To Be Accountable While Showing Care: The Lived Experience of People in a Servant Leadership Organization

Abstract

Many organizations attribute their success to the use of servant leadership. However, very few studies have been conducted with the emphasis of understanding what it is like for people to work in servant leadership organizations and how it is practiced. Thus, in-depth interviews were conducted and an observation was performed to explore the lived experience of people, both employees and managers, who work within the business sector where servant leadership has been practiced for decades. Two main themes (and a set of subthemes) emerged from the study: “Accountability as an integral part of the practice of servant leadership” and “People show care and help each other out at work.” During a period with new challenges, the balance between the dimensions of “serving” and “leading” became prominent. The findings indicate that both dimensions are important for the prosperity of the organization, although participants experience the “lead” dimension of servant leadership being practiced more than the “serve” dimension. This is important, as much of current thought considers servant leadership to focus more on the “serve” dimension, and thereby to be soft.