FY23 Strategic Initiatives

An Introduction to Setting Priorities

Our church has six congregations and multiple initiatives, all of which are accomplishing valuable ministry for the kingdom of God. We affirm the importance of these ministries and are resourcing them so that they can continue their current ministry rhythms and trajectories, producing fruit for the kingdom of God and growing in scope and effectiveness.

We are also growing as a church, improving and developing our organization as a whole. There are several priorities that we feel called to pursue that will impact a large section of our church staff team, potentially causing a shift in priorities, effort, and resources. These priorities, or Strategic Initiatives, are summarized below so that each congregation, ministry, and team can understand how they will support these goals while still pursuing the important ministry God has called them to.

Understanding our current priorities

To help us plan and align our efforts in consideration of the capacity of our teams overall, we are classifying our priorities by the scope of effort and organizational cooperation that will be required. To do this, let’s introduce a few definitions. 

Strategic Initiatives

Organizational Strategic Initiatives are expected to require the most significant development and/or change leadership efforts across our organization. As a rule, these initiatives are ones which require a partnership of responsibility between at least 4 of our divisions to accomplish them, and are expected to require focus for a duration of 2 or more quarters of the year. We’re calling these “initiatives” because they will often be more broadly integrative into our ongoing ministry philosophies and strategies, than they will be neatly-contained projects. The aim is to define an objective that can be measured and accomplished in no more than 1 year’s time.

Organizational Major Projects

Organizational Major Projects are development efforts that require responsibility partnership between 2-3 divisions for 2 or more quarters of the year.

Divisional Major Projects

Divisional Major Projects are developmental efforts that are primarily within 1 division for 2 or more quarters.

Projects

Projects are most any other developmental effort that is expected to be able to be accomplished within a single quarter. 

Organizational Strategic Initiatives are ones that we all need to be aware of and consider most in our planning. When it comes to trade-off decisions, these are the initiatives that should generally “win”. So, these are the ones to be communicated and coordinated more broadly and in more detail.

Other projects require efforts for which it will be helpful to make them clear and visible so that we can better understand what we’re all working on, and cooperate accordingly.

As you can see, greater anticipated dedication of time, effort, and teams gets greater visibility in the alignment of our decision-making throughout the organization. 

Communication

These initiatives are for communication to all church staff, elders, and deacons for their understanding, expectations and context for their ministry leadership in a forward-looking posture.

These initiatives are also for use by our organizational teams who own resource decisions and responsibility for such initiatives. This should provide the starting point for us to define, for our key development efforts, the tools of communication, coordination, and execution to:

  • Point to where we are going through conveying vision.
  • Identify what is unclear and to clarify.
  • Define wins by establishing clear goals.
  • Quantify what should be expected to be realized in the timeframe of planning horizons by setting out milestones.
  • Assign responsibility by establishing ownership.
  • Manage priority of church-wide resources in funding and personnel.

FY23 Strategic Initiatives

August 1, 2022-July 31, 2023

After a two-day offsite meeting with all Central Elders and Congregation Executive Pastors, the Executive Team synthesized the results of our discussion and prayer into the following three Strategic Initiatives for FY23:

  1. Reprioritize a culture of volunteer ministry and development of lay leaders.
  2. Clarify, standardize, and cohere inter-departmental ministry, programs, and activities.
  3. Train and inspire the church on the unique characteristics of being The Austin Stone Community Church.

These Strategic Initiatives are each expanded upon below.

1. Reprioritize a Culture of Volunteer Ministry and Lay Leader Development

Key Teams (who)

  • Project owners: Tyler David
  • Project manager: Brian Benkendorfer
  • Responsible development team: Variety of department leaders and directors 
  • Key Execution Stakeholders: Congregation Pastors, Executive Pastors, and Directors 
  • Teams needed for cooperation:
    • Ministry Strategies (ASI) for content creation/curation, especially around staff development and training plans 
    • Ministry Strategies (FTC, FTN) for deacon stewardship collaboration
    • Creative (Communications, Film) for volunteer storytelling

Background (why)

As the church begins to emerge from the chaos of the last two years, there is no denying that we have experienced atrophy in many different areas of our lives personally and corporately. From quantitative measures of Sunday attenders, partners, leaders, and volunteers to qualitative measures of collective spiritual depth, commitment, and devotion, we have seen diminished outcomes from where we have been historically. Even as we recognize this, It should be noted that in all of it God greatly sustained, pruned, and provided. The fact that we have only atrophied and not completely come undone is a testimony to God’s work among us. But the collective experience of many in our church has been this sense of spiritual, relational, and emotional atrophy. 

