Podcast Summary: The Evolution of Servant Leadership

Maxwell Leadership Executive Podcast – Episode #368
Hosts: Chris Goede (Executive VP, Maxwell Leadership) & Perry Holley (Facilitator and Coach, Maxwell Leadership)
Date: October 30, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode explores the evolution of servant leadership in today's constantly changing workplace. Perry Holley brings fresh insights from recent research and his own leadership training experience, examining how the servant leadership model is adapting for hybrid, tech-driven environments, and younger generations. The hosts discuss how empathy, technology, and a renewed focus on purpose are transforming what it means to serve as a leader. The conversation emphasizes practical steps and mindset shifts leaders need to engage teams and create organizational cultures built on trust, resilience, and genuine care.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Changing Perception of Servant Leadership

• Historical Context: Rooted in Robert Greenleaf’s 1970s work, servant leadership has often been misunderstood or dismissed as “soft.”
• Modern Shift: Today’s complex work environments—hybrid teams, remote work, tech integration, diverse generations—demand a more dynamic approach to serving others as leaders.
• Naming the Concept: Some organizations still resist the term “servant leadership,” preferring alternatives like “leading with love”—though even that can be a hard sell.
  • Quote:

    “I did suggest Leading with Love and their heads exploded.” — Perry Holley [02:08]

2. Empathy, Mental Wellbeing, and Emotional Resilience

• New Priorities: The pandemic, remote work, and generational expectations have brought mental health to the forefront.
• Action Items: Leaders must now:
  • Regularly check in with team members
  • Normalize conversations about stress and isolation
  • Create opportunities for genuine connection and renewal
• Emotional Resilience: Servant leadership now involves proactively fostering resilience and supporting team members through stress and burnout.
  • Quote:

    “Servant leadership now means prioritizing emotional resilience.” — Chris Goede [05:11]

• Vulnerability: Leaders are called to show vulnerability and authenticity to build trust and help team members through challenges.
  • Quote:

    “The only way to do that is to take a different approach than just worrying about the metrics...” — Chris Goede [05:52]

3. Empowerment vs. Micromanagement

• Empowerment: Leaders should move away from “command and control” towards a coaching mindset, trusting team autonomy.
• The Shepherd Analogy: A servant leader’s role is likened to a shepherd’s—guiding, protecting, nourishing, and removing obstacles so the team can thrive.
  • Quote:

    “One of the most helpful word pictures I find for servant leadership is that of a shepherd with sheep…” — Perry Holley [07:01]

• Goal: Develop a culture that multiplies skills and capabilities, instead of only driving results.

4. Technology as an Amplifier for Servant Leadership

• Challenges & Opportunities: While technology shouldn’t replace the human element, it can help foster connection and inclusivity—what the hosts call “intimacy at scale.”
• Example: A company of 10,000 can still create personal moments and transparency using digital tools.
  • Quote:

    “Using things to be able to communicate with transparency, but yet inclusivity inside the organization, the key…is intimacy at scale.” — Chris Goede [08:22]

• Warning: Technology should amplify relationship-building, not substitute it.

5. Purpose-Driven Leadership and Younger Generations

• Generational Shifts: Millennials and Gen Z care just as much about meaning and impact as about money and success.
• Leader’s Role: Leaders are responsible for connecting people’s daily work to a larger purpose—even if it feels like “not your job.”
  • Quotes:

    “You don’t think that’s your job, do you?” — Perry Holley [11:04]
    “If I told you, if you help them, would it make your organization have more highly engaged individuals...Would that work for you?” — Perry Holley [11:21]

• Engagement: When people see the impact of their work, loyalty and engagement rise beyond what financial rewards can accomplish.
• Addressing “Just” Language: Shift team member mindsets from “I just do X” to seeing their contribution as vital to the big picture.
  • Quote:

    “If your people are using the word ‘just,’ yeah, I have a problem with that. So help them.” — Perry Holley [12:21]

6. Self-Care: Servant Leadership Starts with the Leader

• Leadership Begins Internally: Effective servant leadership requires first investing in one’s own physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing.
• Modeling Behavior: Leaders set the tone for healthy boundaries and resilience.
  • Quote:

    “You cannot pour from an empty cup. You cannot give what you do not have.” — Chris Goede [16:28]

• Shepherd Analogy Part II: The shepherd (leader) must stay healthy to care for the sheep (team).
  • Quote:

    “If the shepherd goes down, the sheep hurt.” — Perry Holley [17:39]

7. Servant Leadership as a System and Competency

• From Philosophy to Practice: Servant leadership is evolving from an abstract value or “soft skill” to a vital, trainable competency embedded within organizational operating systems.
• Required Behaviors: This approach can and should be learned, practiced, and expected at every leadership level.

8. Real-Life Example & Call to Action

• Personal Story: Chris Goede shares how, during a recent team meeting, leadership focused on supporting a colleague facing a health challenge—demonstrating servant leadership through care and collective action.
  • Quote:

    “I didn’t want the meeting to go without setting a tone that we were there to serve that individual…as a team.” — Chris Goede [19:55]

• Engagement & Culture: Small moments like these build a genuine servant leadership culture.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On naming servant leadership:
  “I did suggest Leading with Love and that their heads exploded.” — Perry Holley [02:08]

• On emotional resilience:
  “Servant leadership now means prioritizing emotional resilience.” — Chris Goede [05:11]

• Shepherd analogy:
  “One of the most helpful word pictures I find for servant leadership is that of a shepherd with sheep.” — Perry Holley [07:01]

• On technology:
  “The key in the phrase here is intimacy at scale…servant leaders can create a personal connection through real time.” — Chris Goede [08:22]

• On purpose:
  “If your people are using the word ‘just’...help them.” — Perry Holley [12:21]

• On self-care:
  “You cannot give what you do not have.” — Chris Goede [16:28]
  “If the shepherd goes down, the sheep hurt.” — Perry Holley [17:39]

• On hard work:
  “People say servant leadership sounds soft. I said it’s not subservient leadership. It’s servant leadership. And it’s hard. If you’ve ever done it, it’s probably the hardest thing you’ll ever do.” — Perry Holley [17:57]

Timestamps for Major Segments

• [00:24] Introduction & episode theme
• [01:51] Origins, naming, and evolving perceptions of servant leadership
• [03:22] The role of empathy and mental wellbeing in today’s leadership
• [06:04] Empowerment vs. micromanagement; shepherd analogy
• [08:08] Servant leadership and technology: intimacy at scale
• [10:00] New generational focus: purpose and meaning in work
• [13:59] Role of the leader in connecting purpose
• [15:58] Reframing servant leadership as self-care, not self-sacrifice
• [17:29] Self-care & shepherd analogy revisited
• [18:35] Servant leadership as a system and learned competency
• [19:54] Real-life example of team care and servant-leadership in action
• [21:29] Closing thoughts & call to embrace servant leadership foundations

Final Thoughts

The evolution of servant leadership is ongoing, integrating empathy, empowerment, and purpose with the realities of digital communication and diverse workforces. Today’s servant leader must be emotionally intelligent, tech-savvy, purpose-driven, and above all, proactive in both self-care and team support. As the hosts conclude, servant leadership is the true foundation of influence, engagement, and organizational success.

Resource: For tools like the team purpose assessment or to learn more about servant leadership training, visit maxwellleadership.com/executivepodcast.