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Reply should be 300-400 words (excluding references), should contain 1 internal reference (a reference to a textbook page) and 1 external reference (a reference to a business journal/magazine article either those that are


One of the risks associated with servant leadership is not being able to lead effectively. Servant leaders are viewed as the kinds of leaders that put their employees first and want to serve them by developing them and helping them grow. While this a good concept servant leader implies following, and following is viewed as the opposite of leading (Northouse, 2019, p. 496) Servant leaders can be viewed by their employees as not being able to be direct or make decisions, which is a risk associated with this leadership style.

Another risk that is associated with servant leadership is that the leader is not able to lead effectively when confronted with conflict. While servant leaders tend to put others first, they can also lack the need to be direct and discipline when needed. They are focused on helping their employees grow and this could interfere with their ability to confront conflict when employees are not performing. Servant leaders need to be able to support and develop their employees while also being direct and maintaining their leader status.



It is possible to practice servant leadership in a virtual environment because servant leaders are focused on their followers. This would be the most ideal form of leadership for a virtual environment because the leader would focus on their employees to ensure they are performing and be willing to invest in each employee even though they are not in the same place. Stone states The servant leader does not serve with primary focus on results; rather the servant leader focuses on service itself (Stone, Russell, Patterson, 2004, p. 355) With this mindset the leader can focus on each individual and help develop their strengths to reach the organizations goals. This would be helpful in a virtual environment because this would ensure that each follower is receiving the necessary attention to develop in his or her career.



Northouse, P. G. (2019). Leadership: theory and practice (8th ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE Publications.

Stone, A. G., Russell, R. F., & Patterson, K. (2004). Transformational versus servant leadership: a difference in leader focus. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 25(4), 349361. doi: 10.1108/01437730410538671