Why employee onboarding is so important

CCCC has recently gone through a season of hiring new team members, which has got me thinking a lot about the employee onboarding experience. Transitioning to new employment can be an exciting, if not a bit of a nerve wracking time for employees. And while all of the possibilities of what ‘could be’ lay ahead, the thought of how one will fit in with colleagues and a new manager can be enough to cause anxiety for some. New employees may also wonder what the workplace culture will really be like and if they will be able to meet expectations in their new role. For all of these reasons, supporting new employees during this period of the employment relationship is extremely important. Charities that do not create a strong onboarding process will take longer to get new employees up and running and will experience unwanted turnover and lower employee engagement. All of this impacts the charity’s ability to carry out its mission.

Sink or swim

Although the old ‘sink or swim’ approach to employee onboarding was never a good idea, there was a time when it was the norm, and it still exists in some workplaces today. I’m sure many of you can remember starting a new job and simply being shown a desk and given an employee policy manual to read! I can remember my first job at a local pizza parlour. After being given a uniform and having watched a series of short videos, my training was considered complete. In my desire to earn some extra money, I had agreed to pick up a Friday night shift cutting pizzas as they came out of the oven. It turned out that Friday was an extremely busy night, and it wasn’t long before I couldn’t keep up. Pizzas weren’t cut according to specs, dining room orders were mixed up with take out orders. Needless to say it was a total disaster, and as a result the pizza parlour ended up losing a lot of money on all of the mistakes that were made that night. This could have been avoided with an effective employee onboarding process.

What is onboarding?

So what is onboarding exactly? Many of us may equate onboarding with orientation, and while the two are related, they are not the same. An orientation is much shorter in duration, and may only take a few hours or a day to complete. It might include things like the history of the charity, introduction to mission, vision, values and covering key policies and procedures. Orientations are important, but are only a component of the overall onboarding process.

When done well, onboarding assists the new employee in making sense of the charity’s culture, norms and expectations. It’s about helping new employees make critical connections by introducing them to colleagues, charity management and external stakeholders such as donors and service providers. The goal of onboarding is to integrate new employees into the organization and help them to become effective in their roles as quickly as possible.

7 tips to create an amazing onboarding experience

What follows are 7 simple tips for charities looking to create a strong onboarding process and great overall experience for their new employees. These tips can also be applied or modified when it comes to the onboarding of new volunteers and directors. Another application of an onboarding process could be to assist employees that are being reintegrated back into the workplace following a leave of absence such as maternity, parental or sick leave.

Tip #1 – be present to greet the employee on their first day

This one sounds really obvious, but unfortunately many managers don’t see this as a priority. When the manager is present to welcome the employee into the office on their first day, it sends a message that they are valued. The manager-employee relationship is closely linked to employee engagement, and this is a really easy step that all managers should take to build a positive working relationship with their staff member. As a Christian employer, this is also an excellent time to pray with your new employee!

Can’t make it to the office on the employee’s first day? Give the new employee a heads up, and assign an alternate in your absence.

Tip #2 – go out for lunch

Letting your new employee know that you will be treating them to lunch on their first day is often a great way to get to know them on a personal level, and introduce them to colleagues. It can also take the guess work out of when and where they should be taking their lunch. While some work information may be shared over lunch, it really serves as an opportunity to build relationship and rapport with the new employee and help to make them feel part of the team.

Tip #3 – create an onboarding schedule

An onboarding schedule doesn’t need to be elaborate, and can go a long way towards helping new employees navigate their first few days and weeks of employment. If there are colleagues this person will be working closely with, schedule introductory meetings to help them make those connections more quickly. The schedule could be as simple as using your office’s shared calendar or creating a schedule for them using MS Word or Excel.

Talk to some of your new employees to find out what they appreciated about their onboarding experience, and what would have made it even more helpful. The onboarding schedule is something that you will be continually refining so don’t feel it needs to be perfect before you can begin using it.

