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The Functions of a Servant Leader

Author

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  • Michiel Frederick Coetzer

    (Faculty of Management, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park 2006, South Africa)

  • Mark Bussin

    (Faculty of Management, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park 2006, South Africa)

  • Madelyn Geldenhuys

    (Faculty of Management, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park 2006, South Africa)

Abstract

Servant leadership has been researched internationally and various types of favourable individual, team, and organisational outcomes have been linked to the construct. Different servant leadership measures have been validated to date and a clear distinction has been made between the theory of servant leadership and other leadership theories. However, it seems that research on the implementation of servant leadership within an organisation is still in need. The main functions of a servant leader are not yet conceptualised in the literature to help researchers or practitioners to implement servant leadership successfully within organisations. After conducting a systematic literature review, the main functions of a servant leader were identified. These functions were clustered into strategic servant leadership and operational servant leadership and supported by servant leadership characteristics and competencies as defined by current literature. The results of this study might help practitioners to develop servant leaders more effectively and assist organisations to cultivate a servant leadership culture within companies. Limitations and future research needs are discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Michiel Frederick Coetzer & Mark Bussin & Madelyn Geldenhuys, 2017. "The Functions of a Servant Leader," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 7(1), pages 1-32, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:7:y:2017:i:1:p:5-:d:91406
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hee-Joong Hwang & Minjeong Kang & Myoung-Kil Youn, 2014. "The influence of a leader's servant leadership on employees' perception of customers' satisfaction with the service and employees' perception of customers' trust in the service firm: the moderating ro," Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(1), pages 65-76, January.
    2. Hsiao, Chan & Lee, Yi-Hsuan & Chen, Wan-Jun, 2015. "The effect of servant leadership on customer value co-creation: A cross-level analysis of key mediating roles," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 45-57.
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    5. A. Newman & G. Schwarz & B. Cooper & S. Sendjaya, 2017. "How Servant Leadership Influences Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Roles of LMX, Empowerment, and Proactive Personality," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 145(1), pages 49-62, September.
    6. Sen Sendjaya, 2015. "Personal and Organizational Excellence through Servant Leadership," Management for Professionals, Springer, edition 127, number 978-3-319-16196-9, December.
    7. Sen Sendjaya & James C. Sarros & Joseph C. Santora, 2008. "Defining and Measuring Servant Leadership Behaviour in Organizations," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(2), pages 402-424, March.
    8. Ozyilmaz, Adnan & Cicek, Serpil S, 2015. "How does servant leadership affect employee attitudes, behaviors, and psychological climates in a for-profit organizational context?," Journal of Management & Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 21(3), pages 263-290, May.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Maria José Sousa, 2022. "Digital Technologies for Urban Greening Public Policies," GEE Papers 0166, Gabinete de Estratégia e Estudos, Ministério da Economia, revised Jun 2022.
    3. Lyndon Garvin Augustine, 2021. "Exploring Various Leadership Styles to Use Among Nurses Towards Challenges Faced Within the 21st Century: A Systematic Review," International Journal of Human Resource Studies, Macrothink Institute, vol. 11(1), pages 5569-5569, December.
    4. Hyun-ju Choi, 2021. "Effect of Chief Executive Officer’s Sustainable Leadership Styles on Organization Members’ Psychological Well-Being and Organizational Citizenship Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(24), pages 1-29, December.
    5. Majid Ghasemy & Lena Frömbling, 2023. "A conditional time-varying multivariate latent growth curve model for the relationships between academics’ servant leadership behavior, affective commitment, and job performance during the Covid-19 pa," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 57(5), pages 4657-4680, October.
    6. Sigurdur Ragnarsson & Erla S. Kristjánsdóttir & Sigrún Gunnarsdóttir, 2018. "To Be Accountable While Showing Care: The Lived Experience of People in a Servant Leadership Organization," SAGE Open, , vol. 8(3), pages 21582440188, September.
    7. Ayomikun Idowu & Amany Elbanna, 2022. "Digital Platforms of Work and the Crafting of Career Path: The Crowdworkers’ Perspective," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 441-457, April.
    8. Mar Ortiz-Gómez & Gabriele Giorgi & Horacio Molina-Sánchez & Antonio Ariza-Montes, 2020. "Development and Validation of a Spanish Short Servant Leadership Survey (SSLS6-3F) among Spanish Workers in Religious Non-Profit Organizations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-18, May.
    9. Maria R.H. Takeuchi & Tatsuya Hasegawa & Linda McKinley & Gian Powell Marquez & Keiichi N. Ishihara, 2020. "What Is Suitable Leadership for High-Level Radioactive Waste (HLW) Management?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-15, October.
    10. Ruiz-Palomino, Pablo & Yáñez-Araque, Benito & Jiménez-Estévez, Pedro & Gutiérrez-Broncano, Santiago, 2022. "Can servant leadership prevent hotel employee depression during the COVID-19 pandemic? A mediating and multigroup analysis," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    11. Retno Purwani Setyaningrum & Margono Setiawan & Surachman & Dodi Wirawan Irawanto, 2020. "Servant Leadership Characteristics, Organisational Commitment, Followers’ Trust, Employees’ Performance Outcomes: A Literature Review," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(4), pages 902-911.
    12. Andrea L. Micheaux & Valentina Stan & Annabel Martin-Salerno, 2019. "Knowledge sharing through enterprise social network : the key roles of servant leader virtues and eudaimonic well-being," Post-Print hal-02333035, HAL.

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