practicing servant leadership
F R ATE R N IT Y VALU E : P H I L ANTH RO P I C S E RVI CE TO OTH E RS
S U G G E STE D FACI LITATO R : VI CE P R E S I D E NT O F P H I L ANTH RO PY
Goals:
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To educate members on the differences between traditional leadership and servant leadership
To engage members in identifying how servant leadership could be applied in different scenarios
To allow members to identify things they would change within their chapter and Greek community
To allow members to practice their leadership skills and decision-making processes through the use of small groups
and skits
Room setup/materials needed:
• The space should be large enough for members to spread out and work in small groups, as well as come back together
as a large group for skits
• A time-keeping device
• Printed copies of the scenarios listed in “Before the Activity”
Getting Started
Talking points are indicated with a callout bullet (). Please use these as speaking guidelines, but be sure to jazz up the
presentation with your own personality. Facilitation instructions are indicated with an arrow ( ) and serve as hints you might
find helpful when administering the material. Most importantly, have fun!
The Vice President of Philanthropy should review the table of traditional leadership versus servant leadership, and
decide the best way to present this to the chapter. For example, she could choose to print copies of the table for the
members, make a PowerPoint presentation or use her committee to help present.
Divide the number of members in the chapter by seven (the number of scenarios below), so you know ahead of time
how many people should be in each small group.
Print out the following scenarios for the skits. There should be one scenario per page, so that each group has a different
situation to address.
• You hear two members from your chapter talking on the way to class one afternoon about the preparty they are having at their apartment before the Pi Phi formal on Friday night. You know there is a
good chance underage members will be drinking at the party.
• A member refuses to participate in a community service project. She says that she cannot be forced to
volunteer.
• You are a member of Executive Council, and there is a chapter member who is not fulfilling her
duties and responsibilities in Pi Beta Phi. She is not attending meetings, doing her house duties,
nor is she current with her Pi Phi bill. The Vice President of Administration has confronted her
repeatedly and she has been called to meet with the Policy & Standards Board, but the behavior
continues.
• You overhear a few members in the hallway discussing the scavenger hunt they had for their little
sisters last night. You learn the hunt involved shots of alcohol, blindfolds and singing inappropriate
songs to fraternity men.
• You are working in the Student Affairs office and are tasked
with developing one new program to implement in student dorms that would improve residence life.
• You are working with the Panhellenic Council and are tasked with developing one new program that
would help improve the Greek community.
• You have graduated college, and are now working at an advertising agency. Your boss instructs you to
work with a team of seven others to plan a marketing campaign for a local food bank.
Instructions
Introduce the activity:
 Today we are going to take our understanding of servant leadership one step further by looking at how servant
leadership could be applied to different real life scenarios. We are going to be broken up into groups, and each
group will be given a different scenario. Your group will be asked to perform two skits. First, a skit of how a
traditional leader would address the situation and second, a skit of how a servant leader would approach it.
 Before we get started on the skits, let’s make sure we understand the differences between traditional leadership
and servant leadership.
Use the following chart to discuss the eight differences between traditional leadership and servant leadership. Read the
characteristics of traditional leadership one at a time, stopping after each one to ask members how they think servant
leadership differs. After they answer, read the corresponding characteristic in the servant leadership column. Items
in italics have been added to help the facilitator offer further clarification or explanation of a characteristic of servant
leadership. For example, say the following:
 The first characteristic of traditional leadership is: “Leaders direct, followers respond.” How might this be
different under servant leadership?
 In servant leadership: “Followers give input, leaders respond.” Leaders react to what the people they’re serving
have to say, versus just acting and expecting others to follow.
Traditional Leadership
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Leaders direct; followers respond
Authoritative; hierarchical
Relies heavily on power, command & control
Drives completion of tasks and short-term
objectives
Recognizes an organization’s independence
and freedom
Leaders are primarily responsible
Be a leader or a follower
Either serve or lead
Servant Leadership
1. Followers give input; leaders respond (A servant
leader reacts, a traditional leaders acts)
2. Consultative, participative (Include others, work
in a team. Listen to all ideas before forming an
action plan)
3. Relies heavily on influence/persuasion (Explain
why the audience should care, or how they will
benefit)
4. Drives growth and development of people and
achievement of visionary dreams (Completion of
the project should benefit everyone, whether they
learn a new skill through working on it or achieve
a benefit from the completed end goal)
5. Recognizes an organization’s social
responsibility (Keep our core value of
Philanthropic Service to Others in mind. Be aware
of how your actions will affect those outside just
your organization.)
6. Followers are primarily responsible (It’s everyone’s
project, not just one person’s)
7. Know when to lead and when to follow
(Delegate, and listen to other’s opinions)
8. Both serve and lead
After reviewing the eight differences, instruct members in the second part of the activity.
 Now that we’ve discussed the differences between traditional and servant leadership, it’s time to apply that
knowledge to real life situations. We’ll divide up into groups, and each group will be given a scenario.
Remember, you will be doing two skits: one of how traditional leadership would approach the situation, and
one of how servant leadership would approach it. You will be given 15 minutes to discuss your scenario and
plan your skit. Are there any questions?
Divide members into groups and pass out the scenarios.
After 15 minutes, ask members to come back together as a large group. Help facilitate the skits by calling on groups
individually to present.
Final Wrap-Up
After participants have finished presenting, ask them the following questions:
 Servant leadership is a lesson we can use not only in our chapter, but in our lives after college. When we
practice servant leadership, we engage every single one of our Pi Phi core values.
 How did your understanding of leadership change through this seminar?
 Raise your hand if you are in a leadership position within this chapter, a student organization or a project for
class or work. What changes will you make to your leadership style based on this seminar? How will that affect
the project you’re working on?
 How many of you thought that this was a good seminar? What did you like or dislike about it?
 As we leave today, let’s challenge ourselves to practice servant leadership throughout the week.
Thank members for coming and end the seminar.
At the following chapter meeting, consider recognizing members who you’ve observed going above and beyond in
implementing servant leadership after the seminar with a certificate or small gift (candy, gift card, etc).
Evaluation: Don’t forget to help the Fraternity assess this program. The program facilitator, as well as a member of each class,
should be asked to visit the Leading with Values® pages on the website, www.pibetaphi.org/leadingwithvalues, to fill out a
quick survey. Remember, the name of this seminar is Practicing Servant Leadership.
The chapter’s Vice President of Member Development should remember to record the presentation of this program in the
chapter’s monthly regional report and in their Chapter Evaluation.