This is a guest post by Denise Craig, CAE CCA. Denise is a strategic leader who is passionate about helping others discover their God-given purpose so they can live and lead well. With over twenty years of personal experience in church leadership, Denise is honored to serve as the Chief Executive Officer of The Church Network.
If you look at the average age of today’s workforce, baby boomers are selecting their exit ramps, especially those in management and leadership positions.
This is equally as true in the church as it is in business — there’s a looming succession crisis in the church.
In the past, organizations have depended on natural work experience over time for leadership development. However, the workplace has changed.
Virtual and hybrid work, faster-than-ever technology developments, and generational differences all play into this leadership replacement challenge.
The church faces a unique hurdle because those who say they believe in nothing, known as Religious Nones, continue to grow, and those who profess to be Christians are on the decline.
The bench is getting smaller. So, what do you do?
1. Be Intentional About Leadership Training
Don’t make any assumptions or depend on experience alone. Too often, those who do well at one job are promoted to management and it isn’t the right fit.
Good leadership requires certain skills and giftings, and those can be fostered over time with a good plan.
Since leadership training rarely happens without an intentional effort. It’s up to you — the leader — to do something about it:
- It’s shown that life-long learning is valued by most leaders who are making an impact, so constantly educating and allowing up-and-coming leaders to grow is a vital step.
- Use tools like The Working Genius by Pat Lencioni or the DISC personality profile to learn more about operating with others who are different.
- Build emotional intelligence through effective communication, team dynamics, and healthy conflict resolution.
2. Manage Change Well
Change will happen, whether it’s a vision shift, a succession, an acquisition, or an unexpected financial turn.
How you lead through that can make a big difference for everyone involved.
Generally, people want to feel involved and understand why change is happening.
So if you start with a clear vision of why you want to go from point A to point B and define a clear strategy to get there, you’ll likely get a far better response to your vision.
Other people are watching how you navigate the change, and more importantly, they are experiencing what it’s like to go through it — they will remember it.
The way you manage change is demonstrating to the next generation of leaders how it’s done, or not done. You choose.
3. Build Trust
The best way to build trust is by doing what you said you would do over time and operating in integrity. How do you do that?
- Be honest and upfront and avoid hidden agendas.
- Demonstrate competency and be dependable.
- Take responsibility for your mistakes, and don’t play the blame game.
- Show genuine empathy and compassion for others.
- When someone else makes a mistake or has a setback, help them bounce back and discover their own resilience.
And remember this: It’s okay to share a story and ensure those you work with know you’re human. Don’t live on a pedestal.
4. Delegate Effectively
Delegating efficiently helps get tasks completed, but delegating effectively can help people grow in their leadership capacity.
It’s a fine balance between empowerment and accountability.
One important nuance to keep in mind is that delegating is not dumping. It’s not passing the buck on stuff you don’t want to handle.
As a leader, you need to clearly define the job and the expected results. If there are paths you expect along the way, let it be known, otherwise, let the other person determine the path to your expected outcomes.
It’s best practice to regularly check in without micromanaging (so the person knows you are available for support if needed) and to ask for routine updates on progress.
This is helpful as confidence and trust are built.
When you delegate a task, be sure to also delegate the responsibility needed to make it happen. Without it, the other person will experience a great deal of frustration.
5. Foster a Positive Work Culture
There are workplaces that are healthy and those that are not. You may have experienced both, and if so, you know the palpable difference.
A healthy work culture is one in which people feel valued, knowing they are making a difference. It is a place where future leaders can thrive.
A positive work environment can’t be taken for granted and is something that is created, nurtured, and protected.
Healthy cultures include fun, staff development, mutual respect even when there are a variety of opinions, work-life balance, and prioritizing employee well-being.
6. Offer Diverse Experiences
Allow different departments to work together on a project or visit a similar organization and share ideas.
Sometimes even a change of setting can be effective in helping future leaders break out of their box.
Another option is to encourage healthy tension in conversations when diverse opinions are present. It helps people remember that everyone doesn’t think like they do and that everyone’s opinions are valued.
Lastly, you can give people a chance to lead a project or be on a team outside their normal areas of responsibility. This can help them see the bigger picture, a key trait for leaders.
7. Encourage Networking
Building relationships and getting to know others, in the organization and outside the organization, is vital.
As a leader, you have the opportunity to connect people with other leaders, peers, and experts, to add value to the individuals and enrich their experience.
You know it’s valuable to have others you can call when you need to bounce an idea or get some insight and perspective. So help those you work with find their own network, too.
8. Practice Good Decision-Making
As Craig Groeschel says, Think Ahead.
Deciding certain things in advance saves so much time and energy later.
When faced with tough decisions and situations, knowing the impact, and understanding the consequences in advance can help leaders walk into decisions with eyes wide-open.
Difficult decisions often test our values, so walk forward ethically and in good conscience knowing you’ve made wise choices and used prayerful discernment.
9. Stay Tech-Savvy
Staying relevant is important, and in the day and age in which we live, that includes our use of digital tools.
Technology helps modern organizations navigate projects, analyze data, make sales, save time, and can also help us monitor future trends.
Don’t leave a future leader in a position of playing catch-up. It’s kind of like deferred maintenance on a home – it will end up costing much more, and not just in dollars.
10. Learn from Failures
Leaders are humans, and we make mistakes.
When you make a mistake, own it.
Some of the best inventions came from those who experienced failure after failure, but they didn’t give up.
When you are honest with people about your mistakes, you are vulnerable. It can be uncomfortable, but it helps people identify with us.
It also helps remove some fear that future leaders may have, knowing that even great leaders get it wrong sometimes.
11. Don’t Operate in Isolation
Feeling like everything is on you is exhausting and can have dire consequences, such as burnout, poor relationships, or even moral failure.
But when you engage with other leaders, you tap into the collective wisdom, experiences, and knowledge of others.
Leaning on a group of other leaders for community and having others help you set healthy boundaries can be beneficial if this is something you struggle with on your own.
When leaders make community a priority, they model teamwork, value collaboration, and make team members feel more supported.
12. Lead by Example
You can’t expect your team to do what you are not willing to do yourself.
When you lead by example, not just your words, it demonstrates authenticity, and that promotes trust and mutual accountability.
Serve others, be respectful, show up with energy for the mission, be a team player, and take care of yourself so you can care for others.
Do what you expect your team to do, and then some.
My hunch is that if you’ve read this far into the article, you are a leader who cares, and you want your organization to thrive beyond your leadership. It matters.
I’m with you. With leadership comes responsibility.
That responsibility exists during our watch, our season in the leadership seat, but it also goes beyond that.
The biggest joy and weight we carry as leaders is the people in our span of care, those who will follow our lead.
Let’s decide today that we don’t want to be passive observers as a leadership crisis rolls in. Let’s make a difference. Let’s lead the way. That’s what leaders do.
Are you in?
Let’s Run Together
If you are looking for a place to belong – a place where ministry leaders can connect, share ideas, and grow – join us at The Church Network!
In fact, our upcoming conference is a great place to start. The theme is Running Together, and we want to make the most of our race!
We’ll be gathering July 9-12 at the Central Bank Center in Lexington, KY. We would love to meet you and welcome you into our leadership community!
