When A Leader Comes Of Age

Maturity in leadership comes at a personal price. Sooner or later, every CEO of a Christ-centered ministry will have to make a moral decision that will define his or her legacy of leadership. We call this moment a “critical incident.” It comes as a surprise, poses a moral conflict, requires a risky decision with the possibility of failure, and results in long-term, even eternal consequences. President Barack Obama made that kind of decision in his executive order to assault the compound of Osama Bin Laden. Whatever our politics, we recognize the weighty consequences of leadership at any level and in any context. The news of the day should drive us to our knees. Only the Spirit of God can help us sort out the differences between our self-interest, the common good, and the will of God. Christian leadership is affirmed, compromised or denied in this defining moment.

Our Biblical Model For Succession

CEO succession, a dormant subject just a few years ago, has come fully alive. Boards are thinking about succession, not only when their CEO is ready to retire or under threat of dismissal, but as a working principle of good governance. For Christ-centered ministries, Elijah’s transfer of prophetic authority to Elisha is our succession model. Follow the sequence. Elijah, aware that his leadership is coming to completion, is told by God to anoint Elisha as a man of unquestioned integrity and youthful energy. So, in an irreversible act, Elijah takes off his mantle and puts it on the shoulders of Elisha, never to take it back. The newly ordained prophet responds in kind. Elisha sells all of his equipment, slaughters all of his oxen, and feeds the poor to let everyone know that he will never turn back from his calling. Then, in a mentoring moment, Elisha follows Elijah to be his servant and learn from the master.

Dare we follow this model? If so, we need CEOs of Christ-centered ministries who are not threatened by the reality of succession. We need CEOs who are actively cultivating potential successors to their position. We need CEOs who pass the mantle of leadership without reservation. We need successors who cut all of the lines of the past in order to give themselves unreservedly, and even sacrificially, to CEO leadership. And then, we need senior statesmen who will make mentoring of the next generation the lasting legacy of their leadership.

Governance — Good, Better and Best

Good governance gets better results with best practices. Proven standards beginning with a clear statement of strategic focus and ending with a candid assessment of performance constitute best practices in organizational governance. Christ-centered organizations are no exception. Here is our guiding principle: Governing boards that follow best practices may not be Christ-centered, but Christ-centered boards will follow best practices.

Good reason backs up this principle. First, best practices increase the effectiveness of our ministries. Second, astute major donors will ask about best practices before they give to us. Third, Paul reminds the Corinthians that they are a “letter from Christ…known and read by everybody,” (II Cor. 3:2). A Christ-centered organization is also a letter from Christ that is read far and wide. To have best practices written into the text is an honor to the Author and a witness to the reader.

Anticipatory Governance

Wayne Gretzky, ”The Great One” in the world of hockey, is not known as an authority on governance, but he spoke volumes for us when he said, “I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.” Strategic governance is always anticipatory. Effective boards of Christ-centered organizations will foresee emerging issues and trends in both its internal and external environment in order to get ahead of potential problems and propose viable options. Ineffective boards, however, are known for acting only after things become urgent.

CEO’s are the Wayne Gretzkys of an effective board. In their reporting as well as their planning they will strike an anticipatory note to limit the surprises and grasp the opportunities. With deft and strategic moves, then, the board and the CEO can skate together to where the puck is going, not where it has been.

Follow the Money!

When my wife asks my opinion on current events, such as international revolution or domestic protest, my stock answer is “Follow the money.” If you start with that assumption about the motivation for leadership, whether in business, politics, education, international affairs or even religion, you will be right 90 percent of the time. The other ten percent can be subsumed under the corollary “Follow the ego.”

