6 Symptoms your Church has Ministry Silos

Sunday, January 18, 2015

Ministry Silos are one of the most common symptoms I find in churches that are stuck. Most churches don’t want to admit that they have silos. But admit it or not, the majority of churches have silos. It’s actually a natural easy drift that most churches make towards ministry silos. I wrote about this in a post: “What if Home Depot Functioned like a Church?”

Ministry Silos = multiple independent ministries operating under one roof

But how do you know if you have ministry silos at your church? You probably have ministry silos at your church if…

1. Each Ministry has their own Vision & Values Statements

If each ministry is chasing it’s own vision and developing it’s own organizational values; then you’ve got ministry silos.

2. You Frequently hear the word “My Ministry” in Meetings

If you hear the words, “my ministry, my budget, my volunteers, my rooms,” etc.; then you’ve got ministry silos.

3. There is no Coordinated Calendaring Process

If every ministry has their own independent calendar and there are consistent conflicts when it comes to using facility space, announcements, and other church resources; then you’ve got ministry silos.

4. No one is Sharing Best Practices

If each ministry is building their guest experience, discipleship process, missions experiences, and volunteer process (among other things) uniquely and independently from one another; you’ve got ministry silos.

5. There is no Coordinated Budgeting Process

If each ministry is coming up with their own budget independently of each other instead of working together and sacrificing for what is best for the vision of the church; then you’ve got ministry silos.

6. Each Ministry has their own Brand

If each ministry has it’s own cool name, logo, t-shirts, websites, and promotional material that look like their from different organizations instead of from the same church; then you’ve got ministry silos.

What else would you add to the list?

Your team can use this list at your next team meeting to begin evaluating where your church is at when it comes to ministry silos. Then use this post: “Tearing Down Ministry Silos” to help you begin taking your next steps.

Want help addressing the dysfunction of ministry silos at your church? At the Unstuck Group we’ve helped some of the fastest growing and most innovative churches in the country get unstuck. We can help you too.

Photo Credit: dawn_perry via Compfight cc

Posted in Leadership

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6 Things Your Church Should Know about Core Values

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Left to themselves organizations…including churches, drift. It can happen to the best of us if we’re not careful. As organizations and churches grow they naturally become more complex. There are more assets to allocate, more people to manage, decisions seem to have greater consequences than did when you were smaller and more nimble, and those decisions seem to just keep coming faster and faster. It is easy to become consumed with the business of running the church. But just because you’re busy doesn’t mean you’re taking ground.

Core Values are the guardrails of any organization or church that is taking ground. They are the core beliefs that drive how the people in the church interact with one another and the church as a whole behaves towards others outside of the church. They are the grid that filters our behavior to ensure that our activity is actually getting us where we believe God wants us to go.

So here are 6 things your church should know about core values.

1. Values aren’t real until they’re lived out in the church

There’s a big difference in most churches between what they say they value and how they behave. You can write anything you want to on a sheet of paper, you can train the staff and volunteers on it, you can distribute it on a slick promotional piece to the church body, you can even teach about it in the weekend services. But until it’s lived out it’s not a value, it’s an aspiration.

2. Keep the List of Values Short

If you value everything then you don’t value anything. There must be a few nonnegotiable hills that you’re willing to die on that drive the behaviors you’re looking to create. For a lot of reasons, I encourage churches to try to keep the list of values to be no more than 5.

3. Don’t Copy Values

Unless you want to be a clone, don’t copy values from other churches. Take the time to discover the unique personality of your church and what God has uniquely put in your heart as the leader. Copying values from other churches simply doesn’t work. You have to be you.

4. Hire and Fire (Staff & Volunteers) based on your Values

When team members or key volunteers demonstrate values that are contradictory to the values of the church either coach them up or lead them out. As you recruit volunteers and staff to join you allow your values to drive the recruitment. Because, you become who you recruit.

5. Articulate your Values

You’ve got to do the hard work of wrestling these ideas to the ground in such a fashion that they can be articulated in a clear, concise, and compelling manner. If your value statements can’t be sent out using twitter then they’re too long. If it doesn’t inspire or move people towards action it’s too dry.

