Articles / Servant Leadership Compared to Followership: Key Differences
Leadership Theories & ModelsCompare servant leadership to followership. Discover their similarities, differences, and how these complementary concepts drive organisational success.
Written by Laura Bouttell • Sat 10th January 2026
Servant leadership compared to followership reveals two complementary orientations within the same organisational dynamic—servant leaders prioritise serving those they lead, whilst effective followers actively support organisational goals through disciplined engagement with leadership direction, creating a symbiotic relationship where each role enables the other's success. Understanding both concepts illuminates how organisations function most effectively.
The relationship between servant leadership and followership represents one of organisational theory's most productive tensions. Robert K. Greenleaf, who coined "servant leadership" in 1970, embedded followership at the heart of his framework—his test for servant leaders asks whether followers grow, develop, and themselves become servants. Meanwhile, followership theory has matured beyond passive compliance toward active, thinking engagement with leadership.
This guide examines servant leadership and followership in depth, comparing their characteristics, exploring their intersection, and offering practical guidance for those occupying either role.
Clear definitions establish foundation for meaningful comparison.
"Servant Leadership is a leadership approach in which the primary goal of the leader is to serve others. This leadership style prioritises the needs of the team members, the organisation, and the community above the self. The servant leader empowers and develops people, demonstrates humility, and contributes to the well-being of others."
Servant leadership characteristics:
"Followership refers to the behaviours and attitudes of individuals acting in a subordinate role. While it may sound less glamorous than leadership, followership is equally important in any organisation or team. Effective followers are not just passive observers but active participants in their organisation's success."
Followership characteristics:
"Followership and leadership are a symbiotic relationship—one cannot exist without the other. Leadership and followership are two sides of the same coin, with each playing a crucial role in the functioning and success of any team or organisation."
These concepts share important common ground.
"Followers and servant leaders both value commitment, servitude, enthusiasm, flexibility, and versatility. There is also a great deal of trust and mutual respect. Followers trust their leader's guidance and respect their direction, and servant leaders trust their followers' abilities and respect them as a person."
Common values:
| Value | Servant Leadership Expression | Followership Expression |
|---|---|---|
| Commitment | Dedicated to follower growth | Dedicated to organisational goals |
| Service | Serving followers' needs | Serving leader and organisation |
| Trust | Trusting follower capabilities | Trusting leader direction |
| Respect | Respecting individual worth | Respecting leadership role |
| Flexibility | Adapting to follower needs | Adapting to changing requirements |
"Both followership and servant leadership involve working together towards a common goal. Both require effective communication and collaboration between the leader and the followers. Both emphasise the importance of building positive relationships and trust within the team. Both encourage active participation and engagement from all team members."
Shared goal characteristics:
Both roles require sophisticated interpersonal capabilities:
Communication similarities:
Despite similarities, fundamental distinctions exist.
"A servant leader serves their followers, and followers serve their leader. The main difference between followership and servant leadership is the amount of responsibility and demand."
Service direction comparison:
| Aspect | Servant Leader | Follower |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Service Focus | Followers' needs | Leader and organisation |
| Responsibility Level | Higher organisational accountability | Task and role accountability |
| Decision Scope | Broader strategic decisions | Narrower operational decisions |
| Success Measurement | Follower growth and development | Task completion and contribution |
"In followership, the focus is on following the leader's vision and goals, while in servant leadership, the focus is on serving and meeting the needs of others. Followership involves obedience and following instructions, while servant leadership involves empowering and supporting the growth of others."
Orientation differences:
"A servant leader as a manager or superior will often have more job responsibilities than their followers, and more of the organisational success will rest on their shoulders."
Responsibility comparison:
| Dimension | Servant Leader | Follower |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Broad, organisational | Focused, role-specific |
| Accountability | Ultimate results | Contribution quality |
| Demand Level | Higher complexity | Variable by role |
| Authority | Formal and informal | Primarily informal |
"With servant leadership, trust and patience are crucial aspects. On the other hand, followership demands discipline and obedience."
Emphasis differences:
Robert Greenleaf's original test reveals deep connection between concepts.
"This presentation looks at servant-leadership and its companion servant followership under the lens of Robert K. Greenleaf's work which was ripe with followership content; in fact, he provided the test for servant-leaders which is all about followership—do followers grow, develop, and become servants."
The test asks:
"To note Greenleaf's test is follower-focused and does not ask if followers become leaders but rather asks if followers become servants."
This subtle distinction matters enormously:
Greenleaf's work implies a companion concept: servant followership—followers who themselves embody service orientation whilst following.
Servant followership characteristics:
Research illuminates the psychology underlying both concepts.
"Servant leadership theory places a greater emphasis on attending to the needs of followers than any other leadership theory."
Psychological effects:
| Follower Outcome | Mechanism |
|---|---|
| Autonomy | Empowerment and trust |
| Competence | Development and coaching |
| Relatedness | Caring relationships |
| Thriving | Holistic support |
"Research indicates that servant leadership can satisfy followers' three basic psychological needs, and servant leadership has a significantly positive impact on followers' thriving at work."
Basic psychological needs addressed:
Servant leadership produces measurable follower benefits:
Both servant leadership and followership contribute distinctively to outcomes.
Leadership contributions:
"Followers play a vital role in Servant Leadership. They are not just passive recipients of direction but active participants in the decision-making process. Effective followers are those who are proactive, adaptable, and committed to the organisation's goals."
Followership contributions:
Neither role succeeds without the other:
Interdependence dynamics:
Organisations benefit from developing both orientations.
Development approaches:
Followership development:
In practice, individuals often occupy both roles:
| Context | Role |
|---|---|
| Leading team | Servant leader |
| Reporting to superior | Follower |
| Cross-functional project | May alternate |
| Professional development | Both simultaneously |
Apply these concepts in organisational settings.
Servant leadership practices:
Effective followership practices:
Structural considerations:
The main difference lies in service direction and responsibility scope. Servant leaders primarily serve followers' needs whilst holding broader organisational accountability. Followers primarily serve leader and organisational goals whilst focusing on role-specific contribution. Both require service orientation but direct it differently.
Servant leadership and followership share common values including commitment, service, trust, respect, and flexibility. Both involve working toward common goals, require effective communication and collaboration, emphasise positive relationships, and encourage active participation. Both contribute essentially to organisational success.
Greenleaf's test for servant leaders focuses entirely on followers: Do those served grow as persons? Do they become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous? Are they more likely themselves to become servants? This follower-focused test reveals that Greenleaf considered follower development the ultimate measure of servant leadership.
Yes, most organisational members occupy both roles simultaneously or alternately. Leaders report to higher authorities, acting as followers in that relationship whilst serving as leaders to their own teams. Role fluidity is normal, making development of both capabilities valuable for career progression.
Research shows servant leadership satisfies followers' three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. This satisfaction produces increased work engagement, higher job satisfaction, greater organisational commitment, and enhanced thriving at work. Servant leadership impacts follower wellbeing more than most other leadership approaches.
Effective followers in servant leadership contexts are proactive, adaptable, and committed to organisational goals. They actively participate rather than passively receive, offer constructive feedback, support peer success, take initiative within their scope, and may develop their own servant orientation, becoming "servant followers."
Followership is essential because leadership cannot exist without it—they are symbiotic. Organisations need effective followers to execute vision, provide ground-level insight, generate innovation, deliver consistent quality, and enable collective success. Strong followership complements strong leadership for optimal organisational performance.