Leadership decisions are always made with mixed motives. CEOs of Christ-centered organizations are not exempt. Even when we make decisions to do what is good for our organizations and what is right for the people involved, we will probably have a bit of “Follow the money” and “Follow the ego” in mind. In fact, most of us develop a predictable character of decision-making based upon our motives. We are fooling no one if we claim to have the mind of God, but are known for our underlying motive of money or ego. Isn’t this why the Paul said that he had to die daily? Even his fiery, all-consuming passion to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles could be subverted by self-interest. We, too, need the discipline of death for the start of our day. Our motive for decision-making may never be wholly pure, but it can be so Christ-centered and Spirit-filled that no one will say of us, “Follow the money” or “Follow the ego.”

Countering the Culture of Complacency

Diverse threads of my reading are coming together in a warning for boards of Christ-centered organizations. One thread is the biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer by Metaxas in which we see the tragic results of complacency in the Christian church during the rise of the Hitler. Another thread is the Association of Governing Boards magazine for boards of colleges and universities with a feature article warning trustees about breathing a sigh of relief and relaxing after weathering the recent financial crisis. Still another is an analysis of such cataclysmic events as the Egyptian revolt, the BP oil spill, and the loss of the Columbia space shuttle. In each case, a culture of complacency contributed to the failure to see the coming crisis.

Boards of Christ-centered organizations have had it good for a long time. We have counted on economic prosperity, evangelical clout, political favor, and traditional values to support and strengthen our ministries. But, to assume that they will go on forever is the trap door into a culture of complacency. Perhaps, we need an old-fashioned dose of “WOT’S UP” in one of our board meetings asking, not just about our internal Strengths and Weaknesses, but also about the external Threats and Opportunities of which we must be aware. The exercise is sure to shake up our assumptions and counter the ever-lurking culture of complacency.

Is Your Business Plan Biblical?

To be in vogue, Christ-centered organizations must have a credible business plan. This is a far cry from the times when our ministries flew by faith and the seat of our pants. What have we gained? As a guy who prizes rational planning and outcomes, the business plan makes sense. It is rational, strategic, and productive. But what have we lost? When I hear about core values, organizational brands, consumer tastes, market share, competitive advantage, and measurable success, I cannot help but asking, “Are we still in line with Biblical values and the Spirit of Christ?” Bear with me while I ask these follow-up questions.

• Are core values the same as Biblical convictions?
• Is organizational branding reflective of the image of Christ?
• Are consumer tastes equal to our need to confess our sins?
• Is market share consistent with the Great Commission?
• Is competitive advantage synonymous with total sacrifice?
• Does measurable success include the reward for faithfulness?

Words can change us. That is why Paul’s job description for a “workman approved of God” included the responsibility for “rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15). Boards of Christ-centered organizations have the same responsibility. To be approved of God, we may have to make some corrections.

Thank You, President Mubarak!

The Egyptian dictator deserves credit for one thing: He gives us a forceful reminder that CEOs can overstay their welcome. Even in Christ-centered organizations, the words are often heard, “It’s time for him to go” or “She should leave while she’s still loved.” Why do successful CEOs persist on overstaying their welcome? Mubarack gives us the answer. After 30 years in office, his identity is in his position and his timing is in his ego. A sad state, to be sure, but no different than CEOs of Christ-centered organizations whose identity has shrunken to the limits of a position and whose timing is self-serving. Under these conditions, there is no life after leaving.

CEOs of Christ-centered organizations need to be stewards of their own identity. While giving themselves fully to their calling as Christian leaders, they should cultivate personal interests and create professional options beyond the limits of their executive position. They should also be self-monitors of the time and tide of their ministries. Isaiah warns against leaders who create gods in their own image to justify their success and take God’s timing into their own hands to assure their legacy. We dare not succumb to that temptation. To go out on the high tide of God’s timing with freedom to explore options is not retirement from ministry, it is redeployment in ministry at its very best.

*See The Leader’s Legacy and Retirement Is Not for Sissies by David McKenna

Swimming Naked in an Ebb Tide

Billy Graham continues to have Spirit-guided wisdom far beyond his 91 years. When asked what cautions he had for evangelicals today, he warned us about being “victims of our own success.”

