Launched in September 2022, the Yale Child Study Center (YCSC) On Leadership blog is led by Daryn H. David, PhD, who serves as an associate research scientist at the YCSC, as well as associate director for leadership development in the Yale School of Medicine Offices of Academic and Professional Development and Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. In this second of a two-part series, YCSC Chair Linda Mayes, MD continues to reflect on service leadership and what that means for the center, which also serves as the department of child psychiatry at the school of medicine.
In the March “On Leadership” column, Mayes emphasized the crucial role that leaders can play in activating a service leadership ethos throughout their organization. As she envisions it, leaders working within a service leadership framework “serv(e) the community rather than the community following the leader.” This can be accomplished through responsive listening to stakeholders’ needs, an emphasis on values shared by the collective, and an effort to create a resource-rich, inclusive environment. Even in a setting as hierarchical and individually focused as academic medicine, Mayes posits that the practice of service leadership can help all members of a team or department be productive, feel valued, and to grow. The conversation about her leadership vision continues below.
Dayrn David (DD): In the first part of this Q&A series, you were asked to define what service leadership means to you and how this informs day-to-day operations at the YCSC. What transformations do you feel more service leadership could bring to our YCSC community?
Linda Mayes (LM): My hope is that our focus on the basic tenet of service leadership—how everyone in a leadership role has a responsibility to help those they are leading succeed—makes our departmental climate more welcoming, supportive, and generative. I also hope that those in leadership positions at all levels within and across the department are working regularly to make our community stronger and more inclusive. And I hope the service leadership frame brings us together across our missions so that there is a better understanding of and respect for each other, whatever our roles within the center may be. I believe that as we learn more about service leadership, this frame will help everyone in a leadership role feel more fulfilled and find more meaning in that role.
DD: Who are your leadership role models?
LM: For me, mentorship and admired leaders come together. As many have heard, I greatly admired Carolyn Slayman, a deputy dean in the school of medicine who was the exemplar of service leadership without ever using that term. In her very complex role as a deputy dean (with three people appointed to fill her role after she died), Carolyn always kept the individual in mind, along with how she could be most helpful to that person while at the same time being thoughtful about the overall mission of the school. A remarkable storyteller, Carolyn often made points through a story that was sometimes personal, sometimes from other instances in the school, but always relevant. Her stories helped individuals coming to her with concerns or needs to feel more at ease – and that she was making every effort to hear them as individuals. Once she connected with a faculty member, she held them in mind always.
DD: What is the single most important leadership legacy you hope would come from your time as chair?
LM: This is an interesting question, as I don’t think as much about “legacy” as I do about those coming after me. For now, I hope my legacy is a strong community, committed to supporting each other across our missions, recognized not only for our excellence in research but also for the care we put into both our education and our clinical services. Excellence is as much about bringing others along as it is about achievements. If there is one legacy I leave behind, I would hope it is around a generative, respectful climate and a value-driven culture for our department.