The Servant Leader … James Autry

I see the Autry’s Servant Leader book as a great read and wonderful guide for reference for leaders. His lessons and concepts are great for building an organization from its infancy or refining from within an organization. In connection with my vision for change, I will use as a refresher when building out my initiative to attract over 200 African American women interested in public leadership for a summit to create their career pathway.

In order to build this vision out, I will need to organize a great team of professionals committed to the cause. I will need to be the model of servant leadership for the organizing team, strategic partners and stakeholders and illustrate authenticity, standards for ethics, morals and accountability. I love the questionnaire presented in the book and surely plan to use as a screening and development tool for the organizing team. I know right off people due to the unique backgrounds will not be amenable to philosophy, but I truly believe once they understand the vision it will not be hard to adapt. The questionnaire not only allows me the privilege to understand the interviewee, but also for the interviewee to stop, think and take a closer maybe different inventory of their beliefs and principles. And this outcome can be used as a great growth plan as well which benefits both the organization and the individual.

As it will be my charge to share the vision with clarity, provide examples of outcomes, and present short wins, which I hope will help make team members into believers and create overall buy-in. Inevitably, yes there will be times when individuals may get off track and there is a crisis period, but with the initial selection of the right team members and trust we will prevail.

Autry’s guide provides a step-by-step reference guide that is not meant to be used all at once, but if the foundation of servant leadership is built initially, then its use is for maintenance and reference when needed to sustain a healthy environment within the organization.

Keeping in mind, as Autry mentions in his book one cannot expect overnight success. When creating an environment conducive for sustainable outcomes, the work is always a work in progress. Years ago I read and fell in love with the Starbucks story by Howard Shultz. Shultz’s vision did not happen overnight, it was through a series of trials, tribulations and recalibrations that took place from within the organization and also in connection with his personal experiences, perseverance and travels abroad that he was able to incorporate his vision, passion and rebranding ideas into the Starbucks that we know today.

Timely, Shultz was able to build a dynamic force of team leaders who believed in his vision and overall to his success was due to the face he put his employees first. If knew if they believed in the vision they would convey that sparkle, energy and love for the Starbucks product to the customer and their experience. I have been a consistent daily Starbucks customer for many years. I see and feel his passion and vision.

Because I know this story, I can see and easily translate the winning model into my framework of possibilities and vision to create a pathway for African American women leaders to increase their numbers in public leadership. Their leadership would help to equalize the ratio of women to men in elected office. Their voices will be the champions to the urban communities that are left with fewer resources, and programs which lead to poor educational systems, high rates of unemployment, mass incarceration, gentrification and much more inequities and atrocities in urban communities. African-American women would champion their causes to allocate for more monies for head start and after school programs to decrease high school drop-out rates, job-training programs to keep fathers in the homes with their families, off drugs and out of prisons, and senior services so aging parents are not left homeless and hungry.

The more authentic servant leaders we have on the planet the more harmonious all of our communities will be in the future.