Billy is so right. Evangelicals handle poverty better than prosperity. When our faith-based ministries are struggling in the margins, we depend on God, make sacrifices, focus our energies, exercise creativity, and multiply the effectiveness of our ministry. In prosperity, however, we tend to let the good times roll.

Think about the long-term, strategic plans of Christ-centered organizations today. More often than not, they are based on the assumption that the growth of the future will equal or exceed the growth of the past.

Robert Putnam, however, echoes Billy Graham’s caution in his book American Grace. According to demographic studies, the halcyon days of evangelical power, growth, and influence are waning. Leaking out of the bottom of the statistics is a younger generation of evangelicals coming to adulthood who reject politicized faith, tolerate theological diversity, and put individual spirituality over institutional loyalty. If so, boards and executive leaders of Christ-centered organizations had better give our plans a reality check and rethink our strategy according to the disciplines of sound management. Otherwise, as crusty old Warren Buffett put it, “When the tide goes out, you discover who’s swimming naked.” We dare not let good times mask bad management.

What Would Gabby Do?

America is in a teaching moment. Out of the horrendous crime of the Tuscon shooting, endless lessons are being taught. One of those lessons speaks directly to the question of leadership. When the staff of Congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford tried to put the office back together, they constantly asked, “What would Gabby do?” The question comes home for every CEO of Christ-centered organizations. If we were suddenly incapacitated, how would our staff respond? Have we groomed a second in command who can function in our absence? Have we delegated with confidence so that our direct reports can proceed without serious interruption? Have we prepared our team for crisis?

In my book Stewards of a Sacred Trust, I tell the story of preparing for a three-month sabbatical from the presidency. I groomed a senior vice-president to be chief executive in my absence. I delegated responsibilities to other vice-presidents and avoided second-guessing them. But, one month into the sabbatical, an internal controversy became a public crisis. My reverie in the desert was shattered by a panic call because my staff had no answer to the question, “What would David do?” In that instant, the sabbatical ended. Later, we called in a consultant to ask what went wrong. After careful study, he likened the situation a pilot flying an airplane. “You prepared your people for a routine flight,” he said, “But you gave them no training for an emergency landing.”

Ask yourself. Have you groomed someone to be CEO in your absence? Have you delegated with confidence to your executive team? Have you taught them how to handle crisis if you were out of the picture or unable to function? Out of tragedy, Gabby is our teacher.

Why is Sound Board Member Orientation often Overlooked?

Why don’t we pay attention to the orientation of new board members?

My first guess is that we usually recruit trustees from within the ranks of friends and associates who already know each other. Or, because we seek out high level leaders for our boards, we assume that orientation would be an insult because they already know so much about serving on nonprofit boards. These are fundamental errors.

Every board is unique in its by-laws, policies, practices internal dynamics, and expectations for its members. Without an orientation session in which vital aspects of board service are discussed, even the most astute new member will need several board meeting to decipher how the board works, how the members relate to each other, and what role he or she should play.

I confess that it took me a long time to learn the lesson. Finally, however, when I became the chair of a board, I worked with the president to organize a special two-hour orientation session with new trustees before their first meeting. A packet of information went out to them, including the by-laws, policy manual, board directory, and minutes for the board meetings in the past two years.

When the president and I met with the new trustee, we highlighted the distinctions of our history, theology and mission as well as explaining how the board performed and interacted. A good portion of the time was given to questions from the new trustee. Meaningful discussion followed. Later, we added the idea of assigning one of the senior trustees as a mentor for the new member in order to assume some follow-up to the orientation sessions.

What a difference it made! The new trustee quickly became engaged in the meetings and offered insights from their own leadership experience. Of course, orientation is not a cure-all. Without a long-term plan for board development, it is only a quick fix with the need for continuing growth in commitment, understanding, and the sense of meaningful participation as a member of a Christ-centered ministry.