Levels of Leadership in the Local Church 2008 SDMI ToolTime Dr. Stephen Dillman 2008 SDMI ToolTime Dr. Stephen Dillman

What Kind of Church? CatLess than 35 Family Driven Collie30-75 Pastor Driven Garden Board Driven House Pastor/Board Driven Mansion Committees/Leader Driven Ranch Committees/Leader Directed StateOver 1000 Multiple Boards/Leader Directed *Church Size Designations adapted from Looking in the Mirror: Self-Appraisal in the Local Church by Lyle E. Schaller

CAT Church Character of the church: resemble overgrown small groups. Character of the people: survivors. Led by: one family or extended family. Pastor’s role: may care for, feed, and love the congregation, but it’s not his church. Board meetings: informal. Policies: unwritten, but understood by all. Change: slow, forced by circumstances

COLLIE Church Character of the church: friendly. Character of the people: love to be loved. Led by: pastor who initiates. Pastor’s role: benevolent father, key member. Board meetings: semi-formal; holds pastor accountable; decisions by consensus. Policies: unwritten or buried in board minutes but known and quoted when necessary. Change: peripheral change is enjoyed; fundamental change is harder.

GARDEN Church Character of the church: variety within the congregation and the ministries offered. Character of the people: some get by with little care while others are high maintenance. Led by: church board who oversees. Pastor’s role: respond to needs. Board meetings: formal and informal. Policies: mostly written and in detail. Change: part of a larger vision.

HOUSE Church Character of the church: in-between; too large for one pastor-too small for staff; too large not to be “full service”-too small to do “full service well. Character of the people: a “family” that is inclusive but may feel exclusive to outsiders. Led by: pastor and board, cooperatively. Pastor’s role: managing; focusing on strengths and gifts. Board meetings: formal agenda; informal conversation; reports from specialized areas. Policies: written, but more general. Change: strategic and missional.

MANSION Church Character of the church: BIG. Includes some cats, dogs, and gardens. Everything is an event. Character of the people: comfortable in small groups; miss the intimacy of the whole; love the quality. Led by: Committees with a leader who gives prime leadership. Pastor’s role: public face of the church; professional; leads through others. Board meetings: very formal; detailed agenda; mostly advisory with decisions made at lower levels of org. Policies: few written; handbook. Change: strategic, missional, sometimes unexpected.

RANCH Church Character of the church: multi-venue; small groups resemble smaller churches. Character of the people: focus on their own small group; build intimacy there. Led by: structured committees directed by a leader. Ministry is increasingly led by paid staff. Pastor’s role: leader of leaders; chief vision-caster and interpreter of mission. Board meetings: executive board chaired by pastor. Policies: few; decisions made at ministry level. Change: similar to Mansion church.

STATE Church Character of the church: connected but autonomous. Character of the people: extremely diverse; expect high level of quality and service. Led by: multiple boards reporting to executive board; not always chaired by pastor. Pastor’s role: communicates vision; specializes as preacher. Board meetings: receive reports from other boards; set policy. Policies: legal; crisis-management. Change: strategic, imposed; few surprises.

Next Steps: Know your church and your leadership style. Change your leadership style to match your church size or the next highest one. Become familiar with the next leadership level and start educating the congregation about the next level before you get there. As church grows, move the leadership style toward the next highest level.

Sources Church size designations adapted from: Schaller, Lyle E., Looking in the Mirror: Self-Appraisal in the Local Church, (Nashville: Abingdon Press), All other material: Dillman, Stephen W., Levels of Leadership in the Local Church, unpublished article, Church size designations adapted from: Schaller, Lyle E., Looking in the Mirror: Self-Appraisal in the Local Church, (Nashville: Abingdon Press), All other material: Dillman, Stephen W., Levels of Leadership in the Local Church, unpublished article, 2008.