Tip #4 – throw them a life line

I used to really enjoy watching the television show ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’. When participants were stumped with a question, they could choose from one of three life lines, including one where they could call a friend for help. We all need those life lines, and this is especially true when starting a new role. Make sure you assign your new employee a colleague that can help to show them the ropes and be on hand to answer questions. This could include walking them through how to use your internal systems or even just how to use the photocopier. Not only should this person be competent, but you want to choose someone who will view this as a positive experience.

Tip #5 – check in frequently

As part of the onboarding schedule, the manager should schedule frequent check-ins with the new employee to ensure they are supported in their new role. Meeting as needed and at least on a weekly basis for the first month would not be considered too frequent. Two big questions that all new employees have are: 1) what is my job; and 2) how am I doing? With this in mind the manager should provide clarity around expectations, how the employee will be evaluated and paint a picture of what success would look like in 3 months, 6 months etc. If the employment agreement includes a probationary period, the manager should be transparent about when that review will take place and how an employee will know if they are not on track to successfully complete their probation.

Tip #6 –create a learning plan

The manager should work with the new employee to create a learning plan to ensure they continue to have the competencies needed to be successful in their role. The employee may have areas in which they would like to further develop and grow, and these should be included in the learning plan, provided that they align with the overall mission and vision of the charity. While this could include formal education, much learning can take place on the job through job shadowing, mentorship arrangements and stretch assignments. For more information, CCCC members will want to read our bulletin article called Planning for Staff Development.

Tip #7 – consider a work style or personality assessment

We all have our own preferences for the way in which we conduct our work and interact with colleagues. And while these preferences can seem perfectly intuitive to us, they can create blindspots that lead to friction in our relationships with others. Having your new team member complete a work style or personality assessment can help to create understanding of what they will need in terms of support and understanding to be successful in their new role. An example of this could be gaining insight into how the employee prefers to give and receive feedback.

At CCCC we use a tool called the Birkman, which includes a debrief session with the manager and new hire. Many other excellent tools exist such as DiSC, McQuaig and True Colours all of which can also be used in a team-building context. Some managers like to plot the styles of their employees on a grid which can help team members relate to each other in a more understanding and positive way.

Summary

Charities that are intentional about the onboarding of new staff members will be much more effective in carrying out the work of their ministries. And who doesn’t want that? Thankfully, creating an onboarding process does not need to be difficult and is something that you can easily begin working on today.

Please take a moment and post a comment to let others know what tips and tricks your charity makes use of to create an amazing onboarding experience for your employees.

The post 7 tips to create an amazing onboarding experience appeared first on CCCC Blogs.

Cartoon audience, clapping.

 Employee recognition in the Christian charity context

In the New Testament, Paul encouraged the Colossians by writing, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters“.  Because ministry staff personnel are focused on the eternal and know that their labours will be rewarded in heaven, Christian charities may think of staff member recognition as being more of a corporate initiative or tend to equate it with recognizing retirements and milestone anniversaries.  But employee recognition, when done well, can be so much more than this, and can be a real blessing to others in the workplace.

Employee recognition has the potential to positively influence workplace culture by calling attention to behaviours and outcomes that are aligned with the charity’s mission and values. In their book Mission Drift, authors Peter Greer and Chris Horst talk about the importance of a mission true culture, which includes what they call the celebrating of exemplars.  “When staff members exhibit organizational values, be sure to call it out.  The surest way to have others embrace your full mission is through positive reinforcement.  At each of our staff meetings, staff members nominate their colleagues when they see them living out organizational culture.” (Greer and Horst, in Mission Drift.)

Closely linked to its impact on workplace culture and engagement is how employee recognition can help staff members to feel valued and appreciated in their work.  And while we can often derive a certain intrinsic satisfaction from knowing that a job has been well done, positive feedback and recognition has long been recognized as an important component in helping to build strong teams.  In First Thessalonians believers are told to encourage one another and build one another up, and in the workplace this helps to strengthen team bonds and reinforce the desired workplace culture.

