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Servant Leadership Certificate

Upcoming dates (1)

For registration assistance: 608-262-2451

Summary

Please note that this class will meet in a highly interactive, live online classroom. There will be reading assignments, videos and offline reflective work in between sessions to enhance your learning and application of new skills and ideas.

This newly re-designed certificate examines the concepts, history and real-world practice of servant leadership. A Servant Leadership approach emphasizes meeting the needs of the organization's employees, customers, other stakeholders and the broader community. This series will also emphasize participant clarification of personal values and the development of goals for how they will embody and apply this form of leadership. Instruction will include an overview of the principles of the founder of Servant Leadership, Robert Greenleaf and then focus on more modern applications of Servant Leadership with specific examples from both profit and nonprofit organizations. The challenges and opportunities of this leadership style will also be explored as preparation for participants navigating their own leadership journey as they create shared purpose within their teams and organizations.

All readings for the class will be provided in view-only digital PDF format. If participants would like a personal copy of the book from which the majority of readings are taken, we recommend purchasing a copy of Practicing Servant Leadership: Developments in Implementation by Dierendonck and Patterson (2018).

See what participants are saying about this course.


Watch this short video describing servant leadership and how it can help your organization.

Overview

The best leaders are clear. They continually light the way, and in the process, let each person know that what they do makes a difference. The best test as a leader is: Do those served grow as persons; do they become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become leaders?
Robert K. Greenleaf

Examine the core aspects of servant leadership and incorporate those learnings into your professional life. Designed for formal or informal leaders at any level in the organization and open to leaders in private business, health care, human services, nonprofit, or public sector. We cover servant leadership foundations, leadership through self-awareness, connecting servant leadership to your world and bringing servant leadership to life.

Program objectives

Participants will:

  • Gain a fundamental understanding of the unique approach of Servant Leadership as a leadership style.
  • Explore the advantages, challenges and paradoxes inherent in adopting a Servant Leadership approach.
  • Examine and refine personal leadership values using self-reflection through focused dialogue, journal writing and other methods in order to develop their personal leadership values and articulate them to others.
  • Analyze Servant Leadership principles, determine how those principles can be applied, and identify areas for further personal development.
  • Review specific examples of organizations that have operationalized servant leader principles to gain application insights and inspiration.
  • Explore how servant-let organizations can impact community society and systems historically and in a contemporary context.

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Overview: Extra Information

SHRM Recertification Provider 2022 seal

Continuing Studies is recognized by SHRM to offer Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for the SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP®.

Course Outline

Program sessions

All five sessions are required to receive the certificate. These sessions will be interactive and there will also be some reflective work and reading for participants to complete outside of class. As part of the in-class portion of the five sessions, you will experience guest speakers who are actively practicing servant leadership in their organizations who will share personal insights.

Session 1: Servant Leadership Foundations

Session 2: Personal and Organizational Challenges of Servant Leadership

Session 3: Serving Customers/Clients/Citizens

Session 4: Servant Leadership at the Team and Organizational Level

Session 5: Connecting Servant Leadership to Community and the World

Earn Continuing Education Hours

By participating in this class you will earn:

Instructional Hours 33
University of Wisconsin Continuing Education Units 3.3

Explanation of Continuing Education Hours

Upcoming dates (1)

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Program Questions?

Contact Katie Holt at katie.holt@wisc.edu

Registration Questions?

Email registrations@pyle.wisc.edu or call 608-262-2451.

Continuing Studies FAQs

Meet your instructors

Laura V. Page

Laura V. Page (MS, UW-Madison; MS-J, Northwestern Univ.) is the area director for the leadership and management programs at UW-Madison Continuing Studies. Page was an independent management consultant for more than two decades and is a frequent seminar instructor, staff retreat planner and keynote speaker.

John Rutkiewicz

(MS, UW-Milwaukee) is an organizational consultant. He brings more than 25 years of experience as a leader and manager in fields ranging from sales and marketing to customer service and finance. He is a certified coach and conflict mediator who specializes in leadership development, coaching, top-team alignment, conflict resolution and interpersonal communication.

Mary Beth Collins

 (JD, UW-Madison), is the Executive Director of the Center for Community and Nonprofit Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She brings to this role a passion for understanding and improving the role of the “third sector” and decades of experience working as a teacher, attorney, and nonprofit director. The binding theme from her career and volunteer experiences is the advancement of the well-being of all communities, families, and mission-based enterprises.

What Attendees Are Saying

A great program that gave me a better understanding of what Servant Leadership is, the benefits and challenges with it, and how to apply it within my world. Great perspectives, points of view, and real-world applications.
Roger McClung, Director of Learning & Development, Agropur Inc.
An immersive 5 days of learning, and growth. Enjoyed the instructors, and my fellow students. I take away many new learnings that I'll incorporate into my life, and my life mission.
Nikhil Kumar, Adjunct Professor, Westchester Community College, NY
The Servant Leadership Course provided me an opportunity for personal growth in developing a leadership style that reflects my values, thoughtful reflection on methods, and challenged me to live a life of service in both my professional and personal life. Servant Leadership answers the desire to serve and aspires one to lead. A valuable course in developing those who answer the call to serve others, and develop the framework for successful Leaders. I would highly recommend the course as it opens up new opportunities to develop high-performance teams based on identifying personal skills and strengths.
Jennifer Shilling, Wisconsin State Senator, 2011-2020