MHD SUPPLY CHAIN
SERVANT LEADERSHIP IN SUPPLY CHAIN
Last month, Vative held a roundtable in the Melbourne suburb of Carlton where leaders from a range of industries listened to speakers talk about servant leadership. MHD found out more when it spoke to some of its key attendees after the event.
Theo Pappas, CEO of Vative, has served as an executive at Vative since 2010. He attributes his passion for servant leadership to his early experience in the hospitality industry, where the very notion of service to others is paramount.
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here is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of what kind of leadership is best for business. However, more and more companies are finding that a servant leadership mindset can be extremely beneficial, both in terms of achieving success and building a culture of Continuous Improvement. Servant leadership is all about putting the needs of others first and serving them in order to help them reach their full potential. This may seem counterintuitive in a business setting, but servant leaders may be more effective than traditional leaders. This is due to their focus on creating an environment where people feel valued and motivated to do their best work. When it comes to the supply chain industry, a servant leadership mindset can be especially beneficial. Supply chain management involves coordinating the efforts of a large number of people and organisations, which can be difficult to do if everyone is focused on their own goals and objectives. By adopting a servant leadership approach, leaders can encourage their team members to work together towards a common goal. In a world where change is the only constant, companies that are able to work together cohesively to continuously improve their operations will be the ones that succeed in the long run. 38 | MHD AUGUST 2022
Business Optimisation Specialists, Vative, held an industry-led event where they delved into the mindset, philosophy, and behaviours of servant leadership. MHD had the opportunity to speak with key industry leaders and explore their perspectives on the matter. Mark Oliver, leadership expert and CEO of MarkTwo Consulting was a guest speaker at the event. Originally from England, he trained at the highly regarded Royal Military Academy. The army’s motto was “serve to lead”. It means to put others before oneself and requires humility and caring for those you lead. “I’ve worked with 60 different nationalities across 20 countries and numerous industries, and I have found a vast range of leadership styles, but consistently, the ones I find who lead better, are those who adopt a servant leadership approach.” “It’s about putting your staff and your customers before yourself,” Stephen Lakey, Board Member of the Supply Chain & Logistics Association of Australia (SCLAA), says, commenting on what servant leadership means to him. “And I think if the management are vested in the staff, and the staff are vested in the customers, then amazing things are going to happen – I think that’s the key,” he adds. Stephen notes that the SCLAA has
been practising servant leadership for a while. He says it wouldn’t be possible for someone to be a leader at the Association if they didn’t employ the principles of servant leadership.
THE UPSIDE-DOWN PYRAMID The benefits of servant leadership Stephen’s seen are related to turning the hierarchical pyramid upside down. “They’re not just hitting targets doing what their job description says,” he notes. “They are loyal, they know that the leader has their back, that they’re not doing anything that the leader wouldn’t do themselves.” This creates a team environment where all the employees including the leaders have an aim and are moving towards it together. “I think that the corporate world is really missing out on that key leadership style,” Stephen says. He adds that organisations would find it advantageous if they adopted the servant leadership ethos and ditched the older, autocratic style.
A FLAT LEADERSHIP CURVE Paul Robson, Operations Manager at Redline Engineering, says that servant leadership is concerned with caring about people and having them at the forefront of your mind because it creates a better work environment for everyone,