaction and productivity," Locke and his colleague wrote in 1979.

The key to letting subordinates take part in decision-making is to build mature teams with experienced and cooperative people. Democratic/participative teams are not only capable of making good decisions but they also support their group's goals - even when their own suggestions aren't adopted.

History of democratic/participative leadership

The democratic leadership style always involves participative decision-making. It empowers employees to have a strong hand in managing organizations.

Democratic/participative leadership - or the "style with two names" - has become popular in recent decades. It dates to the 1930s and '40s. That's when noted behavioral researcher Kurt Lewin led studies that helped identify the value of the democratic/participative leadership style in organizations.

In "Leadership and Group Life," Lewin and his colleagues Ronald Lippitt and Ralph K. White cite democratic, laissez-faire and autocratic as the three primary leadership styles. Based on interviews with business leaders and employees, Lewin, Lippitt and White concluded that the democratic leadership style was the most popular among subordinates.

Successful democratic leaders differ from autocratic and laissez-faire leaders in two important ways.

Unlike autocrats, democratic leaders expect people who report to them to have in-depth experience and to exhibit self-confidence.

Unlike the laissez-faire style, which delegates authority to experts, democratic leaders are involved in the decision-making process.

Democratic/participative leaders have enormous responsibilities. Organizations that incorporate the democratic style still need strong leaders who know how to avoid the pitfalls that can trip up collaborative teams when they lose their compass.

Case in point: Apple

Apple was a successful company from 1976 to 1985, before it almost failed in the mid-1990s. Then it became enormously successful again - precisely because it faltered.

In other words, Apple had a vision. Apple lost its vision. Apple regained its vision.

That's rare.

In the mid-1990s Gateway, Microsoft, Sun Microsystems and other companies reportedly zeroed in on Apple as an acquisition target. Years later, many of those brands disappeared. Yet Apple survived.

Apple survived because Steve Jobs learned how to adapt. He became a democratic/participative leader. Jobs started out as a charismatic/laissez-faire leader, and Apple soared. Then he became an autocratic leader, and Apple's board of directors requested his resignation.

When he returned to Apple more than 10 years later, Jobs combined several leadership styles and added democratic/participative to his repertoire. He hired other experienced leaders and entrusted them to excel. Jobs encouraged his lead designer Jonathon Ive, and he mentored manufacturing expert Tim Cook, now CEO. He let them make key decisions.

That's why Apple survived.

All successful leaders are self-actualizing people with loads of self-confidence. They take responsibility for their actions, they support their teams, and they don't make excuses for failures.

Among U.S. presidents, there are many examples of men who brought the democratic/participative leadership style to the Oval Office. Most of these presidents exhibited traits that reflected a variety of leadership styles.

U.S. presidents with democratic leadership traits:

George Washington: Unlike commanding troops during the American Revolution, Washington was notably democratic when guiding the U.S. government. He showed early signs of his democratic leadership style by appointing strong leaders to his staff. His decision not to serve a third term exemplified a democratic leader who knows when to pass the torch.

Thomas Jefferson: As president, Jefferson was both an authoritarian and democratic leader. As primary author of the U.S. Declaration of Independence in 1776, Jefferson left no ambiguity about his devotion to democracy: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." In 1803, he autocratically bypassed Congress to expedite the Louisiana Purchase for $15 million.

Abraham Lincoln: Often considered the epitome of a democratic leader, Lincoln was autocratic in his decisions throughout his presidency. Although his character and principles were democratic in nature, Lincoln was an autocratic leader as president out of necessity. The Civil War demanded decisiveness.

Dwight D. Eisenhower: Far more democratic in his approach to defeating Germany during WWII than his subordinate, Gen. George C. Patton, Eisenhower was a strategist and consensus builder. Eisenhower is an unusual example of a military commander who adopted laissez-faire and democratic/participative leadership styles as commander in chief.

John F. Kennedy: A charismatic leader at heart, Kennedy displayed characteristics of laissez-faire and democratic leadership styles. His spearheading of the Apollo space program is an example of JFK's laissez-faire style. In other cases, he showed autocratic leadership tendencies, such as his quick decisions during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Jimmy Carter: A former naval commander, Carter exemplified both the qualities and pitfalls of the democratic/participative leadership style as president. He surrounded himself with some experienced staff, but he often deferred to inexperienced subordinates when acting authoritatively would have been a better choice.