Tip #1 how we recognize others is important

Of course individuals can vary greatly in how they like to receive feedback and we should all be intentional about recognizing others in a way that is meaningful and honouring to them. How we recognize others is equally as important as what is being recognized.  Asking how others prefer to receive feedback can be a great question for leaders to build into one to one conversations with their staff members, and while this would ideally take place when new employees are being oriented to the charity, it’s never too late to ask longer serving team members as well.

For some employees, being recognized in front of a larger group setting may be a real thrill whereas others may prefer a smaller group setting or even receiving this kind of feedback and acknowledgement on more of a one to one basis.  Some of the most memorable feedback that I have received was simply a handwritten card from my manager.  I have even had some colleagues tell me they like to refer back to those cards and notes when they are feeling discouraged or having a particularly challenging day.

Tip #2 effective recognition is specific

I have always been fascinated by my Grandparent’s stories of what life was like when they were young, and a few years ago I decided to begin working on my family tree.  Like most families it turns out there are more than a few nuts in ours!

After having worked on this project for a couple of years I finally felt ready to share it with my parents and siblings.  They told me I had done a great job. Really great, in fact. I couldn’t believe it! I wanted to know if there were specific stories they felt drawn to, or if they had questions or even disagreed with some of my findings.  Lucky for them I am already working on a second version complete with discussion questions!

In order to make meaningful connections between the behaviour that is being recognized and the values of the charity, feedback needs to be specific.  Being intentional about providing specific feedback doesn’t need to be difficult, and can quickly become second nature.  It carries with it a level of authenticity that praising someone in more general terms is not able to convey.  An example of this could be sharing with a colleague that their approach to a delicate donor relations matter was appreciated, and that they really exemplified the charity’s values of ‘desire to serve’ and ‘respect’ in that particular interaction.

Tip #3 effective recognition is timely

For recognition to really be effective it needs to be provided soon after the staff member demonstrated the behaviour that is being recognized.  This is actually true no matter what kind of feedback is being given.  I can remember working at a call centre to make extra money during college. The supervisors would play back calls that were up to three months old and use them as learning opportunities.  Needless to say this was not an effective means of coaching given the high volume of calls that customer service associates answered each day.  The ideal time to provide positive feedback and recognition is in that moment or soon after the event.

Tip #4 leading the way

Charity leaders have the opportunity to really role model and set the tone for the desired culture in their workplaces.  This includes how individuals and teams are recognized and rewarded for their work.  Leaders will ultimately decide how formal or informal of an approach the charity will take to staff member recognition and what works best in the context of their workplace. They are also in a position to help their team members understand the broader implications of their efforts.  For example, a staff member whose role is primarily internally facing may find it very meaningful to hear a personal story of how their work has positively impacted the life of someone who makes use of the charity’s products or services.

Invariably the topic of employee recognition always leads to interesting discussion around leadership tables. Some leaders take the position that they are hard markers, or that folks shouldn’t be recognized for simply performing the role that they were hired to do.  And while I’m not advocating for recognizing the trivial, leaders that don’t include employee recognition in their management tool-kits may be missing out on a great opportunity to build the kind of team that everyone wants to be a part of.

Tip #5 peer to peer recognition can be highly impactful

When managers and supervisors are seen providing authentic positive feedback in a way that is specific and timely, it makes it easier for others in the organization to follow suit.  Some of the most effective forms of staff member recognition are grass roots initiatives where colleagues provide their peers with informal, positive feedback.  This has the potential to be particularly impactful as colleagues are often the closest to the work that is being done and tend to have greater visibility into what made that assignment or project so challenging in the first place.  Charities wishing to encourage this type of peer to peer recognition could provide their employees with note cards for that express purpose, however post it notes can work equally as well.

