I have spoken to more than a few church leaders on the topic of strategic planning over the years. It's almost always necessary to periodically revisit the definition of the different components of a strategy. It's definitely necessary to explore, understand, and explain when beginning a strategic planning effort with a new church or other organization. What is the difference between mission, vision, and strategy? … [Read more...]
Identifying First-Time Guests
Exploring This Very Important Part Of A Good Church Growth Strategy
Those of us who measure the number of first-time guests we attract each weekend know one crucial thing. We're only counting a portion of the "actual" number of first-time guests. In other words, many first-time guests do not identify themselves. Therefore, we don't know they are there. The "front of the house person," regardless of title, in addition to other responsibilities, is responsible for "connections" at … [Read more...]
Small Group Attendance Reporting
"We Count People Because People Count!"
I can't tell you how often I've discussed small group attendance reporting with a client or other church leader. And, every conversation eventually gets around to "How do you get your small group leaders to report attendance?" Of course, there's no "silver bullet" solution, but there are two "keys" to getting small group leaders to report their groups' attendance. Vision Casting First, you have to do a great job … [Read more...]
Strategic Plan – Key Performance Measures (KPMs)
As part of the Strategic Planning Process, certain measures are established to help the church determine the effectiveness of the plan. In keeping with the Performance Cycle, it is necessary to routinely review "results." These results are called Key Performance Measures (KPMs) and are reviewed regularly. The review is a comparison of the results the plan is delivering versus the original stakeholder needs identified … [Read more...]