Oprah Winfrey: A Transformational Servant Leader

Oprah Winfrey:  A Transformational Servant Leader

 Photo:  Retrieved from www.acheivement.org

When I think of a great leader I think of Oprah Winfrey.  I know many people associate her with being an entertainer, but she is also a leader.  She has built her brand into a business that is worth over 1 billion dollars.  She is a very hands-on leader and falls into the transformational leadership model as well as the servant leadership model.

When defining what a transformational leader is the weekly class commentary defines it as “a leader who serves to change the status quo by appealing to followers’ values and their sense of a higher purpose.  Transformation leaders engage with followers and create a connection that raises the level of motivation and morality in both the leader and the follower.”  (PSU WC Psych 485)  Oprah leads by example, and holds herself to a higher standard.  She is very philanthropic, and encourages her employees to be the same.  She created Oprah’s Angel Network that pools money that is donated, and then donates this money to a wide range of charities.  In its first seven years the Angel Network donated over $30 million dollars to a various charities (www.voices.yahoo.com).  When asked about her philosophy on how she lives and leads others she is quoted as saying “Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not” (www.acheivement.org).

Oprah is also very much a servant leader as well.  She encourages her followers to do their best, and helps them to succeed even if it means they no longer stay with her organization.  As the weekly class commentary defines servant leadership “aims at helping followers develop into leaders in their own right rather than as parts of the work process” (PSU WC Psych 485).  She has helped many people to develop into leaders such as Gayle King, Dr. Phil McGraw, Nate Berkus, and Dr. Mehmet Oz.  Each of these people had their own careers, but then working with and consulting for Oprah.  She then helped them to develop into leaders in their own rights who went on to have their own television shows or appear regularly on other shows.   Oprah exhibits many of the characteristics that servant leaders have such as being able to listen, empathize, persuade, and building a community.  It is these qualities that have enabled her to grow her business to what it has become from nothing.  She also has loyal employees with a relatively low turnover rate.  One of the philosophies she lives by has helped to achieve such great success.  She is quoted as saying, “My philosophy is that not only are you responsible for your life, but doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment” (www.achievement .org).

Sources:

Pennsylvania State University World Campus (2014). PSYCH 485 Lesson 10:  Transformational Leadership. Retrieved from: https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/sp14/psych485/002/content/10_lesson/03_page.html

Pennsylvania State University World Campus (2014). PSYCH 485 Lesson 11:  Servant Leadership. Retrieved from:  https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/sp14/psych485/002/content/11_lesson/03_page.html

Howard, D.  Management Style:  A Case Study on Management Style.  Yahoo Voices.  Retrieved April 2014.  From http://voices.yahoo.com/management-style-41231.html.

Oprah Winfrey.  Academy of Achievement.  Retrieved April 2014.  From http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/win0int-1