Page 151 - Harnessing the Strengths

134 ■ Servant-Leadership in the Intercultural Practice

horizon differences between R&D and marketing as func-
tional groups, for example, showed that the time horizons
of those in marketing were clearly shorter than those work-
ing in R&D.
Figure 10.2 illustrates some of the scores, per func-
tional group.

Problems and Solutions

The time-related dimensions have to do with the manner in
which people experience the passing of time: chronologi-
cally or in recurring patterns, as well as whether something
is of a short or long duration. As a result of these orienta-
tions, the following tensions can arise:

• Past, present versus future
• “Hare brain” versus “tortoise mind”
• Command and control versus delegated autonomy
• Successive versus parallel

Past, Present Versus Future

Should servant-leaders preoccupy themselves with lead-
ing their colleagues to a richer and brighter future or do
they serve them better by having respect for the past? The
answer is, clearly, the servant-leader does both. This was
certainly the case for a manager of a Dutch company in
Ethiopia who was considerably frustrated by the planning
of a workshop on change management, organized for, and
with, Ethiopian managers. No matter what issue was dis-
cussed, the Ethiopians had the constant desire to return to
the far past of their history. Development principles that