Tip #6 low cost high impact employee recognition suggestions

Here are some of my suggestions for low cost, high impact employee recognition.  There is lots of room for creativity here, so this list is by no means meant to be exhaustive:

• Personal hand written card or thank you note from manager or colleague
• Special shout outs at staff meetings or team huddles
• Assigning the employee a project they will find particularly interesting or challenging
• Having the employee lead a lunch and learn on a topic they are knowledgeable about
• Coffee or lunch with a member of the leadership team of the staff member’s choosing
• Backfilling for another team member who is on vacation or sabbatical
• Allow the employee to take a day with pay to do work for a charity of their choice
• Have employee take the lead on implementing an idea or suggestion they have come up with

Tip #7 don’t forget about taxable benefit implications

Unfortunately the good intent of staff member recognition can be quickly undone if consideration is not given to the implications of taxable benefits.  No one likes being surprised at tax time by suddenly realizing the gift they received from their employer was actually a taxable benefit.  The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) does make allowances for employers to give a non-cash gift(s) with a total fair market value of up to $500 per year.  If the total amount exceeds $500, the excess amount would be taxable.  For full details, CCCC members are encouraged to reference CCCC’s article called Gifts of Appreciation to Charity Employees & Volunteers: What’s Taxable and What Isn’t?

Closing thoughts

Whatever approach your charity takes to staff member recognition, it’s important to ensure that the recognition is tailored to that individual, and that it is specific, timely and authentic.  While there is a dizzying array of software programs and apps available on the market, the best kind of recognition program for your charity is one that will actually get used, and the best time to get started is today.

The post 7 tips for effective staff member recognition appeared first on CCCC Blogs.

People talking over coffee

Are one-to-one conversations part of your leadership tool kit?

Great leaders understand the value of having regular one-to-one conversations with their direct reports. Making time for these discussions sends a powerful message that leaders care about their people and are committed to enabling each team member to perform at their best.  There really is no substitute for the kind of rich conversation that can result if one-to-one’s are done well, and there is much leaders can do to create an environment where this happens.  Before we discuss what leaders can do to set the stage for meaningful one-to-one conversations, lets take a look at some of the benefits that come out of having these regular touch points with staff.

Three benefits of conducting one-to-one’s with your staff

1. Opportunity to reflect on recent happenings –  Leaders might frame this in the question of: ‘what is going well, and what isn’t going so well?’.  This kind of open ended question can lead to many possibilities including coachable moments where leaders can help employees to stretch and develop their problem solving skills.  These conversations are also a natural conduit for leaders to encourage others in their professional and spiritual development. An added benefit is that leaders will get a sense of whether or not staff are aligned with the broader goals and objectives of the charity.
2. Strengthens working relationships and rapport –  Active listening skills can help leaders to build credibility with their staff in that they truly ‘get it’ when it comes to the challenges and opportunities they encounter in their lives and day to day work.  For example, leaders may be able to connect employees struggling with mental health issues with resources (e.g. Employee Assistance Programs) sooner, potentially reducing the amount of lost time from work.  As Christians, leaders have the opportunity and privilege to also use this time to pray with staff members over specific needs and concerns they may be struggling with.
3. Detect and action employee disengagement sooner – A Gallup poll in 2014 found that just over 31% of workers in the United States were engaged in their jobs.  That means that almost 70% of those employees were either not engaged or actively disengaged in their work!  Having regular one-to-one conversations gives leaders an opportunity to pick up on lack of employee engagement sooner and the chance to do something about it.  For millennial employees it could be as simple as giving them the opportunity to work on something they find interesting and challenging.

Setting the stage for meaningful one-to-one conversations

Openness and transparency

One-to-ones provide a means for leaders and employees to pro-actively understand how each prefers to give and receive feedback, equipping both parties with tools for navigating conflict and relational challenges when they arise.  Leaders that are open and transparent about how they prefer to give and receive feedback, and take the time to learn about the work styles of their employees, will spend less time navigating relational challenges and more time advancing the charitable purposes of their organization.

