While serving as Corporate Trainer which morphed into Facilitator for Millbrook Distribution a wholesale distributor to the supermarket industry I read one of the best books on change; Deep Change by Robert E. Quinn. It is one book I make an effort to read each year to be reminded of the challenges of change that makes a difference.
According to Quinn deep change requires new ways of thinking and behaving, it is change that is discontinuous with the past and generally irreversible. He describe it as “walking naked into the land of uncertainty.”
For organizational change to become deep the individuals involved in the organization must experience a deep change.
We are now experiencing change in the North American Mission Board. We are being challenged with another proposed change in the Missouri Baptist Convention. It remains to be seen if either of these changes are deep enough to fundamentally make a difference. Rearranging the pieces does not fundamentally change anything. As I listened to the the new organizational stucture of the MBC I questioned; “Is this just a rearranging of the pieces?” Flatter does not necessiarly mean better.
The change that is needed for NAMB and the MBC to become efficently effective in the proclamation of the Gospel will not come from an editct form the top but a willingness for someone to walk naked into the land of conventions whether national or state and take the risk of making fundamental change.
The fundamental change required for these organizations to effectively serve cannot happen until the change takes place in the basic unit the local church. When the fundamental organizational change take place in the local church then those service agencies such as the association and conventions will fundamentally change or die.
It is the reason why we don’t see buggy shops but auto shops. It is the reason why the postal service will soon go the way of the buggy shop and why you will soon not see desk top computers.
As long a men exist on earth there will be sin and a need for a savior and the need to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Whether with pen and ink or with facebook and twitter the method will be in constant flux.
We need organizations to be efficiently effective in the sharing of the good news to a dying sinful mankind. Those that refuse to make “Deep Change” will be listed in the history books alongside buggy makers.
According to Quinn deep change requires new ways of thinking and behaving, it is change that is discontinuous with the past and generally irreversible. He describe it as “walking naked into the land of uncertainty.”
For organizational change to become deep the individuals involved in the organization must experience a deep change.
We are now experiencing change in the North American Mission Board. We are being challenged with another proposed change in the Missouri Baptist Convention. It remains to be seen if either of these changes are deep enough to fundamentally make a difference. Rearranging the pieces does not fundamentally change anything. As I listened to the the new organizational stucture of the MBC I questioned; “Is this just a rearranging of the pieces?” Flatter does not necessiarly mean better.
The change that is needed for NAMB and the MBC to become efficently effective in the proclamation of the Gospel will not come from an editct form the top but a willingness for someone to walk naked into the land of conventions whether national or state and take the risk of making fundamental change.
The fundamental change required for these organizations to effectively serve cannot happen until the change takes place in the basic unit the local church. When the fundamental organizational change take place in the local church then those service agencies such as the association and conventions will fundamentally change or die.
It is the reason why we don’t see buggy shops but auto shops. It is the reason why the postal service will soon go the way of the buggy shop and why you will soon not see desk top computers.
As long a men exist on earth there will be sin and a need for a savior and the need to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Whether with pen and ink or with facebook and twitter the method will be in constant flux.
We need organizations to be efficiently effective in the sharing of the good news to a dying sinful mankind. Those that refuse to make “Deep Change” will be listed in the history books alongside buggy makers.