If there is a lesson to learn from these presidents it's that the best leaders find the right style to suit the needs of a nation or organization, crisis or paradigm shift.

Democratic leadership in business

Business enterprises and other organizations comprise numerous experts, so they are well-suited to the democratic/participative leadership process. Whether it's a CEO or a project manager, democratic leaders can be effective in business if they surround themselves with experienced players.

The participatory style works best with experts who know their jobs and carry out their responsibilities under minimal supervision. This is true for:

Biotech R&D divisions

Housing construction sites

Universities

Information technology companies

Yet in private businesses and government agencies with strict procedures or a high turnover of employees, the autocratic leadership style is often more appropriate. Even within these environments, though, divisions exist that function best under a democratic/participative leadership style.

Examples:

Pharmaceutical industry: Pharmaceutical companies have educated chemists who work well in collaborative teams on development projects. Such companies also require autocratic leaders who supervise subordinates in automated assembly-line operations. They demand procedures and tight tolerances that do not lend themselves to a democratic/participative leadership style.

Hospitals and labs: Hospitals and healthcare testing facilities call for a blend of leadership styles. Hospital administration - from personnel and accounting departments to facilities maintenance and insurance billing - requires autocratic leadership to ensure consistency and accountability. Simultaneously, physicians work collaboratively under democratic/participative leaders. Ditto: nurses, who employ both autocratic and democratic leadership styles to carry out team functions and individual responsibilities.

High-tech firms: The technology industry offers countless examples of companies that are well-suited for the democratic/participative leadership style. Many are startups with engineering and software development teams that work collaboratively under democratic leaders. In successful cases, these firms evolve from laissez-faire startups to democratic-led enterprises to mature autocratic companies.

Companies that reflect democratic leadership principles

Most successful companies evolve, and their leaders display a mix of leadership styles. They have autocratic leaders who run manufacturing, quality control and distribution divisions along with R&D teams spearheaded by democratic/participative leaders.

Examples of companies where democratic/participative leadership works:

Google: Founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page developed their Internet search engine while pursuing their doctorates at Stanford. After obtaining initial financing, they did something unusual. Brin and Page followed the advice of experienced entrepreneurs and hired Eric Schmidt to jump-start their company. Incorporating a blend of autocratic, laissez-faire and democratic leadership styles, the Novell and Sun executive brought experience into Google's dugout. The three immediately began scouting experienced talent to set up democratic/participative teams. Today, Google remains relatively democratic in its approach to product development under CEO Page.

Genentech: A pioneer in the discovery and development of restriction enzymes to develop biological drugs, Genentech was started by Robert Swanson and Herbert Boyer. They faced competition for financial resources and talent when they launched the company in 1976. Recombinant DNA technology was a mystery to all but a few forward-looking biologists and chemists. The key to Genentech's success was instilling democratic/participative leadership values to attract those scientists. Although it's now owned by Roche, Genentech remains on the leading edge by blending democratic R&D with autocratic manufacturing leadership styles.

Mayo Clinic: A nonprofit organization with a reputation as one of the most cutting-edge healthcare research facilities in the world, the Mayo Clinic thrives on democratic/participative leadership values. Founded by Dr. William Mayo and his family, the hospital, healthcare and research facility attracts some of the most brilliant minds in the medical field because it gives them opportunities to work collaboratively among peers on democratic teams. Although the processes required in the medical research industry often call for an extremely autocratic approach, healthcare organizations like the Mayo Clinic cannot succeed without democratic/participative leaders.

Amazon.com: When it launched, Amazon was known for selling books. The company prospered by embracing all three of Lewin's leadership models. It started as a laissez-faire company, with Jeff Bezos as final arbitrator of all key decisions. He recruited a lot of veteran computer programmers from nearby software companies and quickly implemented a democratic/participative leadership model. Today, Amazon sells everything imaginable, including cloud services and big data security storage. Amazon is necessarily autocratic because of its commitment to timely customer service. At its core, however, the company retains its democratic values among C-suite executives, division heads and project directors.