Make the time

It can be all too easy to allow the urgency of the day to keep one-to-one conversations from happening, and while this is sometimes unavoidable, leaders who schedule the time are much more likely to follow through and make these touch points a priority. If a meeting needs to be cancelled, immediately re-scheduling signals to staff that their leaders continue to see this time together as important.  Choosing a meeting location where you won’t experience any interruptions and resisting the urge to check your smartphone allows leaders to really be present in the moment.

Introducing one-to-ones to your charity

The best time for leaders to introduce one-to-ones is when a new employee joins the organization. While there is no one standard when it comes to length and frequency, consider the length of time between conversations if a meeting gets missed, and plan accordingly.  Most of the leaders I have worked with tend to favour shorter more frequent meetings over longer meetings that are spaced further apart.

If one-to-ones are new to your organization, employees may need some help to get a feel for what these meetings are all about.  From this perspective, leaders will often have several open ended questions they can ask to help get the conversation going.  Here are a few that may help to get you started:

• What gets you out of bed in the morning?  Is there something you are working on that you feel particularly passionate about?
• What is it that keeps you excited and engaged in your work at our charity as opposed to deciding to work somewhere else?
• Where would you like to grow and develop professionally and spiritually over the next year?
• Are you encountering any roadblocks in your work that you need my help with?

Closing thoughts

Leaders that don’t conduct regular one-to-ones with their staff may be unintentionally operating with a blind spot and will not be as effective in their roles as those who make this practice a priority. These conversations allow leaders to understand and tap into what truly inspires and motivates their team members.  While there may be times when there is nothing new to discuss, this is usually the exception to the rule, as most employees (especially those working remotely) truly value having this time with their leaders.  One of the greatest legacies a leader can leave behind is that of enabling and developing others, so why not schedule some time with your staff members today?

The post Are one-to-one’s part of your leadership tool kit? appeared first on CCCC Blogs.

If you are new to the blog, it started in July 2009 and there are now over 200 posts. Here’s a brief introduction to Christian Leadership Reflections.

The Topic

Christian Leadership Reflections is a discussion about the practice of Christian leadership: self leadership, team leadership, and organizational leadership. If a ministry leader would think about it, and if it hasn’t already been well-covered by others, then I’m likely to write about it. So I write about governance, strategic thinking, and fundraising in addition to leadership.

Two topics are very important to Christian leadership and therefore receive a lot of attention:

1. Theology of Leadership: Ministry leaders need to be grounded in a theology of leadership that helps them understand their role as a follower of God’s leadership, as God’s co-partner in mission, and as God’s steward of the people and resources entrusted to their care. It is crucial that all aspects of organizational life are infused with Christian practices, including employment policies and procedures, decision-making processes, and relations with suppliers and beneficiaries.
2. Spirituality of Leadership: Leading a Christian ministry is an intensely spiritual exercise. The personal spiritual life of a ministry leader is therefore very much intertwined with the spiritual health of the organization he or she leads. Continued spiritual formation and becoming adept at discerning God’s leadership are critical to a Christian leader’s success.

My Angle

There are three aspects to the point of view you will find in this blog.

1. The blog’s particular contribution is to help Christian leaders apply their faith to their leadership practices. So it will always discuss both the theological and the practical. It takes big ideas and applies them on the job. Since I myself am leading a ministry, I am your ministry peer writing from personal experience.
2. Some blogs serve us well by reporting what others have said, but you’ll find that this blog has a different purpose:
   – to provide you with fresh, original ideas and their practical application,
   – to reflect and comment on what others have said, and
   – to share what I am learning as I lead CCCC.
3. I have been a Christian most of my life (you can read about my journey to Christian faith here), but I don’t make any claim to having Christian leadership down pat. As CEO of the Canadian Council of Christian Charities for the past 10 years, I am still a leader under construction myself. That’s why I added the word reflections to the blog’s title. I’m sharing what I am learning and I hope that together we will grow to become faithful and authentic Christian leaders.

