Stewardship and Governance Assignment PDF

Running head: STEWARDSHIP AND GOVERNANCE
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Stewardship and Governance
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September 2, 2022

STEWARDSHIP AND GOVERNANCE 2
Stewardship and Governance
Stewardship can be defined as holding something in trust for someone else while they are
away. This concept is important in the world of business as it articulates how firms and
organizations are run. While most management principles revolve around control and hierarchy
in an organization, stewardship focuses on service. The important pillar of stewardship is
accountability which is not based on control and compliance. Peter Block postulates that
stewardship should be underpinned by service which is authentic. I chose Block’s model of
stewardship on the premises it sets under authentic service which results in the redistribution of
power, purpose, and wealth in organizations.
Summary of Blocks Model
Block underpins his model on the need to provide service which is authentic in
organizations. Stewardship should replace leadership and results in an organization replacing
patriarchy with partnerships at the workplace. Ownership and responsibility are distributed
between the management and the employees (Block, 1993). Block asserts that authentic service
rests on the decision to choose service over self-interest and rank without privilege. For an
organization to fully embrace stewardship, it ought to redesign the management practices and
structure that allow full disclosure to its stakeholders. Other areas that need to adopt a new
paradigm include the human resources department that should serve as the institutional caretaker
of the organization.
The suggestions put across by Block should be reflected in the compensation and
performance evaluation of the organization. A new system that rewards performance should give
preference to service and not self-interest. There should be distribution of wealth which is
equitable in an organization. The pay for an employee should be seen as a way of affirming their

STEWARDSHIP AND GOVERNANCE 3
purpose and communicating with them. With regard to evaluation, a new system that is open and
which does not entrench class distinctions should be adopted. When an organization adopts
stewardship over management, the following three outcomes will manifest.
Balance of Power in Organizations
Block suggests that stewardship based on governance is a better proposition in leading
organizations when compared to focusing on traditional principles of management. Block
postulates that managers should restructure the governance set up within their organizations to
build relationships with their employees based on reciprocity. Such an arrangement creates a
responsibility and ownership by the employees at every level of the organization. There is no
need to control and monitor the employees and thus eradicates the problems of asymmetry of
imbalance of power in organizations. Stewardship would redistribute the balance of power from
the top (vertical) to one which is horizontal with mid-level managers having greater input in
major decisions which affect the operations of the organization.
New Purpose
Once an organization creates governance structures founded on relationships, purpose
would be the natural progression in the collective process of stewardship. The employees would
have a new purpose for working which is tied to the goals and objectives of the organization.
Purpose is achieved in a two-stage process within an organization (Block, 1993). The first is
mobilization in which critical issues and opportunities are framed. The next step is the
collaboration which creates platforms where managers and employees work together. The
employees participate in defining purpose and deciding what kind of culture the organization
will adopt.
Redistribution of Wealth