Organizational health is essential to advancing mission.
Ministries exist for a stated purpose.
While it is increasingly common for ministries to articulate this stated purpose in compelling ways, not all ministries have captured their purpose so succinctly. Regardless, every ministry exists for a purpose. Pursuit of this purpose is the advancement of mission.
And the advancement of mission is directly tied to the organizational health of your ministry.
How healthy is your ministry at this point?
The advancement of mission is directly tied to the organizational health of your ministry.
In his book, The Advantage, Patrick Lencioni observed that sustained organizational health is primarily concerned with integrity. Integrity (at an organizational level) is present within your ministry as “its management, operations, strategy, and culture fit together” to work together to pursue its mission (p. 5). As each of these is brought into alignment, the efforts and energy of your ministry activities produce a directional pull toward the advancement of the ministry’s mission, thus maximizing organizational capability and maturity.
Organizational capability is defined as “the capacity of an organization to be effective in what it sets out to do” and maturity as “the ability of an organization to take responsibility for the effectiveness of its work rather than assign it to a few people (or only one)” (Weese & Crabtree, The Elephant in the Boardroom, p. 152).
Generally speaking, the greater the level of capability and maturity within your ministry the greater the directional pull.
Guiding the momentum generated by this directional pull are two distinct organizational tracks. Each of these tracks continually exercises influence in your ministry. Lencioni categorized the first track as specifically focused on the tactics of the ministry, e.g., strategy, program development and delivery, communication, finance, etc., and the second on organizational tone. Areas of concern that have been identified in the second track include organizational politics and confusion, employee morale and productivity, and employee turnover (particularly among good employees). While each track is dedicated to a different sphere of health, one track cannot be prioritized above the other without compromising overall organizational health. Healthy ministries highlight the significance of both tracks in their planning.
Furthermore, the influence of each of these tracks is such that they both require constant attention.
Organization by design is static.
Ministries committed to advancing their mission endeavour to be organized for effectiveness.
Once formed, ministries are organized by a structure and systems that attempt to work together in a predictable pattern. That your ministry takes shape in this way does not diminish its connection to or primary concern for the spiritual matters that triggered its inception. Quite the opposite! Ministries committed to advancing their mission endeavour to be organized for effectiveness. Such organization recognizes that concentrated support is needed for any structure and systems established. These cannot exist unattended. Nor can they be maintained without adequate backing.
This is a true tension in organizational design. While organizations require consistency, they must also be conditioned to promptly respond to changing circumstances. Even as ministries experience the directional pull described, dysfunctional practices (or processes) interfering with these tracks will also be present in every organization. Acknowledging the presence of such practices will allow you to introduce proper organizational protocols to appropriately counteract their interference and to continue attending to the tracks presented throughout all planning processes. Doing this can steer your ministry toward increased impact and away from inconsistent practices that obstruct the advancement of its mission.