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Leadership Development
Leadership is a team sport. You cannot effectively lead solo or in a vacuum. You need to be committed to developing other leaders. Leadership has little to do with followers and much more to do with developing other leaders. Leadership expert John Maxwell says, “If you really want to be a successful leader, you must develop the leaders around you.”1 I have found that leaders want to be successful. So what can you do to develop other leaders in your church?
Leadership development must involve leader-development capacity, a culture of leadership development, and a leadership development pipeline.
Determine Your Leader-Development Capacity
Growth is more than a hobby; it is a habit. The person who chooses to be a leader developer must work at integrating the nine qualities below into their life.
A leader developer appreciates others. Authentic appreciation is the primary motivator for development. When people know you appreciate them for who they are, they are more open to development. Appreciating people where they are and as they are puts you in a position to begin the development process. Appreciation means acknowledging a person’s strengths, abilities, and skills. Once you have done this, you can hone who they are.
A leader developer believes in the propensity of others to do their best. Leadership development is not a journey of imagination; it is an adventure of building up people who you believe want to do the work. If you question a person’s desire, you will limit your investment in them. So if you do not believe they will do their best, then do not invest in them.
A leader developer praises people for what they have done. Accomplishment is the fruit of development. What receives recognition is what gets accomplished. If you do not applaud (praise) what someone does, then they will soon stop doing it. A person knows they are developing when they accomplish milestones you have laid out in the development process. Unpraised steps will soon result in standing still.
A leader developer empowers others. They understand the positive process of allowing people to learn through failure. Empowerment allows for this. Followers are given the space and freedom to try. Their development is enhanced when, after they try, there is debriefing. Debriefing moves experience into acquired wisdom.
A leader developer listens and asks questions. They first listen, then probe through questions. It’s important to allow the person being developed to be heard. The leader developer gains a better understanding of the other person’s perspectives and intentions when they listen to them. Once the person being developed has been heard, the leader developer can use questions as leverage points to help the person think for themselves.
A leader developer encourages and cares for others. They deeply understand the power of encouragement and care in developing other people. Offering encouragement and care pushes folks to the next level of growth. The leader developer can challenge the status quo, cultivate an environment of trust, and change the thinking of the person being developed from “no way” to “what is the best way.”
A leader developer values clear thinking and strategic action. They are intentional. They lay out a path to develop others. They refuse to take a happenstance approach. They are willing to adapt the developmental process but not at the expense of the end result.
A leader developer continually learns and places a high value on personal growth. They know they are on a journey of growth. They are intimately aware that their willingness to grow, learn, and develop feeds directly into their ability to develop others. Being a lifelong learner is essential for a leader developer.
A leader developer accepts personal responsibility to develop others. They embrace this responsibility. They understand that you get who you develop. Where you invest your time is where you will reap your greatest benefit.
How do you measure up to these nine qualities? What can you do to integrate them into your role as a leader developer? What will you do? When will you do this?
Establish a Culture of Leader Development
One thing Phil most looked forward to when moving into high school was the opportunity to play organized football. The football program had three levels: freshman, junior varsity, and varsity. The freshman team was only for those in their freshman year. Therefore, it was age-driven. The other two levels were primarily skill-based.
The ultimate goal was for players at the varsity level to be skilled and to understand both the offensive and defensive systems. The methodology used to facilitate this was age-appropriate development and shared understanding.
Beginning at the freshman level, coaches taught the skill sets needed at the varsity level. Along with skill development, the same offensive and defensive systems used at the varsity level were implemented. This resulted in a culture of shared values, skills, and systems. The ultimate result was winning football games.
Leadership is needed at every level of a church that chooses to run the race well. A church that builds a culture that prioritizes developing leaders will exponentially increase its effectiveness. So what can a church do to build a leadership culture?
The pastor must be convinced that a leadership culture is necessary. Many pastors prefer to hold tight to the leaders already in place. Such an attitude will eventually stagnate a church. However, when a pastor is genuinely convinced that new leaders need to be developed throughout the ranks, the culture is primed for change.
