Unlocking Success: How Mission and Values Shape Organizational Strategy
How do they impact your operation?
Editor note: Jim gave a version of this talk recently to our team. I think the way it laid out clearly the path for our organization could benefit others. It’s not an ad. But it does show how to drive impact through clear articulation of our shared understandings.
Mission. Values. What does this mean for an organization and how does it affect the way you operate?
I remember it vividly. I had this idea that I was going to give a pop quiz to our team and ask them to write down, our mission. I was convinced that almost everyone on our team had a good idea of what we're trying to accomplish. I was surprised by the results. While there were some similarities, there were as many versions of our mission, as there were people in the room. I knew that had to change.
It was there. I knew it lived inside the organization. But it was hard to put our fingers on it because there was no clarity. The values were being lived our generally but there was no clarity around them.
In 2009, while we were dealing with the “great financial adjustment,” we decided that clarity was important inside of our organization. And we devoted ourselves to an exercise of clarifying our mission and our values.
We knew our mission revolved around helping churches develop giving, especially regarding discipleship. We clarified our mission with this statement — accelerating generosity toward God-inspired vision.
Importantly, we debated our commitment to only work with Christian organizations. Was it time for us to consider using our abilities to serve secular organizations? It was a relatively short conversation. There is absolutely nothing against secular work in giving development. But all of our people are church leaders, and all of our credentials are in the Christian space. That is what we know the best.
But what are our values? Values are the shared convictions that guide decisions and reveal the strengths of the organization.
What is it that drives us, both internally and externally, toward the things that we want to help our clients accomplish?
Here is where we ended up. Four key values.
Ministry Organization First - Prioritizing Our Calling
The unwavering commitment to putting ministry organizations first is at the heart of our values. Originally centered around the local church, we extended this value in 2015 to embrace Christian organizations beyond the confines of the church walls.
What does this mean for our clients? Every person on our team is connected to and involved in a local church. Committed Christ-followers who see their work as a calling, not just a vocation. Serving the church and Christian organizations beyond the local church.
Every decision we make is driven by the best interests of the church or ministry organization, even if it conflicts with our own. During the pandemic, this commitment was tested as we allowed many clients to pause or cancel their contracts when they faced uncertainty. Our stepping back to serve, rather than trying to sell, in that season not only earned respect but also paved the way for stronger relationships, as many returned to continue their partnership with us. And it was driven by our ministry organization's first value.
Second Conversion - Cultivating Passionate Generosity
This is defined as the second conversion to passionate generosity. Each person on our team has a giving journey and that is important to our DNA. As we experience passionate generosity ourselves, we understand what it looks like in other people and organizations. And that allows us to fan the flame and help it flourish.
Why did we call it a second conversion? Generosity is a journey that extends beyond the initial profession of faith. And we understand that. There are a few people who become believers, and immediately start giving, even a full 10%, but it's not the norm. For most people, it is a journey and that's where we want to help.
At Generis, we understand the transformative power of passionate generosity because it forms the core of our team’s DNA. Everyone on our team has a giving journey that they can articulate clearly. By experiencing this transformation ourselves, we gain invaluable insights into what it means for individuals and organizations. We aim to fan the flame of generosity and help it flourish among our clients, whether they are churches, Christian educational institutions, or ministry organizations. The second conversion is where we step in, offering guidance and support throughout this transformative journey.
Third Strand - Collaborative Influence
In the words of Ecclesiastes 4:12, “a cord of three strands is not easily broken.” This principle underpins our commitment to collaborative influence.
Every Generis client gets a lead consultant. But they also get access to the whole team — the collective knowledge and experience we have accumulated over the years. With over 750 years of church leadership experience and 400 years of church consulting experience, we possess a deep well of expertise.
I like to say it this way. You might be able to stump any one of our consultants, but it would be almost impossible to stump our entire team. We have a deep and wide base of experience and knowledge that every one of our clients gets when they engage with us.
Fourth Perspective - Empowered Presence
We called this the fourth perspective of empowered presence. In my view, it is one of the most important things we bring to the table. An objective and unbiased perspective can be a game-changer for organizations seeking growth and impact. Our fourth value, empowered presence, embodies the unique perspective we bring to the table.
It is a perspective that transcends the pastor’s or ministry leader’s perspective and the perspectives of the executive staff and the board. It is the objective, unbiased view of an outsider with years of experience, walking alongside churches and ministry organizations.
Our clients value us for the answers we bring, but sometimes the questions we ask define us. As outsiders with no emotional ties or biases towards any specific organization, we leverage our years of experience to challenge conventional thinking. We ask thought-provoking questions that inspire our clients to explore new viewpoints and discover answers they may have never considered. Our role is not just to provide answers but to empower our clients to wrestle with the question and find their own solutions through introspection and reflection.
So, there you have it. The four values that drive Generis. Both internally and externally. It makes a difference for us. And, importantly, everyone on our team can recite them. Fairly easily. Ministry organization first. Second conversion. Third strand. Fourth perspective.
Organizationally, having these things “on the wall matters.” It matters even more when it is driven deep into the organization and your people own them, and can recite them, almost instinctively. I love that about our team. We have come a long way from that pop quiz. It has served us well. And importantly, I believe it has served our clients and the kingdom of God well.
Does your church or ministry organization have that kind of clarity about mission and values? If not, I would encourage you to devote yourself to it. It’s not urgent. It isn’t clamoring for your attention on a daily basis. But it is important. It could take your church or ministry organization to a whole new level.
As always, I love to talk about this stuff. You can reach me at jim@generis.com.