Famous democratic/participative leaders

The democratic/participative leadership style works best in creative businesses, design firms and corporations driven by research and development. The participatory leadership style is also well-suited for educational institutions with collaborative environments.

Examples of leaders who exhibit democratic/participative leadership style:

Indra Nooyi: Nooyi, the CEO and chairman of PepsiCo, has endeared herself to employees. She takes an interest in the personal lives of employees and has a vision of the company's future. Nooyi made news when she sent letters to the parents of direct reports to let them know how proud they should be of their executive adult/children. When one recruit was undecided about joining the company, Forbes magazine reports, Nooyi called the candidate's mom and subsequently landed the executive. She has also made fans of investors with smart divestitures and acquisitions, such as Tropicana, Quaker Oats and Gatorade.

Bill George: George was a senior executive at Honeywell and Litton Industries before joining Medtronic as CEO. Now a professor at Harvard Business School, George says he felt hamstrung by the bureaucratic processes before joining Medtronic. Although he acknowledges the necessity of autocratic procedures in businesses with tight manufacturing controls, George applauds Medtronic's innovative approach to healthcare technologies. Noted for its heart stents and mechanical heart valves, Medtronic would not have thrived under George's tutelage from 1991 to 2001 had he not been devoted to the principles of collaborative research efforts, baked into the democratic/participative leadership style.

Tommy Lasorda: A successful baseball pitcher before coaching, Lasorda bonded with his players. As manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1976 to 1996, Lasorda won two World Series championships, four National League pennants and eight division titles. Considered a player's coach, Lasorda's decision to let Kirk Gibson pinch-hit during the 1988 World Series against the Oakland A's remains one of the most memorable moments in baseball history. Most managers would not have sent an injured batter to the plate against an ace pitcher. Lasorda did so because he trusted his player's judgment and his own instincts. Both are hallmarks of a successful democratic/participative leader in action. Gibson hit a home run and helped the Dodgers win the series.

Ginni Rometty: As CEO of IBM since 2012, Rometty has demonstrated a methodical approach to managing and a democratic/participative leadership style. She has made the tough decisions expected of IBM CEOs, such as selling its profitable but slowing server business and reducing staff. She has also committed resources to IBM's big data efforts. IBM is partnering with healthcare companies, government enterprises and social media firms to leverage its strengths in cognitive computing.

Muhtar Kent: Known as a democratic/participative leader, Kent is CEO and chairman of the board at Coca-Cola. He has a reputation for seeking input from others on key decisions. Kent has an inclusive style that reflects his commitment to diversity. The New York-born executive is as committed to improving managerial processes and manufacturing efficiencies as he is to teamwork. He worked his way up the corporate ladder, in part, by doubling Coca-Cola's bottling operations output. As CEO, Kent built collaborative management teams to address slowing sales growth and tackled challenges from global competitors, reflecting a blend of autocratic and democratic styles.

A major characteristic among democratic/participative leaders is inclusiveness. Democratic leaders seek participation from a wide range of people, including women.

Democratic/participatory leadership quotes

These leaders are known as big innovators and strong collaborators. Many of them blended different leadership styles or evolved to adopt the characteristics of democratic leaders. Here are some quotations that reveal their devotion to democratic and participatory leadership:

Thomas Aquinas: "If the highest aim of a captain were to preserve his ship, he would keep it in port forever."

Jeff Bezos: "I strongly believe that missionaries make better products. They care more. For a missionary, it's not just about the business. There has to be a business, and the business has to make sense. But that's not why you do it. You do it because you have something meaningful that motivates you."

Dwight D. Eisenhower: "Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it."

David Packard: "Take risks. Ask big questions. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. If you don't make mistakes, you're not reaching far enough."

Steve Jobs: "One of the keys to Apple is Apple's an incredibly collaborative company."

Ginny Rometty: "I ask everyone's opinion when they don't speak up. And then, when they have an opinion, I'll ask others to talk about it."

Mahatma Gandhi: "Honest disagreement is a good sign of progress."

Tommy Lasorda: "I believe managing is like holding a dove in your hand. Squeeze too hard and you kill it, not hard enough and it flies away."

