Human Behavior in Organization
Leadership for Service: Virtue in Action
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I am honored to be here. Today I’d like to share with you some thoughts I have on leadership for service and virtue in action. If there’s one thing that 30 years in government service and 10 years in the private sector has taught me, it’s that leadership is for service and that virtues are for action, for the greatest leaders I have been privileged to work with have been those who had the humility to be of service to others.
First, leadership for service. Leadership for service or servant-leadership is most probably best described as “a long-term, transformational approach to life and work. It is a way of being that has the potential for creating positive change throughout society by expanding service to individuals and institutions.” It is also a “practical altruistic philosophy” which supports people who consciously choose to serve others first and foremost without thought for increasing their own power or authority.
The concept of servant-leadership is not new. In 600 B.C., the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu wrote in The Tao Te Ching: “The greatest leader forgets himself and attends to the development of others.” In 4 B.C. Kautilya, one of the great political thinkers from India, wrote in his book Arthashastra: "The King (leader) shall consider as good, not what pleases himself but what pleases his subjects (followers)."
In the Gospel of Mark 10:42-45, Jesus taught his disciples: "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
More recently, the motto "Serve to Lead" was adopted by the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) in the UK. Today,
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I am honored to be here. Today I’d like to share with you some thoughts I have on leadership for service and virtue in action. If there’s one thing that 30 years in government service and 10 years in the private sector has taught me, it’s that leadership is for service and that virtues are for action, for the greatest leaders I have been privileged to work with have been those who had the humility to be of service to others.
First, leadership for service. Leadership for service or servant-leadership is most probably best described as “a long-term, transformational approach to life and work. It is a way of being that has the potential for creating positive change throughout society by expanding service to individuals and institutions.” It is also a “practical altruistic philosophy” which supports people who consciously choose to serve others first and foremost without thought for increasing their own power or authority.
The concept of servant-leadership is not new. In 600 B.C., the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu wrote in The Tao Te Ching: “The greatest leader forgets himself and attends to the development of others.” In 4 B.C. Kautilya, one of the great political thinkers from India, wrote in his book Arthashastra: "The King (leader) shall consider as good, not what pleases himself but what pleases his subjects (followers)."
In the Gospel of Mark 10:42-45, Jesus taught his disciples: "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
More recently, the motto "Serve to Lead" was adopted by the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) in the UK. Today,