6. Prayer and Doctrine aren’t Values

Prayer, evangelism, discipleship, outreach, core doctrines of the faith and the like aren’t values. They’re assumptions. If anything they’re permission to play values. Those basic values that allow you access to the room. I’ve listened as church leadership teams say they value outreach. Outreach doesn’t make a church unique, it’s the common behavior of any person or church that is following Jesus. Values are core and compact identity issues that make your church distinct from others.

So what else would you add to the list? Leave a comment I’d love to hear your input!

Photo Credit: krissen via Compfight cc

Posted in Leadership

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Catalyst One Day Session 1: Values by Craig Groeschel

Monday, January 28, 2013

I’m posting my notes this week from Catalyst One Day and here are my notes from the first session where Craig Groeschel did an incredible job unpacking how values influence and drive the organizational culture you’re creating!

Healthy Cultures never happen by accident, they are created

The #1 source that shapes your culture is your values
What we value determines what we do, what we believe determines how we behave
If you want to change your culture you have to change what you value

5 Ways we allow our values to shape our culture

#1 Honestly determine what your actions say you value

There’s often a big difference between what we claim to value and how we behave

#2 Identify the values that God has put in your heart

Don’t copy values. It doesn’t work. You have to be you.

#3 Narrow down your values to 10 or fewer

If you value everything you don’t value everything

#4 Once you clearly define your values write them down in short life giving statements

If they don’t move you to action get some new values
If you can’t tweet your values they are too long
If they don’t move you emotionally they are too dry

#5 Build your people and shape your culture around your values

Lead towards your values as if your future depends on it, because it does

Organizations don’t change; people change. If you want to change the organization you have to change the people.
Hire and recruit for your values.
Remove people with distinctively different values
If you don’t like where you’re going, change directions

Want to catch more Catalyst Resources for yourself and your team? I’m giving away a brand new copy of “The Power of Momentum” a 4-part video teaching series from Andy and Craig. Just sign up here and I’ll let everyone know who the winner is next week!

Posted in Leadership

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North Metro Church Purpose, Values, and Approach

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

12 years ago, the dream of North Metro Church was birthed by God in the hearts of a group of people that took a risk and started “doing church” in a way very few had the courage or vision to do 12 years ago in the south. The payoff to their obedience has been literally 1,000’s of people’s lives that will never be the same! In case you missed it a couple of weeks ago, I went ahead and posted this talk here for you. In it I roll out an overview of a refocusing on that dream and a sneak peak into a series that we’ll be doing in January to unpack our values at a deeper level. It’s a bit long, but if you’re interested in understanding who God has called North Metro to be and want to catch a glimpse into where we’re going check it out! This is a conversation I feel like I’ve been waiting my whole life for. Leading North Metro Church…this is was what I was made for.

Posted in Creative Arts, Leadership, Spiritual Formation

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a game changing weekend at north metro

Monday, November 15, 2010

Left to themselves organizations…including churches, drift. It can happen to the best of us if were not careful. As organizations and churches grow they seem to naturally become more complex. There are more assets to allocate, decisions seem to have more far reaching consequences attached to them than they once did when you were smaller and more nimble, and those decisions seem to just keep coming faster and faster. It is easy to become consumed with the business of running the church. But just because you’re busy doesn’t mean you’re taking ground.

12 years ago, the dream of North Metro Church was birthed by God in the hearts of a group of people that took a risk and started “doing church” in a way very few had the courage or vision to do 12 years ago in the south. The payoff to their obedience has been literally 1,000’s of people’s lives that will never be the same!

And yet over those past 12 years North Metro Church had become busy. And for the past season of ministry the Elders of the church courageously had been asking the question, “Have we gotten away from what God put us here for in the first place?” What has ensued is a radical commitment to refocus on and refresh the original purpose, values, and approach of North Metro.

On Sunday of this past weekend I rolled out an overview of a refocusing on that dream and a sneak peak into a series that we’ll be doing in January to unpack our values at a deeper level. The conversation that we had this weekend was one that I feel like I’ve been waiting my whole life for. Leading North Metro Church…this is was what I was made for.

The following is the framework of that dream that God started 12 years ago and some of the nuts and bolts of our conversation on Sunday. To get the whole story you’ll have to listen to the talk from Sunday…I’ll tweet the link out once it’s up this week.

Posted in Leadership, Spiritual Formation