William J. Mayo: "Lord, deliver me from the man who never makes a mistake. And also from the man who makes the same mistake twice."

Bill George: "You'd sit in a business meeting and say, 'Is this product good enough to go to patients -- so 100 percent of all patients who get it are going to have their lives improved? If it's not, we're going to have to go back to the drawing board.'"

Thomas Jefferson: "Delay is preferable to error."

Jerry Yang: "Certainly Yahoo wouldn't exist without the sort of environment that Stanford gave us to create it."

Sergey Brin: "Solving big problems is easier than solving little problems."

Tip O'Neill: "It's easier to run for office than to run the office."

Jimmy Carter: "The experience of democracy is like the experience of life itself - always changing, infinite in its variety, sometimes turbulent and all the more valuable for having been tested by adversity."

Democratic leadership case study: Twitter

It should come as no surprise that a company devoted to instantaneously spreading the word about anything and everything in 140 characters or less has a reputation for being collaborative.

Twitter, which has seen fits and starts since its founding nearly a decade ago, has a shared leadership style that starts at the top. Founded by Jack Dorsey, Evan Williams, Biz Stone and Noah Glass, Twitter began life in 2006 as a democratic/participative enterprise.

It remains so today.

Each of Twitter's co-founders had a different vision of what the company should become. That vision ranged from a rebellious underground domain to a kind of brand central station where any company or individual could spread the word about their products and aspirations to thousands of followers.

Dorsey, who has been called "the real core co-founder," never wavered from his vision of Twitter as a text-messaging service that would change the world as we know it - or as the young Dorsey knew it when he started coding Twitter two decades ago.

Dorsey is both a democratic and a laissez-faire leader. A consummate multitasker, his family and peers know him as a utilitarian hipster with fashion sense. He dislikes all waste and cherishes his haircuts. He grew up listening to C-band radio dispatches of emergency personnel responding to crimes and fires, false alarms and deadly events.

Although Dorsey has returned in the role of executive chairman, Twitter remains minimalist and collaborative.

Both Dorsey and Twitter represent the new wave of democratic/participative leadership in business. Like Dorsey, Twitter has taken several years to find its compass.

Twitter's strength?

Brevity is imperative in the new world of social media.

Democratic leadership has many names. They include:

Participative leadership

Shared leadership

Open-book management

Participative decision-making

Democratic management style

The democratic/participative leadership style has some similarities to laissez-faire leadership, but there are also significant differences.

Laissez-faire leaders allow subordinates to decide how to complete their tasks and projects, but not to make organization-wide decisions. Participative leadership not only accepts subordinates' comments, ideas and suggestions, it also encourages their input on decisions and strategies.

Both of these styles depend on the leader having skilled, educated and experienced employees. Using the democratic leadership style with inexperienced personnel is asking for trouble unless the workers have an extraordinary intuition for what needs to be done.

Still, most of the noted democratic/participative leaders throughout history have succeeded because they encouraged their staff to get involved in the discussions about major and minor decisions.

Democratic leaders are highly rational

Noted organizational psychologist Bernard M. Bass studied Lewin's big three leadership styles: laissez-faire, autocratic and democratic. In "The Bass Handbook of Leadership," he pointed out successful leaders typically exhibit many traits from different leadership styles.

Bass, a professor emeritus at Binghamton University and founding director of the Center for Leadership Studies who died in 2007, observed that democratic leaders are factual and rational in their approach to problem-solving and evaluating staff performance. He also observed that democratic leaders "de-emphasized social distance," while autocratic leaders exhibited their higher social stature among subordinates.

Social standing is one of several key distinctions between autocratic and democratic leaders. Although both styles can be effective, autocratic leaders are authoritarian because they often supervise inexperienced subordinates, or they're charged with training experienced people to perform new tasks quickly - such as learning an innovative software program or adopting an updated quality-control process.

By comparison, democratic/participative leaders are:

Egalitarian types who feel comfortable rolling up their sleeves

Team-oriented captains who view experienced staff as peers

Consensus builders who like to mediate disagreements

Flexible explorers who share decision-making with key staff

Peter Drucker on leadership qualities

Peter Drucker, renowned management consultant and best-selling author, wasn't big on labels. But he understood the distinctions among different types of leaders.