What’s become clear to our leadership is that the first and primary way for us to rebuild and rekindle vibrant faith in our church is to recapture the conviction that every believer is called to do the work of ministry. God has gifted the staff of The Austin Stone to his church, not to be the ones who do all the important ministry, but to give their lives and gifts away to the thousands of people who call our church home. Our desire is to ensure each person is given the training and tools needed for them to fulfill their ministry both inside and outside the church. This has been one of the pillars of the Austin Stone historically because it is the God ordained way he builds up his church in love and maturity. In Ephesians 4:16, God promises that the church will “…grow so that it builds itself up in love” as the result of gifted leaders equipping the church (4:11-12), as the church does the ministry (4:12-15), and as everyone speaks the truth in love to one another (4:16). We can reverse our collective atrophy by focused and regular exercise of our spiritual gifts and service in the practices of tangible ministry. This isn’t merely an organizational strategy that will better utilize our many staff (though it will), but a re-imagination for some or re-invigoration for others of what it means for the church to be vibrant, zealous, and confident in the gospel people who all do the work of ministry together.

Key Strategies (how) and Milestones (what and when): 

1. Define Leadership Development Terms

Currently, there is confusion across the organization due to teams using the same or similar terms with different meanings. We need to establish clear term definitions (e.g., leader, director, coach, volunteer, etc.), competencies, structures/layers of leadership, content, and expectations that are universally adopted across the organization. 

Milestone: Develop a universally-shared understanding of terms for appropriate ministries by October 15, 2022.

2. Emphasize Importance of Lay Leadership Development

We desire to inspire and renew a focus on the importance and calling of lay leadership development among the highest levels of leadership (elders and staff). This strategy aims to train and equip our elders and staff of the Ephesians 4 vision and directive to equip the saints for ministry and build up the body of Christ. Our ability to give actionable ministry to lay leaders will be largely dependent on our elders’ and staff members' conviction in, training for, and devotion to non-staff leadership development in the church. 

Milestones: Develop a fall training plan for The Austin Stone staff and elders by July 28, 2022 and develop a spring 2023 training plan for staff and elders by December 1, 2022.

3. Develop and Deploy Ministry Leaders

We want to invest significant resources into our ministry leaders, which includes elders, lay deacons, and staff as the primary agents of ministry. We plan to do this by creating a plan and establishing accountable expectations for how to: 

  • recruit
  • train
  • care for
  • have accountability with
  • celebrate

…ministry leaders.

Milestone: Establish ministry leader KPI’s related to all 5 categories listed above by December 31, 2023. 

4. Establish Ministry Leader Expertise Network

We desire to develop networks across congregations that enable lay leaders with specific passions and expertise to benefit the whole church.This strategy aims to overcome the limitations of any particular congregation by sharing leaders, expertise, and resources in such a way that collective cooperation around specific ministries benefits each congregation. We’ll determine which ministries would be best served to have a board over the specific ministry where quality lay leaders God has raised up in a particular congregation can benefit the whole with their unique experiences, gifts, and passions. This will require clear boundaries of agency, care, and accountability, available resources and time-bound relationships/events for each area of ministry or “platform” (e.g., Marriage Retreat, Foster Care & Adoption Training, etc.).

Milestone: Develop and establish a cohesive support system for ministry leaders that includes responsibilities, resources, and relationships by May 31, 2023.

5. Establish Rhythms to Celebrate Non-staff Leadership

We desire to focus on creating moments and avenues for purposefully celebrating non-staff leadership at The Austin Stone. Hero stories and narratives are critical to helping us outdo one another in showing honor, particularly to those to whom the work of ministry is assigned–the saints. Celebrating non-staff leadership also helps individuals imagine the kind of ministry they can be engaged/involved in. This strategy aims to create pathways for consistently celebrating non-staff leadership in Sunday liturgy, Partner Gatherings, film, written story, and other forms.