Frequency

I try to write one post a week, usually on Monday mornings.  However, there are some exceptions:

• I won’t publish a post unless I really have something to say that I think you will find valuable or at least interesting.
• Sometimes an idea for a weekly post takes a long time to be processed into a worthy leadership reflection, so I might skip a week if I have nothing else to write about in the meantime.
• At other times, life or work gets in the way, and I just don’t have time to write a post. In that case, I’ll post as soon as I can.

How to Follow the Blog

If you’d like to minimize the time it takes to monitor posts on this blog, you can subscribe by email or by RSS feed. They are the easiest ways to find out about a new post. I also publish to both CCCC’s and my own Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter accounts. Otherwise, if you check in on Mondays, you’ll usually find something new.

Now go exploring!

Now it is time for you to explore. Use the categories, tags, series, and search box to explore to your heart’s content. Have fun!

The post Welcome to Christian Leadership Reflections appeared first on CCCC Blogs.

Now I’d like to share what I consider the ten most significant posts I’ve written. They represent the very best advice that I can give to a Christian ministry leader. There are four posts not included here because they were included in the Top Ten list from last week. They are:

• From Human Wisdom to Godly Wisdom
• Design Your Own Spiritual Retreat
• Early Warning Signs for Loss of Integrity
• The Private Life of a Christian Leader

These are the posts (in my order of importance) that, more than anything else I could say, will help you be the best Christian leader you can be. May you hear some day the Master say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”

#1: A Leader’s Intimacy with God

My friend Marvin Brubacher invited me to teach a class at Heritage Seminary for pastors about the practical aspects of leading a ministry.  At the end, he asked, “John, what one final thing do you want to tell these ministry leaders?  The one piece of advice they must hear?”  Without a moment’s hesitation, I said “Never, ever lose your intimacy with God!  There is always so much to do in leadership, but don’t ever let the busyness of leadership interfere with your personal communion with the Lord.”

#2: Public Consequences of Personal Spirituality

As a ministry leader, your spiritual life is inextricably linked to the health of the ministry you lead.  We see this demonstrated over and over again in both Testaments, often in terms of the shepherd-leader metaphor.  For example, the negative consequences are outlined in Jeremiah:

• 10:21 “the shepherds have become stupid, …therefore…”,
• 12:10 “many shepherds have ruined My vineyard”; and
• 50:6 “their shepherds have led them astray.”

There really are public consequences for what a leader may regard as their private, personal spirituality!

#3: It’s (not) lonely at the top!

“It’s lonely at the top” is true only if you want it to be.  It doesn’t have to be that way, but when there is no one a leader feels comfortable discussing the really challenging issues with, it truly is lonely.  In that case, it seems inevitable that some day either a challenge or the person’s own blindness to a situation will trip the leader up.

When ministry leaders come and go in just a few years, I wonder how connected they were with other people.  Could they have had greater longevity and success by being vulnerable and discussing these issues with someone else?

If you are finding leadership a lonely experience, here are some people who can keep you company.

#4: The Dark Side of Leadership

As I wrote Early Warning Signs for Loss of Integrity, I thought someone should write about what we can learn from Christian leaders who fail. Not just moral failure, but anything that sabotages their ability to lead. About a year ago I discovered that someone has done just that! Gary McIntosh and Samuel Rima wrote a book to show how to avoid the failures that can cost you your ministry. They used several prominent Christian leadership failures as illustrations in Overcoming the Dark Side of Leadership: How to Become an Effective Leader by Confronting Potential Failures.

Their thesis is that the traits that enabled you to become a leader are the same traits that can be your downfall.

#5: The Impediments to Finishing Well

Here’s a really quick post — a paragraph that leapt off the page while I was preparing another post.

