Why Leadership Matters When Implementing New Processes or Services
Change is hard. If nothing else, 2020 has forced us out of our comfort zones and propelled us in and out of changes in every dimension of our lives.
We have adopted new ways of work, societal behaviours and new ideologies about the world that we may have never previously considered. It has been a year of change — both good and bad. What can we learn about ourselves and our workplaces when we reflect upon how we navigated these disruptions? Perhaps we start at the top…
Never has leadership been more topical on the world stage. We have watched, cringed and debated the influences of the likes of Donald Trump and, more locally, Dan Andrews during the era of COVID-19. In some capacity, these leaders have guided and impacted our journey of change through this volatile year. Like it or not, leadership has mattered.
In our workplaces, leaders guide and impact the lived employee experience. We, as leaders, have a choice to make. What kind of employee experience do we want to create during times of change and what kind of leadership style can best create that?
One style of leadership that can be effective in managing change and/or new process/service implementation is servant leadership. “Servant leadership is an other-oriented approach to leadership manifested through one-on-one prioritizing of follower individual needs and interests, and outward reorienting of their concern for self towards concern for others within the organization and the larger community” (Eva et al., 2019, p.4). Within the construct of servant leadership is a sub-dimension of transforming influence. Transforming influence reflects promoting and encouraging a sense of change and transformation in followers through projecting vision, empowering followers, role modelling, and trusting (Eva et al., 2019). This transformation across multiple dimensions (e.g. emotionally, intellectually, socially, and spiritually) is contagious, and followers embody servant leadership which stimulates positive changes across organisations and communities (Sendjaya et al., 2008).
When we approach the challenge of implementing a new process or service, embracing this transforming influence can provide the blueprint for the relevant positive changes throughout the organisation. We need to prioritise the elements of the transformation to make the outcome most effective. But how do we, as leaders, do this? Have our political leaders recently been effective in their prioritisation of the elements of their transformations?
Here are four tips, as recommended by servant leadership thought leader, Professor Sen Sendjaya:
1. Articulate a shared vision to give inspiration and meaning
2. Minimise barriers that inhibit others’ success
3. Contribute to others’ personal and professional growth
4. Lead by personal example
By embodying these behaviours as a leader, the tone and mindset of the adoption of the impending process/service implementation becomes something positive that each member can embrace within a shared vision that gives meaning to the change. Alternatively, a poor leadership approach can result in resistance, negativity and poor outcomes as a result of the process/service implementation.
References
Eva, N., Robin, M., Sendjaya, S., van Dierendonck, D., & Liden, R. C. (2019). Servant leadership: A systematic review and call for future research. The Leadership Quarterly, 30(1), 111–132.
Sendjaya, S., Sarros, J. C., & Santora, J. C. (2008). Defining and measuring servant leadership behaviour in organizations. Journal of Management studies, 45(2), 402–424.
