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Archive | May, 2012

8 Tips To Realigning An Inherited Leadership Team – Part 2

by Don.h on May 30, 2012 in Church Operations, Leadership

Last week I gave you the first 4 strategies I have used to realign a team that is not on mission together and most likely you’ve inherited. They were:

1. Lead through teaching
2. Assess each team member’s strengths and weaknesses.
3. Cast the vision and direction of the team and ministry
4. Be transparent as a leader and empower out of your open leadership.

This week we’ll focus on the “final four” and they are truly the 4 that are crucial to regaining alignment. You can teach, assess, cast vision and be transparent….but at some time there needs to be a call to action.
With that said, lets take a look at part 2.

5. This train is movin on – You’ve taught, assessed, cast vision and let your team see who you really are – its time to send a clear message to everyone that this train is moving on. In other words, you mean what you say. You expect this team to work well together, think beyond themselves, work as team and respond to your direction. Make it clear that the course is set and that’s where the team is going.

6. Deal with disrupters – Inevitably you may have a disrupter. This is someone who is either unhappy with their job, the ministry, their life or all of the above. Don’t mess around – let them know they are not an exception. Be gracious but firm. I had an incredibly talented person on my staff that was a mega disrupter for me. She resented my position and had an inflated view of her role and value on the team. I made it clear to her that I thought she was in many ways a superstar, but even superstars can and should be fired when they aren’t a team player….period! She ignored me….and I fired her. This was sad, but it absolutely set the team on a course for success. Several people who were on the fence made their decisions to get on board and thanked me for it at a later time. You must shepherd your sheep, and sometimes their discipleship will come through the hardship of being let go.

7. Re-align – there may also be some that are genuinely good team members helping in the wrong place. Take the time to really understand their strengths and fight to keep them. When you take someone that everyone knows is struggling and absolutely “go to bat” to find their sweet spot and get them serving in that capacity, you will demonstrate to everyone your integrity as a boss. You took the hard path and spent some sleepless nights trying to figure how to keep someone. Loyalty and hard work should be rewarded – sometimes average or low performance isn’t based on a lack of hard work, but instead we may have them serving in their weakness.

8. Celebrate and collaborate – Celebrate milestones with the team. Look for things to affirm. Don’t cheapen this with trivial praise, but instead genuinely look for big wins that your new energized and aligned team is achieving. Also, take risks on your new team. Don’t shy away from letting them get out front and dream a bit on their own. If you let them run you’ll be amazed at what comes out of this new team.

What have been some of your experiences realigning a team?
Don

8 Tips to Realigning an Inherited Leadership Team – Part 1

by Don.h on May 22, 2012 in Church Operations, Leadership

As an executive pastor I’ve had the experience more than once of inheriting a team and realizing they were not unified together on mission. When people serve on a team like that, they typically are not having fun. Additionally, work is usually being done in silos and leaders view the ministries they oversee as personal possessions. This is not a healthy situation and as the leader of that team, you are going to need to fix it. The temptation will be to blame others for your “inherited” team, and although that is technically true, it is now your responsibility to fix. Besides, most likely (although maybe it wasn’t made clear) you’ve been brought in to fix this misaligned team.
So what do you do? I’ve outlined 8 crucial steps that (in my humble opinion) are essential to move forward as a unified team.

1. Lead through teaching
I’ve held for some time that in a ministry context you must teach your team through scripture in order to move them where they need to go. This needs to be genuine, not a couple random verses that you manipulate to make a point. Take a long view of how you will use teaching to lead your team. In other words, this will take time, but as you teach you will see God use scripture to change hearts. That is why this is first, because there are some things (as good as you are) that only God can change in your team. Take time also to open in prayer to set the tone for your meeting. Again, don’t manipulate through prayer but instead lift up some of the challenges and frustrations that you are observing are genuinely faced by your group.

