Structure is Not the Goal

Tag Archive - structure

Structure is Not the Goal

Sunday, April 26, 2015

In growing churches things can often feel chaotic. More and more people are showing up every week which means space can become an issue…quick. You’ve got to figure out where to put all those new 2-year-olds, parking can be limited, new staff members are added, volunteers seem to be in short supply, and you may even have to start new worship services to accommodate the growth. But people are meeting Jesus and their lives are being changed. It’s exciting!

If you’ve ever experienced a season of ministry like this you know how fun it can be. Churches during this phase of growth often hear people say things like, “There’s just something about this place.” They’re experiencing success, they’re just not exactly sure why. Even staff members sit back and watch it at moments hoping to ride the wave of momentum and not get in the way and mess it up.

Inevitably someone comes along and identifies the fact that we can’t operate like a “Mom & Pop” organization anymore. It could be the Board, the Pastor, or a trusted senior level Staff Member. But eventually someone will say something like; “We need to set up the proper structures to help us move past the chaos and into the future.”

This is where things can go south, quick. While various structures, systems, and processes can be helpful; they’re not the goal.

1. The Vision is the Goal not the Structures

It’s not wrong to add structures; in fact they can be helpful. Just remember structure isn’t the goal, the vision is. The goal is not to have a nice clean tidy ship, the goal is to get the ship where Jesus wants it to go. Don’t get those two things confused.

2. Structures are Designed to Serve the Vision not the other way around

Structures are fine as long as they serve the vision and help you get where Jesus wants you to go. The moment the structure becomes a lid or hindrance to the vision it’s time for it to go.

3. Structures should lag Behind Chaos

Whenever structures get out in front of chaos you will begin to constrict and starve the vision, and things will begin to slow. Structure should live in the wake of the vision, not the other way around.

Photo Credit: psyberartist via Compfight cc

Posted in Leadership

Why are 50% of Church Staff Teams Unhealthy?

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

“1 in 2 church staff members do not believe that their team is healthy and effective.”

The health of a church begins with the health of its team. You simply cannot build an effective church without building a strong staff. We want to help you do just that!

That’s why we partnered with Vanderbloemen Search Group to ask church leaders how they staff and structure their teams. The responses were nothing short of surprising. In fact, we were shocked to learn that 1 in 2 church staff members do not believe the team they work with is healthy and effective. Specifically, that’s 47% of churches that are likely struggling to reach their communities because they are struggling to build a great team.

What would the staff members of your church say about the health of your own team? What steps are you taking to help them become more effective?

In our research, we found that the most effective church staffs operate very differently than most. Their leaders develop Next Level Teams by utilizing the following and more:

3 Critical Aspects of an Effective Senior Leadership Team
3 Key Components of Leadership Development
2 Things Every Staff Member Needs Clarified

What would happen if you learned and applied these insights with your own team? We’d love to equip you to strengthen your staff.

We’ll be releasing these insights in our Next Level Teams webinar on January 21 at 1:00 pm EST. Tony Morgan will be hosting a conversation with William Vanderbloemen and members of The Unstuck Group about the most crucial steps church leaders can take with their staff to increase effectiveness. In just 45 minutes, we’ll provide key insights, followed by a live Q&A.

Are you ready to start building your own Next Level Team? Click here to register and join us for this exciting conversation. Participation is limited so register soon!

Posted in Leadership, Staffing

Get Your Church Staff & Org Structure Unstuck

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Do you feel like your team is achieving its full potential?

Staffing and structure is an area of ministry that The Unstuck Group (the consulting group I’m a part of) is consistently asked about. Regardless of a church’s size or success, few leaders feel like they fully have the right people in the right seats. We want to get church staffing and structure unstuck. We believe that the quality of the team significantly impacts a church’s level of impact. And we’re ready to see your staff start running on all cylinders. That’s why we’re partnering with Vanderbloemen Search Group to seek better solutions.

We need new truths about church staffing and structure. Conventional answers to church staffing problems don’t seem to be cutting it. Today’s challenges will only be overcome by new truths about staffing. Here are a few of the questions we’re looking to answer:

Where do growing churches find new staff members?
How does the size and health of a senior leadership team impact the effectiveness of a church?
Are larger or smaller churches more efficient with staffing?
How does a church’s structure affect its growth or decline?
In multisite churches, what is the most effective staff structure?

