There are many heroes in the business sector, such as Bill Gates, who founded Microsoft, Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple and Li Ka-Shing of CK Hutchison. They are also the idols of many workers in the era of strongman leadership. As times change, the number of heroes is gradually reduced. This is not unrelated to the gradual loss of influence of mainstream media, but the main reason is that business models are changing. 

In fact, we can realize from the changes of Apple Inc. We all know that Tim Cook is the heir of Steve Jobs. However, he did not inherit the legacy of Steve Jobs. Apple focuses on efficiency and data, but not innovation and design under the leadership of Tim Cook. This is shown by the resignation of Jony Ive, former chief designer of Apple. Therefore, Tim Cook lacks the conditions of being a hero even though the market value of Apple has risen a lot during his tenure. 

This is true for the world's most valuable companies, and so is the business world. In the post-heroic era, the success of an enterprise is no longer about strong leadership, but about the cooperation of technology, management and efficiency. The management concept of adapting to the trend, Servant Leadership is one of them.  

Actually, the concept of Servant Leadership is not new. It has happened for more than 50 years. It was first mentioned in "The Servant as Leader" by Robert K. Greenleaf in 1970. However, it becomes popular after the Year 2000. I believe that there are two main reasons, one of which is the trend of decentralization. In the past, we get in touch with the world through media. Many heroes are created since the media need wonderful stories. However, social media has greatly changed the distance between people after the Year 2000. We don’t have to know the celebrities through mainstream media, but we can contact them directly on social media. This makes celebrities from different sectors no longer out of reach. The young generation no longer pursues the vertical relationship between upper and lower levels at work under this culture, but a more intimate horizontal relationship. 

Another reason is that the business models have been greatly changed by technology improvement. In the past, doing business was very focused on the vision of a leader. They basically win if they can see the accurate timing and market development. However, the competition is the combination of technology application and business model, and the emphasis is on the ability of execution that can compete with time. Modern enterprises tend to develop horizontally. It’s impossible for leaders to be familiar with all professions. However, they need to complete the jobs by leading other professionals according to different projects.

This makes it unsustainable for a "single core" approach to leadership. The strength of the enterprise can be reflected by the strength of the team. In this trend, Servant Leadership has begun to gain attention since the role of the leader has changed. 

Servant Leadership is not literally. The leader is to be the servant of the team, but the leader himself has the characteristics of a servant in order to serve the team. There is no specific style of servant leadership, but there are principles such as empathy, listening, and a positive attitude. Leaders give full play to the strength of the team with these elements. Thus, let's not misunderstand that servant leadership reduces the status of the leader, and the leader can be quite powerful even when servant leadership is practiced. 

Nowadays, it is common for many companies to handle jobs with the style of Project Management. Among the management styles, Agile is emerging fast. This is a way to respond quickly to market changes, accepting any changes as they go along. The most special thing is that Agile takes the team as the core. The team decides the execution method, while the project manager is responsible for assisting the team to achieve the goal.

In the views of the new generation, the people who really implement the work are the employees themselves, and they are the ones who understand the work itself best. Meanwhile, the new generation also expects to learn different things from leaders. Thus, how to use servant leadership effectively is a test of the leader's own skills. If leadership skills are insufficient, servant leadership may be distorted, and the leaders become true "servants."

Simon So

Head of Digital Marketing