Servant Leadership - Viterbo University Faculty
Servant Leadership - Viterbo University Faculty
Servant-Leadership - Viterbo University Faculty

 

Sunday, March 05, 2006

Servant-Leader vs. Service-Based Leader

I recently ran across a website for a nonprofit that offers a credential in servant leadership. In their mission statement they call this philosophy "Servant (Service-Based) Leadership." I admit to being a cranky old purist (emphasis on "old") when it comes to defining servant leadership, but Greenleaf could also be a curmudgeon at times. On the other hand, one of the skills of a servant-leader is the ability to frame honest questions rather than preach answers. So I put the question out there: Do you think "service-based leader" is a fair morphing of the concept of "servant-leader?"

I have my own take on the answer based on Greenleaf's life and writings but maybe I'm full of beans. What do you think?

Don Frick