In one of his last interviews, Drucker discussed business ethics with Forbes magazine. Drucker's advice for executives, particularly democratic/participative leaders, still rings true.

Democratic leaders are superb multitaskers. As Drucker points out, productive leaders are extraordinarily accomplished because they rely on experts to make suggestions without relinquishing control of the decision-making process.

In 2004, Drucker said:

"Don't take on things you don't believe in and that you yourself are not good at. Learn to say no. Effective leaders match the objective needs of their company with the subjective competencies. As a result, they get an enormous amount of things done fast."

What are the characteristics of democratic leaders?

Democratic/participative leaders share common traits with laissez-faire leaders, such as delegating. The key distinction is their involvement in the decision-making process.

Democratic leaders don't simply hire experts to run divisions or projects and then wait for the results. They insert themselves in the process and stay informed. They often rely heavily on data, but they are not slaves to metrics. They balance the instincts of experienced team leaders with the realities of the marketplace.

They are problem solvers. If there is no demand for a great idea, democratic leaders will often pass on it. They take risks, but they know when to cut their losses. Democratic/participative leaders are:

Egalitarian

Fair-minded

Adaptive

Engaged

Role models

Forward-thinking

Team-oriented

Consensus builders

One of the key selling points about democratic leadership compared to other styles is that it works well throughout an organization.

The autocratic leadership style, by comparison, works within certain departments but not necessarily from the top down. Authoritarian leadership can be stifling and demoralizing if it exists throughout an entire organization.

The democratic/participative style can exist at every level in some companies. This style can work well in an organization that is focused on growth, research and talent acquisition.

Private companies, educational institutions and nonprofit organizations in expansion mode are well-suited for the democratic/participative leadership style because it encourages collaboration. Participatory leadership rewards success and fosters a collegial environment.

Smart, talented people love collegial environments. It's up to democratic/participative leaders to recruit them, encourage them and monitor their progress just enough to ensure productivity.

If there is one caveat to the participatory leadership style it is this: Too much consensus building can lead to stagnation.

At the end of the day, someone has to take responsibility for the decisions.

Successful democratic/participative leaders step up to the plate. They make the final decisions.

The best ones are prepared. They know when they're going to hit one out of the ballpark. They not only trust their teams, but they stay informed about workflow progress on a regular basis.

In theory, the advantages of democratic leadership are obvious to subordinates. Most people prefer to work within a leadership structure that encourages thoughtful discussion and rewards collaborative processes.

In reality, not all organizations lend themselves to the democratic leadership style.

Executives, board members, trustees and investors have expectations centered on productivity. For them, the participative leadership style may seem inappropriate.

In some companies and organizations, where internal processes are highly focused, strictly controlled and often perfected, other leadership styles, like autocratic, are a better fit.

It's up to leaders to determine the best style for working groups within their companies and institutions. Here are some considerations:

Democratic leadership pros

Employees have increased job satisfaction and a sense of empowerment.

Relationships are built on mutual trust between labor and management.

Absenteeism is lower among employees with a stronger commitment to performance.

Productivity increases as a result of a solutions-centric workforce that has input.

Creativity and innovation increase among employees through team collaboration.

Democratic leadership cons

Leaders can become overly dependent on the expertise and experience of subordinates.

Collaboration can consume valuable time getting input from people who aren't in agreement.

Fast, incisive decisions may be difficult or even impossible, resulting in missed deadlines.

Relying on consensus from people who are misinformed or lack accurate data can be costly.

Leaders can become burdened by the challenge of overseeing experts on collaborative teams.

The democratic style requires a special type of leader, but it also requires a special group of participants. Everyone has to be on board with the participatory process. This requires an extremely intuitive and observant leader who acts decisively when conflicts arise among team members.

Participatory leadership traits

Although some democratic leaders are charismatic, many are not. Because they tend to be highly rational, democratic leaders are often even-keeled. They are not prone to sweeping inspirational speeches or motivating staff with a gung-ho style aimed at attaining short-term goals.

Democratic/participative leaders are self-confident, but they're also pragmatic. They surround themselves with like-minded people who set realistic goals and achieve them.

