A recent and minimally researched model of leadership centered in the role of the steward offers potential for a focused and expedient model for leadership of Christian nonprofit organizations. The purpose of this research is to add knowledge to nonprofit leadership by defining the primary characteristics of leadership that is focused around the role of the steward. It will secondarily describe the extent of awareness and implementation of steward leader characteristics among leaders of Christian nonprofit organizations.

This study researches the characteristics of the steward leader through two major phases. The first phase of research involves the exegetical study of the history and characteristics of the historical steward as revealed in the ancient documents of the classical Greco-Roman and biblical steward. This study results in the development of a preliminary typology of historic steward leader characteristics.

Phase two of the research refines the characteristics of the steward leader by conducting field research using survey and in-depth interviews with contemporary leaders of Christian nonprofit organizations. The preliminary characteristics of the steward leader derived in phase one were presented to contemporary Christian nonprofit leaders through a quantitative survey to confirm a typology of contemporary steward leader characteristics and to pre-qualify participants for in-depth interviews. The survey also functioned to assess the extent to which leaders formulated their leadership role through such characteristics. Ten participants were chosen for in-depth qualitative interviews from the survey participants who self-identified their personal leadership style as steward leadership. The interviews engaged the leaders more deeply in the subject, sought to elicit their understanding, perceptions, and attitudes about steward leadership, and further refined a typology of steward leader characteristics.

The research confirms that a primary typology of distinctive leadership characteristics exists among senior leaders of Christian nonprofit organizations who visualize and demonstrate their role as stewards.