How “Ministry Silos” Hurt Your Staff & Church (and the 1st Step Toward a Fix)
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Tony Morgan’s
new book addresses Ministry Silos, where people and ministries share the
same roof but do nearly everything in isolation. Outside of Sundays,
they rarely combine their efforts.
There
are six of us in the Morgan family. Let’s pretend that while we all
shared the same house, we each lived in separate rooms. We only engaged
in individual activities. We never spoke to one another. We never shared
our future dreams. And, with the exception of one meal together each
Sunday, we always ate on different schedules. Would you consider us a
healthy family? Absolutely not.
Unfortunately, this is a very typical picture of life inside the house we call “church.” People and ministries share the same roof but do nearly everything in isolation. Outside of Sundays, they rarely combine their efforts. Like members of a dysfunctional family, most church staff members know their team isn’t healthy. But they’ve learned to cope and get by, living separate lives within the same house.
I’m tired of seeing churches in which the children’s ministry, student ministry, choir, women’s ministry, men’s ministry, discipleship program, local missions team and other departments are each operating independently of the rest. Healthy businesses would never allow one business unit to compete against another. Healthy churches don’t allow that either.
This problem is very serious, but it isn’t brand new. The Apostle Paul wrote the following to an early church hindered by the issue:
I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose. (1 Corinthians 1:10, NLT)
Throughout time, the church has continued to be held back by this challenge. The issue shows up in today’s churches in the form of ministry silos—undeclared divisions between departments. It’s not hard to tell when a church has silos. The difficult part is discovering and eliminating their true causes.
Based on our experiences with hundreds of churches, the team at The Unstuck Group has identified seven major causes of ministry silos. We’ll explore each problem, along with the symptoms of each and steps you can take to begin addressing them.
But before we get started, let’s pause to remember how much is at stake:
Unfortunately, this is a very typical picture of life inside the house we call “church.” People and ministries share the same roof but do nearly everything in isolation. Outside of Sundays, they rarely combine their efforts. Like members of a dysfunctional family, most church staff members know their team isn’t healthy. But they’ve learned to cope and get by, living separate lives within the same house.
I’m tired of seeing churches in which the children’s ministry, student ministry, choir, women’s ministry, men’s ministry, discipleship program, local missions team and other departments are each operating independently of the rest. Healthy businesses would never allow one business unit to compete against another. Healthy churches don’t allow that either.
This problem is very serious, but it isn’t brand new. The Apostle Paul wrote the following to an early church hindered by the issue:
I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose. (1 Corinthians 1:10, NLT)
Throughout time, the church has continued to be held back by this challenge. The issue shows up in today’s churches in the form of ministry silos—undeclared divisions between departments. It’s not hard to tell when a church has silos. The difficult part is discovering and eliminating their true causes.
Based on our experiences with hundreds of churches, the team at The Unstuck Group has identified seven major causes of ministry silos. We’ll explore each problem, along with the symptoms of each and steps you can take to begin addressing them.
But before we get started, let’s pause to remember how much is at stake:
- What could happen if leaders within churches began putting a unified purpose ahead of personal agendas?
- How might the Kingdom advance if wins for the team were really more important than protecting turf?
- Who could be reached if we cared more about ministry and less about maintaining our individual platforms?
Silo Issue #1: The Vision Problem
The first major cause of ministry silos deals with one of the most frequently discussed church leadership topics. However, despite numerous conference sessions, blog posts and books, most churches continue to experience this problem …
The vision isn’t clear.
While most churches have a mission statement, it isn’t enough. The mission answers in 10 words or less, “Why do we exist?” In addition to mission buy-in, though, everyone needs a clear answer to the question, “Where are we going?” That is the vision.
Vision pulls a church toward something bigger than the next Sunday service. It challenges a team to pursue new methods and opportunities for greater impact. The vision has to be specific and measurable. It will probably be reflected in several statements that define a clear picture of where God is taking your church in the future. If you have a solid vision, it will both rally people and repel people. You want that. When you are very clear about where you are going, there are usually people who aren’t up for the journey.
Don’t confuse your values with your vision. You can value hospitality, but hospitality is not a vision for the future.
Don’t confuse your strategy with your vision. You can embrace authentic worship as part of your strategy, but authentic worship is not a vision for the future.
Don’t confuse your doctrine with your vision. You can believe in biblical authority, but biblical authority is not a vision for the future.
So what does vision actually look like? Let me give you some examples.
Part of Granger Community Church’s vision is this:
We will utilize our fabulous Children’s Center and launch a weekday faith-based preschool and/or daycare to meet the growing needs of parents as they try to raise their kids with virtue.
That’s specific. That’s measurable. Everyone knew part of their vision to equip parents and encourage healthy families was to open a Children’s Center, and they did it.
