Introduction
There are a number of core principles that can guarantee successful operations in leading organizations. While the principles have been applied for a long time within the context of profit-making organizations, it is crucial to mention that successful administration of a local church also requires the same principles. A church is a non-profit making organization.
However, the key administrative skills required to run a local church are similar to the principles of organizational development discussed in this essay. This paper explores critical principles in leading organizational development and how the principles can be employed in the administration of a local church.
Principles of organizational development
Empowerment, self-awareness, authenticity, collaboration, respect and inclusion are some of key principles of organizational development. The opinion and perspective of every employee in an organization should be valued under the respect and inclusion principle. A client and a practitioner should also foster a collaborative working relationship.
This principle should be extended throughout the organization. Organizational members should also be encouraged to practice authenticity in the course of delivering services to clients at workplace. In addition, interpersonal skills and self-awareness should be promoted among employees in an organization. This can be attained through lifelong learning.
Hence, it implies that training, capacity building and development are key tenets that enhance self-awareness and productivity of workers. Moreover, a community or client organization should strive to help every member in organization through empowerment.
A certain degree of satisfaction is attained when members in an organization are given the opportunity to exercise their autonomy. For example, employees who are fully empowered at workplace can make critical decisions and be a source of invaluable knowledge.
Organizational development is a knowledge-based capacity building approach that targets performance. It is a long-term effort to change an organization in a systematic and planned manner in order to enhance its performance capability and overall productivity. It generally involves the re-organization and improvement of the internal structures and processes.
Internal structures are reorganized according to the distribution of tasks among staff members. It also depicts and reflects the rules, regulations, procedures, organizational plans and job descriptions. Internal processes refer to relations between members of the organization, which reflect communication patterns and mechanisms of cooperation, decision-making and planning.
Improved internal structures and processes is not an end in itself but rather a means by which to increase the efficiency of commodities or services in organization. These explain why the approach to organizational development has several traits as discussed below.
Organizational development is a participatory approach that includes all members of the organization. If the organization is small, it includes all members from support staff to executives. In the case of larger organizations, these are the teams or different services (the “organizational family”) that perform all analysis for improvements in their respective units.
With the involvement of all members of the organization, workers develop a sense of ownership and responsibility for the organization. Participation and involvement in the improvement process increase staff motivation and the quality of their performance.
The approach of active learning implies that participants should analyze their own problems, define goals for change, develop themselves, change activities and subsequently benefit from the achievements of these experiments to continue to improve their operations. Solutions that are acceptable to members and appear to be feasible in a certain context are preferred by those who are technically advanced.
In regards to the principle of active learning, organizational development approach involves a typical sequence of phases. Beginning with the collection of information about the current state of the organization, the sequence continues with the gathering of data and a discussion in which all members of the organization continue with the design of an action plan that serves as guideline to improve activities.
The first step in this sequence is to collect the required information as part of organizational assessment. Indeed, it allows members of the organization to increase knowledge and awareness that they individually possess. Thus, the system becomes more transparent since the stage is set and solutions proposed by members of the organization.
This consciousness allows greater transparency to reveal the natural differences between members that are usually due to individual perceptions of the organization. Organizational development encourages these perceptions and opens the way for negotiations through which it may be possible to arrive at a better (new) agreement among all members.
The establishment of an organizational diagnosis through several methods can be observed from different angles in the process of creating a diverse database. Usually, the “hard” data (such as the development plans) blend in with “soft” data (like the views and personal experiences of members that are collected through group work and individual interviews.
Group work and team building should be embraced on all the services offered. The organizational structure should also be made up of teams in order to improve the working environment, strengths and skills of employees.
Individual interviews with staff members on the tasks and job description, satisfaction with work, the equipment for workplace skills in relation to decision-making, leadership style, cooperation, and problem solving should be done collectively.
After establishing the organizational diagnosis, members have a greater understanding of the mode of their organization in its various aspects. They are therefore in a better position to identify problems and propose appropriate solutions. Thereafter, change objectives are formulated, manufactured and assembled to make a concrete plan of action.
Experience shows that change objectives targets improvements in four areas namely the product of the organization, the relationship with other organizations, resources (including human) and the internal structures and processes. The following factors are also pertinent in the empowerment and collaboration principles of organizational development:
- Work on internal structures and processes
- Implementation and coordination of regular meetings for the teams (for the purposes of planning, monitoring and training of new teams
- Improved planning processes: breaking down annual targets goals short and medium terms and phases (for individuals and teams)
- Introduction and improvement of an information system (reports made individually by staff, which should be coordinated and the list be drawn up by management)
- Construction of a job description for each employee through systematic reviews of staff and human resource development
- Participatory analysis of yield figures of the development plan as well as evaluating the success and suggestions for improvement.
To achieve the improvement activities that have been planned in advance, it is possible to attribute each specific tasks for a certain period of time. However, depending on the nature of the task, it is often necessary to create temporary structures such as task forces or working groups, which may be dissolved once the specific purpose is achieved.
Application of the principles in a local church context
The operations of a local church equally demands the application of organizational development principles. For example, it is useful to establish a church management structure to coordinate several departments. A local church is expected to run quite a number of ministries. Examples of ministries found in a local church include evangelism, pastoral, women, and children’s departments.
Others include the worship team ministry, men’s ministry, widows/widowers ministry, and intercessory ministry among others. While each of these ministries function independently in a local church, departmental collaboration is crucial. In other words, the cooperation principle of organizational development can be duly applied in running various departments in a local church.
Second, respect and inclusion cannot be ignored in a local church setting. Ministry leaders and the rest of church members should feel that they are respected. When it comes to inclusion, a participatory approach is prudent in nurturing the leadership of a local church.
Decisions and conclusions on vital affairs of the church should not be left to a few church leaders such as the pastor and elders. In fact, church members should be summoned for general meetings to deliberate on important matters that affect the organization. Members should first endorse any decisions made by the leadership of the church.
Based on the principles of active learning and empowerment, church members and departmental committees can achieve certain targets for improving operations. The leadership should not only implement what was agreed in the action plan.
It must also regularly evaluate the progress of their work and monitor their activities to see if they still contribute to achieving the set objectives. When self-assessment is done properly and regularly, it is an important part of organizational learning and capacity development within the setting of a local church.