Scrum Master as a Servant Leader

 Character and Servant Leadership: Ten Characteristics of Effective, Caring Leaders


In an article, Larry Spears explains that a good servant leader has 10 characteristics that are of critical importance:

Listening

The servant leader must be willing to listen and identify the will of a group. Hearing it will give him the opportunity to clarify that will. The leader must be able to listen and reflect on what is being said; this is an important aspect of being a servant leader.

Empathy

Empathy is quite an important characteristic for a servant leader to have. A servant leader must accept and recognize the special and unique spirits that exist in each different person. They cannot reject coworkers and colleagues as people, even in difficult conflict situations. A successful servant leader is a great empathetic listener.

Healing

This can be considered one of the strengths of a servant leader: The power of healing one´s self and one´s relationship to others. Servant leaders understand that they can take on a special role within their team/group. They have a special power to fix relationships.

Awareness

Awareness helps people to become stronger. Awareness helps the servant leader to understand issues involving ethics, power, and values. This characteristic helps any servant leader to be able to view situations from a more holistic and integrated position.

Persuasion

A good servant leader tries to convince others, instead of forcing compliance. Usually a successful servant leader is great at building consensus within teams.

Conceptualize

Transforming a big vision into small workable pieces that everyone understands is a great characteristic servant leaders generally have. They have the ability to pick up on daily problems and conceptualize solutions that are understood by everyone.

Foresight

A great servant leader has the capacity to foresee the likely outcome of even the most difficult situation. Using previous experience and present data, they can predict with great accuracy the future outcome of a situation.

Stewardship

Servant leadership involves an inherent commitment to serve the needs of others. It also emphasizes the use of openness and persuasion, rather than control.

Commitment to the Growth of People

Servant leaders believe in true intrinsic motivation. They believe that all people have a lot to contribute to the organization. A great servant leader is committed to helping people to grow within the organization.

Building Community

Building a community among those who work within a given organisation is the last characteristic of a great servant leader. They believe they can create true communities among the people that work within the same organization(s).

Ref: lmsgoncalves.com/2014/08/04/scrum-master-servant-leader/