The authors of The Ascent of a Leader report some striking research that is a reality check for leaders who become complacent about their leadership. I’ve added my own two cents’ worth in italics and included links to posts I’ve written on the topics. Here’s the paragraph:

“After having conducted extensive research, Dr. J. Robert Clinton, professor of leadership at Fuller Theological Seminary, believes that more than 70 percent of leaders do not finish well. He bases this startling statistic on six criteria, gleaned from common traits among leaders who do not finish well according to their self-analysis, the analysis of their peers and followers, or the teachings of their professed religion.

 #6: Strategic Planning and the Holy Spirit

Does your commitment to strategic planning quench the Holy Spirit?  Should a Christian ministry do strategic planning at all?  A brief study of Paul’s second missionary trip will provide the answer.

#7: “Why doesn’t God speak to me?”

The gist of Pastor Manoonsak’s sermon at Jai Samarn church in Bangkok was that when people ask why God doesn’t speak to them they are asking the wrong question. The real question is, “Why am I not listening when God is speaking?” No friendship will last long if one party is always talking and asking for things and never gives the other person a chance to get a word in edgewise and share what he or she wants to talk about. God wants his proper share of time to speak with you, and every believer should be able to hear what he has to say. But if you are leading one of his ministries, it is even more critical that you hear from God because you are responsible for stewarding the people and resources God has given your ministry.

#8: When a leader prays, “Thy will be done…”

Do you ever stop to think that some day you and your staff will be together in heaven and you will have no power or authority over them?  They will not be obligated to you, in fear of you, or in any way bound to you as a leader.  Does that have implications for how you lead your staff now?  It should!

In God’s kingdom, we know from Galatians 3:28 that, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  Gender, ethnicity and power will not be divisive factors in heaven.  My race, education, gender and any other human attribute I have will not give me any right to assert power or authority over anyone else.  We will all stand before God as equals, the only variation in our position being whatever rewards we receive for faithfulness while living here on earth.  That’s the way it is in the kingdom of heaven.   That’s the way it is when God rules, when his will is done.

Given that, I find it an awesome thing to pray, “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” because I can just imagine God’s natural first response to my prayer being, “Well, John, let’s start with you.  How well are you doing my will?  Does the workplace over which you rule look like the kingdom over which I rule?”  Oops!

#9: Of Kings and Prophets: Ministry Leaders and Their Critics

Ever get discouraged when ministry leaders don’t live up to your expectations of Christian behaviour? As an observer, how do you deal with that?

The ideal believer lives a Christlike life manifesting the fruit of the Spirit. Unfortunately, everyone is on a journey toward that ideal. We all fall short and we always will until God finishes perfecting us. Until then, we have to deal with imperfect people. That’s the really hard part of life for those of us who are already perfect! (Just kidding!!!)

But should we expect more from ministry leaders than from the average person? Yes, but they still won’t be perfect.

#10: Keeping Your Leadership Fresh

Do you remember being the new person in your job, coming in with all those wonderful ideas about what needed to be done?  When I came to CCCC, everybody kept asking me what my first 90-day plan was, and frankly, I didn’t have one.  I knew very little about CCCC but I knew it helped churches and I knew God had called me to CCCC to serve the broader church.  So in my first 90 days, I didn’t do anything but observe, listen and ask questions.  And then I knew what needed to be done.

By the time I had been in my role for four years, I knew that CCCC was entering another phase in its development.  The low-hanging fruit had been picked and it was time to reach for the fruit that would be much harder to get.  Now that I was an insider, not an outsider, could I still generate fresh, creative vision and ideas for CCCC?

That’s the question that every leader faces, “Am I the one to lead this organization through the next phase of its life?”

So…

My prayer for you, as always, is that you will stay close to God, sensitive to his Spirit, and faithful in your leadership.

The post 10 Most Important Posts appeared first on CCCC Blogs.