Abstract
Employee engagement has become an important element of organizational success. Employee engagement may be influenced by a variety of factors, one of which, being leadership. The purpose of this dissertation in practice was to explore the experiences of followers of a servant leader which influence the employee engagement in a nonprofit organizational setting. The study utilized a qualitative phenomenological design. The Servant Leadership Questionnaire (SLQ) was utilized with participants to confirm employees’ perception of their chief executive officer as a servant leader. Following interviews with 12 participants the following themes were identified, the CEO Embodies Servant Leadership Characteristics and Traits, the CEO is Available and Inclusive to All Employees, the CEO Trusts Staff, Provides Freedom and Autonomy Which Creates Engaging Environment, and Meaningful, Caring, and Supportive Relationships at Work Positively Influence Employee Engagement. Application of these findings includes Servant Leadership Regional Training through the Nonprofit Association of the Midlands, Servant Leadership and Employee Engagement Training Embedded in the Local Chamber of Commerce Leadership Training Program, and Nonprofit Board of Directors Inclusion of Servant Leadership and Employee Engagement Surveys in Hiring and Management Practices.
Keywords: employee engagement, engagement, nonprofit, servant leadership