Here’s another example. NewSpring Church includes this statement about their vision:
NewSpring Church has a passion to continue growing, impacting lives and using technology and the arts to reach 100,000 people for Jesus Christ.
That’s specific. That’s measurable. Because they believe God is calling them to reach 100,000 people for Jesus Christ, everything they do today reflects that vision.
Just to explain this clearly, many churches have a mission statement, core values and a discipleship strategy. (For example: Love God. Grow Christ-followers. Serve others.) To be honest, many churches are fairly similar in these areas. In contrast, very few churches have a clear, bold vision for where they are going in the future. Vision can and should be the most differentiating component among churches. It is what can make each church truly unique. Frankly, one key reason leaders don’t go there is because clear vision also creates accountability.
After you establish the vision, you have to nail down your strategy. If vision defines where God is leading us in the future, strategy answers the question, “How are we going to get there?” The strategy requires action. It should focus time, money, space, leadership, prayer, etc. When the strategy is clear, it’s much easier to determine what is important now.
To most effectively eliminate ministry silos, you need to engage this vision and strategy process through cross-functional planning. In other words, this isn’t a top-down edict. Instead, leaders from across the ministry gather to establish future direction … together.
So, how are you doing? Do you have a clear vision? Does everyone know how you’re going to fulfill it? If not, that’s the first reason your church may have ministry silos.
7 Symptoms of a Vision Problem
The first major cause of ministry silos deals with one of the most frequently discussed church leadership topics. However, despite numerous conference sessions, blog posts and books, most churches continue to experience this problem …
The vision isn’t clear.
While most churches have a mission statement, it isn’t enough. The mission answers in 10 words or less, “Why do we exist?” In addition to mission buy-in, though, everyone needs a clear answer to the question, “Where are we going?” That is the vision.
Vision pulls a church toward something bigger than the next Sunday service. It challenges a team to pursue new methods and opportunities for greater impact. The vision has to be specific and measurable. It will probably be reflected in several statements that define a clear picture of where God is taking your church in the future. If you have a solid vision, it will both rally people and repel people. You want that. When you are very clear about where you are going, there are usually people who aren’t up for the journey.
Don’t confuse your values with your vision. You can value hospitality, but hospitality is not a vision for the future.
Don’t confuse your strategy with your vision. You can embrace authentic worship as part of your strategy, but authentic worship is not a vision for the future.
Don’t confuse your doctrine with your vision. You can believe in biblical authority, but biblical authority is not a vision for the future.
So what does vision actually look like? Let me give you some examples.
Part of Granger Community Church’s vision is this:
We will utilize our fabulous Children’s Center and launch a weekday faith-based preschool and/or daycare to meet the growing needs of parents as they try to raise their kids with virtue.
That’s specific. That’s measurable. Everyone knew part of their vision to equip parents and encourage healthy families was to open a Children’s Center, and they did it.
Here’s another example. NewSpring Church includes this statement about their vision:
NewSpring Church has a passion to continue growing, impacting lives and using technology and the arts to reach 100,000 people for Jesus Christ.
That’s specific. That’s measurable. Because they believe God is calling them to reach 100,000 people for Jesus Christ, everything they do today reflects that vision.
Just to explain this clearly, many churches have a mission statement, core values and a discipleship strategy. (For example: Love God. Grow Christ-followers. Serve others.) To be honest, many churches are fairly similar in these areas. In contrast, very few churches have a clear, bold vision for where they are going in the future. Vision can and should be the most differentiating component among churches. It is what can make each church truly unique. Frankly, one key reason leaders don’t go there is because clear vision also creates accountability.
After you establish the vision, you have to nail down your strategy. If vision defines where God is leading us in the future, strategy answers the question, “How are we going to get there?” The strategy requires action. It should focus time, money, space, leadership, prayer, etc. When the strategy is clear, it’s much easier to determine what is important now.
To most effectively eliminate ministry silos, you need to engage this vision and strategy process through cross-functional planning. In other words, this isn’t a top-down edict. Instead, leaders from across the ministry gather to establish future direction … together.
So, how are you doing? Do you have a clear vision? Does everyone know how you’re going to fulfill it? If not, that’s the first reason your church may have ministry silos.
7 Symptoms of a Vision Problem
- When people talk about “vision,” they’re really just re-articulating the mission.
- Individual departments have separate vision statements, and they do not connect.
- The vision doesn’t express the uniqueness of your church.
- Pull the leadership team together and ask, “Where we do we want to go? How will we know when we get there?”
- Have conversations with your staff to discover the unique opportunities they see available to your church from their vantage points.
- Put together a strategic plan with clear action steps to make the vision a reality.
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