Assuming you support the necessity of building a leadership culture, you can do some things to construct your framework. And, like Phil’s high school football program, you must begin at the lowest level.
First, define leadership. John Maxwell says, “Leadership is not about titles, positions, flowcharts. It is about one life influencing another.”2 This definition reveals the importance of building a leadership culture. People will influence others, so you want them to influence well. Whatever your definition, make it clear, concise, and communicable. How do you define leadership?
Second, view every person as a potential leader. The lenses through which you view others will greatly determine your interaction with them. Seeing every person as a potential leader will help you view them differently. You will observe the little things they do. You will note how they relate to others. You will consider how they handle challenges. Viewing others as potential leaders will enhance your ability to zero in on their leadership capacity. How do you view those in your congregation?
Third, identify core leadership competencies. Competencies are the skills needed to lead in your congregation. A leadership culture is built on shared competencies. All leaders need the following basic competencies: problem-solving skills, the ability to connect relationally, and the knack for communicating well. Additionally, each church has its own unique competencies.
Several years ago, Phil determined to establish a process for developing emerging leaders in the district he oversaw. He reflected back on his experiences and identified nine core ministry competencies and established a question to evaluate the competence in each of the areas.
| Nine Core Competencies | Questions to Evaluate Competence |
| Spiritual Disciplines | How do I consistently connect with God? |
| Self-Leadership | What systems of accountability do I currently practice? |
| Serving Others | Who do I serve or help for no personal gain? |
| Leadership Style | How do I live out my unique leadership abilities? |
| Relating to Others | How do I build and maintain healthy relationships? |
| Communication | How do I improve my communication skills? |
| Lifelong Learning | What personal development plan do I currently employ? |
| Developing Leaders | How do I currently develop leaders? |
| Growing and Multiplying Ministry | How do I multiply myself and my ministry? |
Phil established these for his particular area of ministry responsibility. We provide them as an example, not with the expectation that they will be yours. Instead, think about what core leadership competencies are needed in your church.
Fourth, develop a process to coach people in the core competencies. We use the word coach, as opposed to train, intentionally. Training is content-based, while coaching is relationally based. Coaching people in the core competencies puts them in relational connections for mentoring and maturing in leadership. A coach is one who comes alongside a potential leader to help them discover their leadership capacity. Here are eight ways to maximize leadership development through coaching.
Connect relationally. You impact people from a distance, but you influence them up close. You will never effectively develop leaders from afar. Connecting is about being with people not merely around them. You can be around people without being with them, but you cannot be with them unless you are around them. Get around and with those you are developing. Invest in them. Let them see your life.
Open doors to experiences. Experiences are things you do and involve people you meet. You can share a variety of experiences with those you are developing. Experiences can be locations, activities, or challenges. They are anything you might provide to those you are developing that will enlarge their horizons and increase their opportunities. The key, however, is not simply to experience but to debrief the experience.
Ask open-ended questions. Leaders need to be taught how to think, not what to think. Open-ended questions empower this development. “The heart of coaching is simple: you can help people significantly by listening and asking good questions.”3 The questions force developing leaders to think, apply, probe, and decide. They own the choices they make.
Capture their hearts. People you are developing buy into you before they buy into the mission. You capture their hearts when you give them your heart (the authentic you) and your hand (help in their lives). You capture their hearts when you believe in their potential and who they are as human beings. You capture their hearts when you add value to their lives.
Hold them accountable. Accountability must be agreed on. It is ineffective if only one person agrees on the areas of accountability. Leaders who are not held accountable for their attitudes, actions, and abilities are being shortchanged in their development.
Invite them to fail. You and leaders you are developing must view failure as an opportunity to learn. Failure is only final if you never fail again; and the only time you will never fail is if you stop trying. Never allow those you are developing to stop trying.