We need your help. To uncover new truths, we must explore new research. If you are on a church staff, your experience is vital to this initiative. Will you take the next 8 minutes to complete a short survey? When you do, you’ll earn free early-access to everything we discover. We’re excited to see what happens when churches across the nation get their staff and structure unstuck!

Click to take the Staffing and Structure Survey

Photo Credit: Darwin Bell via Compfight cc

Posted in Staffing

Helping Your Church Get Unstuck

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Churches get stuck for all kinds of reasons. It’s okay to get stuck, it’s just not okay to stay that way. There’s too much Kingdom potential on the line. That’s why 2014 needs to be the year that your church finally gets unstuck! At the Unstuck Group we help churches grow their impact through church consulting and coaching experiences designed to focus vision, strategy, and action.

At the Unstuck Group we don’t just offer consulting solutions. We help churches get unstuck!

Check out this infographic to discover more about how we help churches get unstuck!

unstuckinfographic

Consulting Services:

Ministry Health Assessment Complete a comprehensive assessment of your ministry and identify opportunities for next steps.

Strategic Operating Plan Clarify your mission, vision, and core strategies – and then realize it through prioritized action initiatives.

Staffing & Structure Review Determine the best organizational structure for future growth and get the right people in the right roles.

Communications Review communications systems, staffing, websites, graphic design, branding, social media and messaging to develop a communications strategy.

Training Join one of our leadership coaching experiences for pastors and other ministry leaders. We’ll equip and train you to have a bigger impact.

Speaking We’re available to speak at your conference, leadership or staff gathering on a variety of leadership and ministry topics.

Ready to move forward? Our team is prepared to help you have a bigger impact! We’d like to get to know you, talk through options and design solutions that work for you. Let’s start the conversation! Follow this link to get started today!

The Unstuck Group isn’t just the Consulting Group that I’m a part of. It’s the Consulting Group that I believe in – because I trust the team, I trust the process, and I trust the results.

Posted in Leadership

Bringing Clarity to the Language of Organizational Leadership

Sunday, September 8, 2013

One of the most frequently reoccurring conversations I get into in helping churches focuses around building organizational health and alignment in churches. Often times in those conversations confusion surfaces over language such as Mission, Vision, Goals, Strategy, Structure, Core Values, and Systems. So here’s an attempt to help provide some clarity and a framework to some of the most influential conversations you may have as church or organization.

1. Mission:

Answers the Question: Why do we exist?

This is the timeless answer to why your business, organization or church is on the planet in the first place. For those of us in church-world we don’t get to pick our mission, Jesus did that for us.

2. Vision:

Answers the Question: Where are we going?

This is the next hill that needs to be taken. Organizational vision typically changes every 3-10 years. Vision changes because once you get there and have taken then hill, there’s always the next hill to take.

3. Goals:

Answers the Question: How do we get there?

Goals are actionable and attainable steps or objectives to be met that move the organization in the direction of the vision. You know you’re winning and moving in the direction of accomplishing the vision when you are meeting your goals!

4. Strategy:

Answers the Question: Who does what next?

Strategies are the decisions that need to be made to coordinate the application of the resources (people, time, money, information and other assets) of the organization to meet the goals.

5. Structure:

Answers the Question: How do we organize ourselves?

This is the way you intentionally put together all the various parts of the organization to work together in order to support the strategies.

6. Core Value:

Answers the Question: How do we behave?

These are the core beliefs that drive how the people in the organization interact with one another and the organization as a whole behaves towards others outside of the organization.

7. System:

Answers the Question: How do we reproduce it?

Essentially systems are made up of complex independent parts working together to perform a function (for example think skeletal system or solar system). For our purposes building a system is the art of connecting the Core Values, Structures, Strategies, Goals, and Vision to work in alignment that builds a culture that leans towards accomplishing the Mission.

What are some other definitions of these terms that you’ve heard that may be helpful to the conversation? Leave a comment!

Posted in Leadership

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