This is a crucial aspect of servant-leadership. Managers and leaders in business environments are there to facilitate an increase in delivery rate of good quality products and services. Whilst keeping an eye on direction and vision, they have to remove impediments that hamper their employees’ work, so they can deliver better, faster, stronger. There is such a strong correlation between happier employees and delivery rate it may as well be causal. You can also see that by the effect it has on sickness levels, staff turnover, morale and even the bottom line when it isn’t there.

The issue comes when leaders think this means hammers all the time. That shows a lack of leadership repertoire and finesse. Equally, a leader that has no teeth is destined to be taken advantage of by someone, somewhere, even if it’s in general business. That lets their employees down, which in turn hits morale. It’s all related directly or indirectly.