Utilize need-oriented resourcing. Give developing leaders what they need, not what they want. Delve into your experiential toolbox and supply them with resources you know they will need. John Wooden, legendary University of California, Los Angeles, basketball coach, spent the first practice of every basketball season teaching his players how to put on their socks and tie their shoes. Why? The players did not want or value such mundane information, but Wooden knew they needed it. Ill-fitting socks and recklessly tied shoes could result in blisters. And blisters could keep them from giving their best when their best was needed.
Give them honest feedback. Speak the truth in love. Be clear. Be kind. Be gentle.
How are you developing leaders in your congregation? What coaching skills do you need to develop to increase your capacity to develop leaders?
Fifth, put people in the process. A process does no good if you are not placing people in it. Create a method for people in your church to enter the leadership development process. The first step is to identify individuals who may be candidates. I suggest three characteristics to look for in potential leaders.
Honesty. A leader understands the value of honesty. A leader hones their ability to speak in a forthright but fair manner. The Bible describes this as the leader who will “speak the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15 NLT). An honest leader does not have to belittle, speak down to, degrade, or demoralize others. An honest leader does not have to spin reality, sugarcoat situations, or comment on circumstances overly optimistically. An honest leader speaks their mind. They are clear in their communication. They state the situation in the proper context, using well-chosen words, and consider the emotions of others.
Passion. When a leader believes in something, they pursue it with controlled abandon. They are not afraid of pouring themselves into the mission, goal, or dream. Passion compels others. Passion attracts others. Passion fuels individuals and churches. Passion propels a leader’s pursuit. And a leader’s pursuit increases their passion. A leader should not back down from what they are passionate about.
Risk-taking. Challenges are risky. When a leader accepts a challenge, it is inherent with risk. They may risk their reputation, competency, credibility, fortune, or dream.
When you view these three characteristics in someone, they have the potential to be developed as a leader. How are you identifying potential leaders? How are you getting people into the developmental process?
Sixth, build in multiplication. A leadership culture must have multiplication built into it. People should not only be developed but also be developing others. Developed leaders who are not developing other leaders are limited to one generation of leaders. Genuine leadership development has not occurred until a leader has multiplied other leaders. If you are not multiplying leaders, then you are developing followers, not leaders. What are you doing to multiply generations of leaders?
Building a leadership culture is time-intensive but cost-effective. A church that builds leadership into its culture will never be static. People will grow. Ministry will be valued. Communities will be influenced. Your church will run the race effectively!
Create a Leadership Development Pipeline
Leaders do not merely accumulate followers; they activate other leaders. John Maxwell states, “My goal is not to draw a following that results in a crowd. My goal is to develop leaders who become a movement.”4 A leader who does not take this to heart will have limited leadership effectiveness. A leader who resists developing other leaders will have limited influence during their life span. A leader who genuinely desires a life of significance will develop the leaders who will outlive them.
Business leader Kent Humphreys owned and operated a national general merchandise distribution company. During his tenure as a business owner, he discovered the importance of developing other leaders. In his wonderful book Shepherding Horses,5 Kent outlines six steps for raising up and training leaders.
Step 1: Invite them to join you. Developing leaders begins with an invite for them to participate with you. Leaders seldom respond to a general call to be developed. But when they are asked specifically, they have a tendency to be more open to participating. Invite those you want to develop into a vibrant relationship of growth with you.
Step 2: Create a trust-filled atmosphere. It is difficult to develop leaders in distrust. Those you are developing must trust you. You build trust through patience, transparency, and modeling.
Step 3: Affirm their potential. Many of those you choose to develop may not see in themselves what you see in them. Let them know why you believe in them. Show them their potential. Be specific in your affirmation. When they do not believe in themselves, you believe in them!
Step 4: Give them practical skills. Because competency is a necessary skill for doing the work of a leader, it is a key element of leadership development. Other key skills include relationship building, organization, communication, and strategic implementation.
Step 5: Confirm their leadership. Be public about your developmental process. Those you are developing need your blessing. Place the mantle on them. Be clear about your expectations. Confirm them in their role now and in the future.
Step 6: Release them to lead. Developing leaders but never releasing them to lead will frustrate them. An unwillingness to release others will undermine you. If you become known as a developer who does not release, you will have a difficult time recruiting others to join you on future leadership developmental journeys. Leadership development goes beyond training and coaching and into the opportunity to implement the training.