The axiom "train your replacement" may apply best to the democratic leadership style. Effective democratic leaders are so adept that their staff appears to function well without them.

It would be a mistake, however, to assume that participatory leaders are easily replaced.

The best democratic/participative leaders are great multitaskers. They are able to handle the challenge of working with experienced people on collaborative teams without losing sight of objectives or deadlines.

Democratic/participative leaders are focused on accomplishing goals. Productivity is the key to adopting this leadership style. To be successful, democratic leaders must have productive teams that meet expectations.

Sources:

" Kurt Lewin: groups, experiential learning and action research"

John Gastil, " A Definition and Illustration of Democratic Leadership"
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The democratic leadership style is based on mutual respect. It is often combined with participatory leadership because it requires collaboration between leaders and the people they guide. The democratic/participative leadership style places significant responsibility on leaders and their staff. This is true for all organizations - from private enterprises and government agencies to educational institutions and nonprofit entities.

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Why Emotional Intelligence is so important within leadership. Emotional intelligence is crucial for successful leadership and this link provides evidence to support this claim and ways to support growth in the area of emotional intelligence.

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When most people imagine intelligence, they picture a mathematician solving equations, a novelist writing great works of literature or a philosopher expounding on wise principles.

But brilliance takes many forms, not least of which is the ability to comprehend and manage emotions. Known as emotional intelligence, this trait is often overlooked, yet crucial for success as a business leader.

Here's what having emotional intelligence provides you with:
Acute Awareness
One of the defining features of emotional intelligence is the ability to comprehend the effects of your feelings. This is crucial for making sound, objective decisions when your pride and self-esteem are at stake. All leaders must face situations where their emotions make a decision seem better than it is.

If you previously expressed support for a certain strategy, for example, your pride will be tied up with that strategy, making it harder to recognize if it isn't working. Leaders who have emotional intelligence are more likely to realize when pride and other emotions are influencing their thinking, allowing them to make more rational, impartial choices.
Impact Interpretation
In addition to reigning in your own feelings, emotional intelligence makes it easier to anticipate and respond to others' sentiments. As much as we may want for it to be objective, business is an emotional experience.

Bad news from work can shock or dismay your employees, while good news may make them unreasonably optimistic. Emotional intelligence means you can tell ahead of time how others will react and develop a strategy to keep them grounded.
Mental Health Management
Those with emotional intelligence have an easier time assessing the emotional and psychological state of their employees. This makes it easier to determine if someone is suffering from:

* Anxiety

* Depression

* Grief

* Trauma

* Eating disorders

By recognizing threats to your employees' mental health, you can provide them with the support and professional resources they need to recover. Not only is this good for their health but it promotes a more harmonious, productive workplace.
Cultivated Communication
Leaders with emotional intelligence have an improved ability to gauge others' responses to their words and actions. This makes it easier for you to tell if your employees really understand what you are saying or are confused but unwilling to say so. You can then refine your messages accordingly, developing reliable ways of communicating with everyone who works for you.

Emotional intelligence also makes it easier for you to listen to what other people are saying clearly and without judgment, ensuring that others can always give you the information you need.
Helpful Humor
Never underestimate the value of humor in business. A good joke or clever play on words can cheer up dismayed employees, win over skeptical customers and draw positive attention to your brand. If you have emotional intelligence, it will be easier to tell what people will find funny. You can also determine in which situations humor will be appropriate, finding the proper balance between serious work and lightheartedness.

While intelligence is important, emotional intelligence is a key to success in leadership and in being able to relate to others. When dealing with others, truly try to place yourself in their situation. It will help you choose the best method to solve problems and achieve your goals.

How has emotional intelligence helped you to make sound and informed decisions?

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Council Post: Why Emotional Intelligence Is Indispensable For Leaders

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When most people imagine intelligence, they picture a mathematician solving equations, a novelist writing great works of literature or a philosopher expounding on wise principles. But brilliance takes many forms, not least of which is the ability to comprehend and manage emotions.

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Servant leaders are a revolutionary bunch–they take the traditional power leadership model and turn it completely upside down. This new hierarchy puts the people–or employees, in a business context–at the very top, and the leader at the bottom, charged wi