Page 43 - Harnessing the Strengths

26 ■ Servant-Leadership: In a Nutshell

these experiences have been scientifi cally documented for
many years, creating a treasure trove of information. As
a result, which approach works with which problems is
something that has been explored in detail. If one thing has
become clear, it is that when it comes to intercultural dilem-
mas, there is no standard approach. On the other hand,
there is one constant in endless diversity: the approach of
combining opposites works. THT’s database, which holds
the culture values of 90,000 people, with 8,000 dilemmas
validated with 1,500 interviews, supports this.
Another source is the servant-leadership movement.
The Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership in Amer-
ica, and the center in Europe by the same name, offer a
wealth of experience when it comes to organizations that
work with servant-leadership. It is often said that of the top
ten companies listed in Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to
Work For in America, six are based on the principles of
servant-leadership, including TDIndustries, Synovis, the
coffee chain Starbucks, and Southwest Airlines. 2

Notes

1 John F. Kennedy, speech at The American University, Washington,
DC, June 10, 1963.
2 Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For in America (http://
money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/bestcompanies/2008/index
.html).