The Congregational Consulting Group, organized in 2014 by former consultants of the Alban Institute, is a network of independent consultants. We publish PERSPECTIVES for Congregational Leaders—thoughts on topics of interest to leaders of congregations and other purpose-driven organizations. — Dan Hotchkiss, editor
SWOT analysis is ubiquitous. This planning and decision-making tool is used in so many different professional environments, it is widely understood by church members. However, from my point of view as both a consultant and a working minister, SWOT needs to be expanded to direct attention to not only what is known, but what is only dimly seen through eyes of faith.
An energy buzz often appears at the start of a new program year. Staff return from vacation feeling rested and renewed. Small groups re-form with fresh curriculum. Committees connect with dreams for a new season. If we aren’t intentional about how we align this energy, it won’t last. Buzz dissipates. Unaligned, we retreat eventually to the former status quo.
Organizations are famous for resisting change. Despite the best efforts of their leaders, who often want change more than anybody else, organizations, including congregations, reproduce this week what they did last week, this month what they did last month, and this year what they did the year before. That’s the rule. However, once in a great while an organization decides to do something truly different—and then actually does so.
Which raises two important questions: Why do organizations—or more generally, systems—resist change so strongly? And why do they sometimes change anyway?
When we church people talk about “what it means to be “the church,” we use lots of grand Scriptural and theological language. But our actual model for the church—both our image of what church is supposed to be and the way we organize to make it happen—tends to be based on more commonplace ideas. Perhaps it’s time to imagine a new model for the church.
Too many congregations, presbyteries, dioceses, conferences, etc. spend enormous amounts of energy studying, debating, amending, revising, discussing, pondering decisions rather than making decisions. It is one of the reasons the millennials and Gen Zers don’t want to get involved in the church: They want to change the world, not discuss it to death. We need to demand that leaders make decisions.
If you’re from the Midwest as I am, you can probably recognize a “hook echo” on the TV weather—a hook shape visible on radar in the lower portion of a storm. A hook echo is a classic sign that a tornado is imminent. It is often confirmed by spotters on the ground. Or by you, standing on your front porch—it’s a Midwest thing!
The congregations where I work as a consultant show a surprising, almost shocking openness to change. Over most of my fourteen years as a consultant, I’ve seen many Boomers with their heels dug in against change in congregations where they worship. I see promise in the possibility that we might try new things, some of which might work!