Being a nurse leader is a challenging endeavor that requires much dedication, consideration of others’ feelings, and emotional and physical resources to empower others. However, as far as empowerment and compassion are concerned, the approaches to leadership may vary significantly among people. A prime example of such a contrast is the difference between the leader-member exchange theory and the servant leadership theory.
The former, according to the Grand Canyon University, places emphasis on the efficiency of the organization through the result-oriented communication between leaders and their followers. The strengths of such a theory include positive organizational outcomes and its resemblance to the natural human relations that include both in-groups and out-groups. The weaknesses of LMX theory, on the contrary, concern the contradiction in terms of fair and equal treatment of the team members.
Servant leadership, for its part, presupposes an equally compassionate attitude towards one’s followers, led by the belief that serving others is key to meaningful leadership. The advantages of such a theory include the shift from the leader’s authority to meaningful and respectful communication within the team, making every follower feel an important contributor to the team. On the other hand, the drawbacks of such an approach may be a decrease in productivity and disregard for the servant leader.