By Jon Hietbrink
In a previous post, I suggested five indicators that a Movement is becoming a Monument, but identifying the problem is only a first step. Much more challenging than merely seeing a problem is doing something about it and effectively catalyzing organizational renewal.
As I’ve written before, in pursuing organizational change, our POSTURE matters at least as much as our STRATEGY. Too often the change that we A.P.E.’s bring comes laced with angst and fails to embody the kind of love that leads to lasting transformation. In the midst of driving organizational renewal, I’ve found it to be critically important to regularly reflect on (and often repent of) the posture with which I’m engaging.
That said, mere sincerity isn’t sufficient to challenge systemic atrophy—organizational revitalization requires our love to be embodied in effective change-management practices. Toward that end, here are five ideas to help call your organization back to its movemental roots.
INVOKE MYSTERY
Monuments always emphasize the management of WHAT IS, but if we want to embrace movement, we have to engage the mystery of WHAT ISN’T YET—mystery is the animating force of movements. One of the most powerful ways to influence a system is to redraw the lines of responsibility based on the “whole field” God has entrusted to us. Instead of trying to “grow what we’ve got” (which leads strictly to organizational optimization), movements are birthed by engaging dramatically new challenges.
If my team were to take as our starting place the 45+ chapters that currently exist in our territory, we are unlikely to generate significant new work. However, if we start instead with the 240+ campuses that are present across the midwest, we will generate wholly new solutions. If you want change, don’t settle for new answers, ask new questions that invoke mystery.
RECOGNIZE the REAL RISK
Organizations that function like monuments are consumed by mitigating risk and protecting the legacy of the past. Typically, this is understood in legal, proprietary, and financial terms, and to be sure, there is real risk in those areas. However, in monument scenarios, the primary risk isn’t merely a breach of compliance, but rather a culture of control that squelches any leadership that challenges the status quo.
For organizations that long to thrive in the future, there is no more valuable asset than its internal leadership pipeline. As such, when the excessive demand for management begins to stunt the emergence of new generations of leadership, it poses an existential threat to the future of the ministry. Monuments are often terrified of chaos, but what truly threatens their future is control.
ADVOCATE for CHANGE AGENTS
I’ve now served in my current role for 4+ years, and part of what that means (beyond hopefully gaining greater levels of competency in the mission!) is that the problems I face aren’t “inherited” anymore—I helped created these all on my own! After we pass this point in our leadership, it becomes increasingly difficult for us to recognize the gaps in our system, let alone solve those problems ourselves.
As such, as we mature in our own leadership, it becomes increasingly critical that we FIND the next generation of change agents in our midst and LISTEN to what they might say about our system. To be sure, they won’t see everything perfectly, and we may not always agree with them, but their perspective is critical if we are to see ongoing vitality.
If we want to see continuous renewal in our ministries, we must advocate for the prophetic voices in our midst that can help us discern the invitation of God for new seasons of ministry, and for me, this has meant being proactive in asking questions of those around me who often see my flaws (and those of the systems I create) with more clarity than I can.
REARRANGE the PARTS
Most of the ministries we lead are filled with remarkably gifted and capable people—the problem in organizational decline typically isn’t a lack of gifting or talent, but rather the static arrangement of our networks that do not allow for seemingly disparate people to engage in new collaborative partnerships.
If you want to release organizational creativity, shake things up—leverage the power of cross-pollination for dreaming, problem solving, peer coaching, and R&D. In the world of chemistry, remarkable potency can be unleashed when previously disparate elements are combined, and the same thing is true of our organizations!
LOCATE PRESSURE RELEASES
Wholesale organizational change can often be a long process (depending on the size and history of your organization), so it’s critically important to identify immediate “micro” pressure releases to bolster the stamina of leaders who are awaiting the “macro” changes being pursued. None of us are naive enough to think that this type of renewal is easy or quick, but too often, next generation leaders become casualties of the transition, and their patience for revolutionary change is sapped by the absence of even evolutionary progress.
Thankfully, the identification of these potential pressure-releases is typically quite easy—just ask the folks in your system where they experience bottlenecks and invite them to help you craft actionable workarounds that will enhance their endurance for the broader change process.
Catalyzing this type of change is anything but easy, but thankfully, we follow a God of resurrection! He can (and does!) breathe new life into organizations, and has given the A.P.E. functions to the church for just these types of challenges. May we, as A.P.E. leaders, embrace our role as movement catalysts and lead the way toward organizational renewal with courageous faith that overcomes fear!
Which of these ideas resonate with you? Who might you share this post with to gain their perspective on the change that’s needed in your ministry?
Sign up to receive our blog posts via e-mail and get instant access to our APE Library with videos, seminars, leaders notes, and more.