Leaders are developers. They develop people to become leaders. Developing leaders is the key to creating synergy and movement in the leadership capacity of the local church. How are you moving followers into leaders? Who are you developing as a leader? Designing a process to develop present and future leaders is a critical component of building the body.
Five Types of Churches
Beginner Churches
Beginner churches rely solely on the pastor for everything related to leadership. The pastor leads everything, initiates most things, and often is the only person willing to head committees or teams. The few who are willing to chair a committee or team are typically not leaders. They act in this role only to appease the pastor. The same folks serve in the same roles for long periods of time because no other leaders are being developed. The pastor seldom has much confidence in their leadership capabilities.
PLAN OF ACTION IF YOU LEAD A BEGINNER CHURCH
- Develop a personal plan to read three books on leadership.
- Encourage the pastor to attend one leadership-intensive seminar or conference.
- Make a list of at least three people you view as potential leaders.
Novice Churches
Novice churches have begun to sense the need for leadership development within their churches. The pastor of a novice church has gotten to the point where he is unwilling to lead everything. The local church board has begun to sense the limitation of their leadership capacity. This realization is the agitation needed to begin to move forward.
PLAN OF ACTION IF YOU LEAD A NOVICE CHURCH
- Have the board read and discuss one leadership book a year.
- Encourage the pastor or a designated key lay leader to lead a discussion each month with the board about insights found in their reading.
- Encourage the pastor to preach a sermon series on biblical leadership principles.
- Provide training for your church’s second-tier leaders (small group leaders, teachers, and ministry leaders) in basic leadership concepts.
Intermediate churches have leadership boards that are growing in their leadership capacity. The pastors and boards of intermediate churches are learning more of what it means to lead. Leadership lessons and conversations about application are a central aspect of each board meeting. Board meetings are more about looking ahead than managing property and handling crises.
PLAN OF ACTION IF YOU LEAD AN INTERMEDIATE CHURCH
- The pastor selects a group of folks (three to six people) from the congregation he believes have leadership potential.
- He extends an invitation for this group to join him on a leadership development journey.
- He selects one of the books he has read and the board has discussed for everyone in the group to read.
- The group meets regularly, and the pastor asks good questions.
- The board members identify others they would like to participate in another leadership development group, perhaps led by the pastor.
Advanced Churches
Advanced churches are highly engaged in leadership development. The local board members are leading leadership development groups. The pastors are beginning new leadership development groups on a regular basis. Each person who participates in a leadership development group is expected to multiply this in others. A farm system of new leaders is being developed. Those who lead ministry teams/committees are expected to be developing other leaders.
PLAN OF ACTION IF YOU LEAD AN ADVANCED CHURCH
The following steps should be taken by the lead pastor or a person designated by the pastor.
- Develop a list of leadership skills and competencies central to all leaders in the congregation.
- Design a plan to teach these competencies. The plan should include books and lessons for discussion and interaction.
- Select leaders to participate in this deeper leadership development process.
- Test drive the process and evaluate.
- Hold quarterly leadership gatherings for all ministry leaders.
Elite Churches
Elite churches have leadership development happening at every level of their congregations. The expectation for leadership development is part of the fabric of these churches. And people are attracted to them because of this leadership culture. High-capacity leaders are the new normal. Leadership pipelines are in place. Leaders are raised up not only for each church’s ministry but also to be sent out to other ministries. The local leadership boards and other ministry departments have a continual infusion of new leadership blood.
PLAN OF ACTION IF YOU LEAD AN ELITE CHURCH
- Expose the congregation to outside leadership experts.
- Make the growth of the leadership pipeline a key metric in ministry effectiveness.
- Take potential leaders to a leadership conference each year.
- Resist leadership complacency.
Churches that are building the body value leadership development. They recognize that developing new leaders increases the capacity and competency of the church. A church that intentionally works to develop leaders, both present and future, increases its muscular strength to face the future.