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Why Isn't the Church "Efficient"?
An executive looks at why churches don't run like businesses.
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See if any of these episodes sounds familiar. Staffing the Sunday morning nursery had always been tough at one northeastern church, and this summer was almost impossible. Finally Ellen had agreed to do it "if you really can't find anyone else." Not many had noticed that Ellen invariably came into the worship service during the first hymn and sometimes later. Sure enough, when it was her Sunday for nursery duty, there were five or six parents standing around the nursery with their kids waiting for the "staff" to arrive. Ellen eventually showed up, and the parents trooped into the service at the end of the first hymn. The same thing happened every time it was her turn. A friend, Allen, came home late Sunday night feeling as if he needed a week in the Bahamas. He'd been at church four evenings of the last week and had stayed Sunday evening to see that the church fellowship room was cleaned up after the high school party. The youth sponsors were great with youth, but they didn't realize you have to sponge up spilled apple cider or you have a sticky mess next Sunday. Then, as treasurer, Allen had to work on the bank deposit for the next morning and pay the bills before he could get to bed. At the office where he was a financial officer, he could control check requests; at the church, no one monitored expenses, and people didn't always stick to a budget. The annual business meeting at another church could always be counted on as a mental and emotional drain. It was scheduled to start at 7:00, but it was always 7:30 before the quorum finally accumulated, and by 10:30 it was only halfway through the "must list" of topics. The problem was partly the moderator: He was a nice guy, but he just didn't know how to run a meeting and keep it moving. Some of the speeches from the committee chairs resembled keynote speeches at a political convention. Other people simply read the papers they handed out. People began slipping away, bored and annoyed, at 11:00, and those who stayed to the bitter end went home frustrated or mad. Such are the famed inefficiencies of the local church. Different RulesThere must be a better way. That may be how you feel after a typical evening at church. Or more accurately, that may be how you feel after a typical evening at the church after a typical day at the office. I remember numerous evenings spent in dull, time-consuming committee meetings and wondering if church could not be run more like a business. Down at the office, plant, or store, you can usually see how to get things done. Things may not always go according to plan, but you know that when you have to have results, your company can find a way to pull it off. At church the rules are apparently different. Some activities work well; others seem to have a slapdash, hit-or-miss touch about them. Evaluation and accountability are often handled very informally if at all. |             |
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