Justice-Based Leadership

Description

A leadership philosophy that aligns individual and group values, mission, actions, structures, and systems around a shared understanding of, and adherence to, clearly defined principles of justice.

To value oneself and, at the same time, subordinate oneself to higher purposes and principles is the paradoxical essence of highest humanity and the foundation of effective justice-based leadership.

JBL encompasses concepts of “servant leadership”, “transformational leadership”, and “principle-centered leadership,” all of which recognize the impact of personal and organizational values on the behavior, performance and development of the leader, other members, and the organization as a whole.

Reflected in the JBL philosophy are three aspects of servant-leadership: trust, appreciation, and empowerment of others. The four components of transformational leadership embodied in JBL are: charisma or idealized influence (the leader as role model), inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and consideration of the individual. As expressed in JBL, the components of principle-centered leadership include: personal character, competence, and commitment to natural law principles. Principle-based leaders build these principles into the center of their lives, their relationships with others, their agreements and contracts, and their mission statements and management processes.

The goal of JBL is to center all aspects of our lives on correct principles and for each person to develop a rich internal power. Empowerment of others, a fundamental objective of Justice-Based Leadership, comes about when both principles and practices of justice are understood and applied at all levels of an organization or society. In particular, the distribution of direct capital ownership reflects the distribution of economic power and the degree to which economic justice exists within a system. The challenge to justice-based leaders is to promote a culture that develops, enriches and empowers each member of the group and thereby strengthens the whole." (http://www.cesj.org/definitions/glossary.html)