Gamze Dönmez // Allianz Türkiye - Agile Coach
We have understood better how much we need agility in our new world where complexity and ambiguity are common, and flexibility has become indispensable.
Organizations embarking on a journey of agility are aware of this: Transformation is not just about changing the way they do business but removing titles and hierarchies. What really matters is cultural transformation. “Leadership” plays a leading role in this transformation. Transformation can have a lasting effect when leaders embrace, internalize and sustain change. For this reason, we expect agile leaders to adapt themselves quickly to change, adopt a feedback culture, and balance both company and employee satisfaction.
In companies undergoing agile transformation, we see that traditional leadership models have been replaced by the concept of "Servant Leadership". To grasp this understanding deeply, Ken Blanchard’s question, "Are you here to serve others or to be served?" is an important point to start.
Servant Leadership is not a new concept. Robert K. Greenleaf first suggested this concept in the 1970s, after reading Hermann Hesse's story "Journey to the East" written in 1956.
The story tells of a group that goes on a journey. Leo, who stands out with his benevolence and self-sacrifice in the group, disappears one day. His disappearance causes chaos in the group, and no one wants to continue the journey without Leo. It is noticed how Leo is a mentor and of course the secret leader of the group. According to Greenleaf, the Servant Leader exists with a sense of serving others, as in the case of Leo.
Servant Leadership can be defined as a leadership style that considers the needs of others more than its own, helps people develop, and do their best by removing obstacles.
Agility basically allows leaders to free up time for high value-added work while reducing time lost during chain of command.
We can give the following examples of work that creates value for a leader: Creating a vision, determining strategies, simplifying processes, strengthening cooperation, identifying and developing the right human resource, removing barriers to work.
Agility also exists with teams that are empowered, self-directed and organized, collaboratively work and interact based on trust and transparency. This understanding of leadership, which serves agile teams, actually serves the needs of the customer, albeit indirectly.
Let's talk about the main features that stand out for Servant Leaders:
- They are good listeners.
- They build connections with empathy.
- They have the effect of healing people.
- With awareness, they can see the whole easily.
- They are good at persuasion.
- They are predictive.
- They become role models.
- They contribute to the development of people.
- They create communities.
In addition, let's summarize the prominent attitudes and behaviors of Servant Leaders in agile organizations:
- Listens to customer needs and takes action quickly.
- Personal awareness is high.
- Inclusive and values differences.
- Understands employee needs, removes obstacles, and pays attention to work-life balance.
- With a Growth Mindset, constantly improves both themselves and its team, creates opportunities for improvement, and turns mistakes into learning.
- Contributes to the team's high-level performance with coaching and feedback.
- Works collaboratively, overcomes problems with collective thinking.
- Leads both himself and his team through strong communication.
- Aims to simplify with continuous improvement.
- Modest, consistent, trustworthy.
- Shares power and control.
- Encourages group members to take initiative.
Culture is an indicator of how long the written values can be kept alive with the atmosphere in the organization. The determinants of the atmosphere are the leaders. The environment we will create for our employees to work more engaged must be a place which supports their development, where they feel valued, secure, and can push their potential.
Servant Leadership has a great role in creating the atmosphere to keep this culture alive in organizations undergoing agile transformation.
German Doctor Albert Schweitzer, winner of the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize, said: “The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.”
While we may not all be as great Servant Leaders as Mahatma Gandhi, we need to re-look at our leadership mindset to work with happier and more engaged employees in our organizations.
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