Co-op Curricula 5: Essential Qualities of Leaders

Summary

This module introduces Servant Leadership as a framework for cooperative leaders. Participants are asked to reflect on their own leadership qualities as well as those of their colleagues. The module introduces appreciations as a way to recognize and celebrate the impact that other’s have on our lives and work. Finally, participants reflect on the role of appreciations in the workplace as well as noticing what structures the co-op has to encourage ongoing regard amongst employees.

Essential Questions:

  • How do I describe my leadership?

  • How do other people experience me as a leader?

  • How does servant leadership apply to my work in a co-op?

Essential Learnings:

  • I notice and value the actions of my co-workers.

  • I am willing to communicate to my co-workers when their actions positively or negatively affect me at work.

  • Identify at least 3 principles of servant leadership and explore similarities and differences with cooperative principles.

4 Pillars

  • Teaming: Linking appreciation and gratitude to successfully working together.

  • Democracy: Naming and recognizing behaviors that support a healthy workplace democracy.

  • Strategic Leadership: Honing workers understanding of their own leadership strengths through self-reflection and recognition contributes to leaders who are self aware.

3 Concepts

  • Transparency: Appreciations increase public knowledge of the important work done by members of the co-op.

  • Cognition: Leadership reflections contribute to a culture of appreciation and an organization that is self-aware.

  • Linkage: Appreciations increase trust that other members are acting in the interest of the co-op

Co-op Rights and Responsibilities:

  • A Community of Differences: A community that cares for my welfare

  • Freedom of Learning: Learn in public: share my development and my works in progress

  • Freedom of Expression: See the good in others and express

Materials:

  • Markers

  • Flip chart paper or board

  • Pens

  • Paper or journals

  • 10 Qualities of a Servant Leader Handout

  • List of cooperative Principles

  • Post-its


Agenda

Welcome everyone into the space and thank them for their participation. Review & Recommit to Public Agreements.

Check in Question

Individually, ask participants to write their answers to the following questions on a piece of paper.

● Write down 3 of your leadership strengths.

● Give at least one example of when you used that strength.

In pairs, participants will read their three leadership strengths aloud to their partner. After each statement, the listener will repeat the strength back to their partner. The listener should pay attention to moments when the speaker lights up or has energy in their voice. The speaker can notice how it feels when the listener reflects back their leadership qualities. The facilitator can model how the process might go.

Servant Leadership is a model introduced by Robert K. Greenleaf who worked at AT&T until 1964. Servant leadership is both a leadership philosophy and set of leadership practices. While traditional leadership is top down, the servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first, and helps people develop capacity.

The metrics of success for servant leadership are:

  • Do those served grow as persons?

  • Do they, while being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants?

Activity

Distribute the 10 Qualities of a Servant Leader Handout.

Many people in this organization are likely practicing the principles of Servant Leadership as they are closely aligned with cooperative principles.

Looking over the list of Servant Leadership principles, what do they have in common with the cooperative principles?

Possible Answers:

  • Building community and concern for community

  • Commitment to growth and Education, Training, and Information

  • Empathy and Equality, Equity and Solidarity

This resource provides several examples of how people in organizations demonstrate servant leadership principles through their actions. This activity will give us an opportunity to appreciate our co-workers. It will also help us become more familiar with the principles and associated actions.

Ask participants to form small groups of 4 people each. Using post-it notes, each person will write one appreciation for each member of their group on a separate post-it note. You can use the servant leadership handout to inspire your appreciations.

Allow 8-10 minutes for members to write their post-it appreciations.

When everyone is done writing, ask everyone stand up, move around the room, and place their post-it appreciations on each person’s back. Allow 5 minutes for the gifting of the appreciation post-its.

When you take your seat review the appreciations you received. You may even want to put them on the handout based on which principle it falls under. Reflect on the appreciations you received.

Debrief by asking participants to share:

  • What appreciation or language do you resonate with?

  • Do you see any themes in your leadership?

  • Is there another principle that you would use to describe your leadership?

Conclusion

Conclude the session by facilitating a conversation with the following questions.

  • How did you feel when you received reflections on your leadership?

  • How did you feel writing appreciations for your colleagues?

  • Why do you think this is important to do in a business environment?

  • What structures or processes do we have in place or would like to put in place to allow us to appreciate each other more often?

References/Facilitator Resources

10 Key Servant Leadership Principles For Use In Participatory Organizations

Listening characterized by

  • paying close attention and affirming the person speaking

  • using active listening skills to ensure accuracy of both content and intent of person speaking

  • remembering what was said

  • reflecting on and using what was said to enrich one’s understanding and inform one’s actions

Empathy characterized by

  • striving to see things through the eyes of others

  • assuming good intentions of co-workers and colleagues

  • accepting the person, while calling for the best from the person

  • Healing (making whole) characterized by

  • healing one’s self and one’s relationship with others

  • helping others overcome broken spirits from emotional hurts

  • being able to apologize to followers when wrong in an authentic and healing manner

  • forgiving and helping others forgive

  • Awareness characterized by

  • high level of self-awareness of strengths and limitations

  • being turned in to ethics, power, and values dimensions of organizational life

  • having an inner serenity in order to be sharply awake to the reality of present situation

  • recognizing the difference between the urgent and the important, and choosing the important

  • recognizing when and how to change pace and activity in order to find renewal

Leading by persuasion characterized by

  • attempting to build consensus

  • striving for shared understanding of all stakeholders

  • providing reasons for a course of action and involving people in decision making and problem solving

  • convincing other (vs. coercing and manipulating based on positional authority)

Conceptualization characterized by

  • being able to see the big picture and think

  • being able to think about the complexities of the organization in systems terms

  • being able to think beyond day-to-day realities of the present to future possibilities

Farsightedness characterized by

  • spotting opportunities early

  • spotting problems early

  • helping the organization respond to opportunities and problems early (vs. being forced by events)

Stewardship characterized by

  • seeing a personal role of holding the organization in trust for the greater common good of society

  • being accountable and sharing control

Commitment to the growth of people characterized by

  • affirming the uniqueness and value of each person to the overall mission of the organization

  • taking active steps toward nurturing the personal and professional growth of employees and colleagues

Building community characterized by

  • providing opportunities for employees to build personal connections with one another that transcend the work roles of the persons

  • seeking to build trust throughout the organization

Greenleaf, R. K. (n.d.). What is Servant Leadership? Retrieved May 31, 2017, from https://www.greenleaf.org/what-is-servant-leadership/