Resources in Response to “How Will We Know?”
Readers of the June 22 Alban Weekly article, “How Will We Know?” (based on Sarah Drummond’s book, Holy Clarity) were reminded of some important elements of program development in congregations—elements that are essential to fostering transformational change. (If you haven’t read the article yet, please click on the article title now for a quick read.)
These elements come from business professor John Kotter’s model of successful program and change initiatives in organizations. While Kotter outlines eight elements, Drummond emphasizes the three elements that she believes are most relevant to religious organizations. They are establishing a sense of urgency, communicating the change vision, and generating short-term wins.
Drummond also explains the importance of knowing when a program is making good progress and meeting its goals. Such knowledge can be especially challenging in congregations because there the result should ultimately be individual and communal transformation—a result difficult to quantify. In her article, and more fully in the book, Drummond explores the value and components of both process evaluation and outcome evaluation for ensuring that change initiatives are successful.
In addition to the outstanding resources listed at the end of the Weekly article, there are some items you may find helpful. Let me call your attention to them. Those interested in the challenges of congregational change will want to check out the resources in the “Change” category of the Congregational Resource Guide. Within this category, you might consider John Kotter’s classic, Leading Change. Another helpful resource is Gil Rendle’s article, “Leading a Congregation through Change.”
Those of you interested in resources on what Drummond calls “communicating the change vision” might explore Frederick Gonnerman’s Getting the Word Out.
And of course those seeking resources on evaluation should look at the “Evaluation” category of the Congregational Resource Guide; you might want to compare and contrast Holy Clarity with Kathleen Cahalan’s Projects That Matter.
What are your thoughts about “how to know” when a program or change initiative is successful? And what resources have you found helpful? Looking forward to hearing from you!
Sarah:
Are we supposed to know? If the church is the counter-cultural organism that it is where capitalistic notions of success do not apply,we may never know the transforming results involved in the Holy Spirit’s ways in the lives of individuals and the church. I continue to be disturbed with what appears to be a simple overlay and imposition of business/corporate change theory and success theory translated into religious language. I’m looking for someone at Alban to argue how change occurs within a church without relying on the Harvard Business School’s latest and greatest organizational theory. The above article made only one reference to the Holy Spirit; the rest I’ve read in non-theological, non-Christian business theory classes I’ve taken where neither the cross, Christ or the church were necessary to have or sustain the conversation. The stuff I read coming out of Alban is 10% theological and 90% business theory. The church requires today a more fair and balanced approach to the work of transformation we are in as a uniquely spiritually transformative process for both individuals and the church-community.
Rev. Dr. Paul O. Bischoff
This article is written well.
My only question is: “Do the ends justify the means?”