2. Assess each team member’s strengths and weaknesses.
You must get a clear picture of who your team members are and what they’re good at. Frequently, you’ve got someone good who is not in the right spot and therefore may be a bit of a disrupter. Get a clear picture of what the ministry/operation needs and then honestly assess if you have the right person leading the charge. You will also have to be open to recognizing that in some cases you may have the wrong person all together.

3. Cast the vision and direction of the team and ministry
This actually ties in with point number 1, you must cast a clear vision for the department and consistently move the team in that direction. As people disrupt or veer from that vision, consistently point them back, demonstrating your clarity regarding the road forward. Some of the team may not agree or desire to participate in the new vision and that will need to be addressed immediately. Make it very clear which aspects of the vision are open to refining and what aspects are set. Clarity and consistency are critical. Often this very team may have heard lots of grand ideas that were never implemented. They may be waiting for you to just drop the subject in a few weeks. It is essential that you keep the vision clear and in focus on a regular basis.

4. Be transparent as a leader and empower out of your open leadership
Transparency is one of my highest leadership values. I believe you will garner the trust of this inherited team as you begin to let them see who you really are a leader and person. Transparency means that you are willing to show your “cracks” and don’t have an inordinate need to be right or have all the answers. As your team begins to see your strengths and weaknesses they will actually trust your more. This will take real courage when you know that some of these folks don’t necessarily respect you yet. Be wise in this, but do show them you are human and that is why you value leadership based on a collaborative style.

In part #2 I’ll discuss how to make needed shifts once the vision is established and clear.

The Gospel at Work in our Family Life

by Don.h on May 9, 2012 in Family Life, Gospel Community

I believe that my ministry credibility is anchored in my commitment to the Gospel at work FIRST in my marriage and home life. The qualifications Paul gives for elders in Titus 1 and 1 Timothy 3 emphasize this point. Ted Tripp’s book “shepherding a Child’s Heart” has been the most influential book in my parenting life. I thought my opening post would be a brief review of this book as an emphasis of where my priorities start in leadership and ministry.

I don’t think there is anything quite as daunting as being a parent. We have moments of confidence but more frequently we feel completely unprepared for the task. Tedd Tripp has brought an outstanding resource for your home with “Shepherding a Child’s Heart.” So often we find ourselves dealing over and over again with the same behaviors. We know we need to correct poor behavior but due to frustration and out right fatigue, we may never get past just trying to control our kids. Tripp’s book helps us understand how to move our correction beyond the behavior and understand the sin at work in our kid’s heart when they act out.

The book is divided into two parts. The first section lays the foundation for biblical child-rearing. Tripp shows that the root of behavior is a sinful heart and a parents primary job is to help a child to have a Godward orientation. An older boy selfishly takes something away from their younger brother and defiantly refuses to give it back……we say “I can’t believe you would do something so selfish.” REALLY? We have NO IDEA how a child could act out selfishly? We never struggle with being selfish…right? In that moment this book helps equip us to move the conversation to our need for a Savior. We bring the Gospel to the situation as we help our children understand that what they say and do flows from the heart. Luke 6:45 says…”out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” Chapter thirteen summarizes the first part of this book by saying it this way….”your children are the product of two things. The first-shaping influence-is their physical makeup and their life experience. The second-Godward orientation-determines how they interact with that experience. Parenting involves (1) providing the best shaping influences you can and (2) the careful shepherding of your children’s responses to those influences.” (p122)

Part two of the book brings wisdom to applying a Godward orientation to the three stages of child development, infancy, childhood and the teen years. The second section is particularly helpful with action steps to implement what is being taught in the book.

As you walk through and apply “shepherding” to your children’s lives you’ll find over and over how God is using your children to address sin at work in your own heart. As we are humbled by that, we build a relationship with our children that is way beyond just controlling behavior, but instead a reflection of Christ’s ongoing work in our own lives. Parenting that has been anchored in the Gospel builds a foundation in our relationship with our kids that will weather the seasons and storms of life.