Troubleshooting change in your church

Sometimes we make change happen. Other times we can only watch change happen. Then again, sometimes we just wonder “what happened?” Essentially, change takes place in response to either force or influence. Economics, climate shift, conflict, supply of resources, and many other factors can exert force or influence depending on intensity. As a result, the types of changes we face can be described as ranging in strength from tuning, to adapting, to reorienting, or at its most intense – recreating (Leban & Stone, 2008).

Clearly, a major challenge of leadership is moving a church through change well. Certain elements must be present for any type of change to succeed. Leaders can diagnose what might be preventing success by looking at the mood about the change. Knoster, Villa, and Thousand (1999) provide this framework for troubleshooting change efforts:

According to the authors, successful change requires the presence and alignment of vision, skills, incentives, resources, and an action plan. Without vision to provide direction and goals, people will feel confused. Without skills to give them confidence they can carry out their part, people will feel anxiety. Without incentives that the change will benefit them and the church, people will resist it. Without the resources they need to carry out the change, people will feel frustrated. Finally, without a solid action plan, people will experience false starts – a sense of being on a treadmill, not really gaining any traction.

References:

Knoster, T. P., Villa, R. A., & Thousand, J. S. (1999). A Framework for Thinking About Systems Change. In T. P. Knoster, R. A. Villa & J. S. Thousand (Eds.), Restructuring for caring and effective education: Piecing the puzzle together (pp. 93-128). Baltimore, MD: Paul H Brookes Publishing Co.

Leban, B., & Stone, R. (2008). Managing organizational change. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.