Milestones: Plan for implementing stories into liturgies and other communications channels by August 31, 2022, and at least 10+ hero stories of ministry leaders told at each congregation by December 31, 2022; 20+ stories by July 31, 2023.

2. Clarify, Standardize, and Cohere Inter-departmental Ministries, Programs, and Activities of the Church

Key Teams (who)

  • Project owners: Todd Engstrom and James Paquette
  • Project manager: John Murchison
  • Responsible development team: Church Discipleship Team
  • Key Execution Stakeholders: Congregation Division Head, Spiritual Formation Directors, Family Ministry Directors, Executive Pastors
  • Teams needed for cooperation:
    • Congregations (XPs and SFPs)
    • Preaching and Worship (Sunday and annual liturgy)
    • Women’s
    • Kids
    • Students
    • For The Nations
    • For The City
    • Soul Care
    • College
    • Communications
    • Technology

Background (why) 

In the past two years, we have experienced significant changes within our leadership and have entered into a new stage of maturity as an organization. We desire to increase cooperation, ensure the quality and consistency of ministry within our church, resolve tension, and eliminate redundant effort.

Our hope is that this effort will lead to greater margin for our leaders to focus on people rather than tasks to execute ministry. This project will also help our non-staff leaders contribute consistently and own ministries at The Austin Stone. Finally, we hope to reduce confusion and provide direction in a way that helps our leaders thrive in their roles and consistently produce fruit.

Scope

The Austin Stone has often been described as both a church and an organization. This Strategic Initiative is focused on the church ministry side of The Austin Stone, clarifying and defining ministry ownership and execution there. Certain central departments and ministries may not be reflected in the final work product.

Key Strategies (how) and Milestones (what and when)

1. Define Scope and Starting Point

The first step will be to define our terms and gain insight on our current ministry offerings. This will include:

  • Clearly defining what the terms “ministry,” “program,” and “activity” mean
  • Deciding which central teams do and do not factor into this Strategic Initiative
  • Listing all ministries, programs, and activities as defined above
  • Gathering any existing mission and vision documents from ministries
  • Gathering any existing playbooks for programs and activities

In aggregating all ministries, programs, and activities, we will develop a “single version of the truth” for the standard ministries of The Austin Stone. Additionally, we will articulate the baseline associated programs and activities for those ministries. This will also give us a single place where all documentation on ministries, programs, and activities is held so that we can work toward updating and standardizing them.

Milestone: Complete aggregation of ministries, programs, and activities by October 15, 2022.

2. Clarify Ownership and Define Ministry and Playbooks

The second stage of this initiative will be to clarify both primary and secondary owners of each ministry, program, and activity, and to update or create the associated documentation. Each ministry will need a mission / vision document that sets forth its purpose and goals. Each program and activity will need a “playbook” that defines the “do at least this” requirements and gives guidance for how the program or activity should be run each year. Each mission / vision document and playbook should also list any relevant metrics that should be tracked in annual Key Performance Indicator dashboards.

The success of this second stage relies upon ministry leaders devoting time to updating or creating these documents according to the templates provided by the project owners and managers. ASI can help edit and standardize the documents, but ministry leaders will be the primary drivers of the first draft.

Once all the documents are complete, the project owners and managers will identify gaps in ministry areas and playbooks by comparing them to the Culture Map. We will also create a draft of “playground rules” of how these ministries, programs, and activities will work together, and how to move forward when conflict occurs.

Having a complete list of what activities and programs each ministry executes each year will help us identify any areas of overlap so that we can resolve the redundancies. In addition, having these written plans will allow ministry and congregation leaders to build on work from the past rather than starting from scratch each year.

Milestone: Final versions of Ministry Overview documents uploaded to a new Team Drive by February 15, 2023, and final versions of Playbooks for Activities and Programs uploaded to a new Team Drive by April 15, 2023.

3. Culture Map Reconciliation

Once the work of defining and creating playbooks is complete, this Strategic Initiative is an opportunity to look at our current Culture Map and determine if it accurately reflects the ministry we are actually doing. If not, we will either change the way we do ministry to reflect the Culture Map, or change the Culture Map to reflect how we do ministry. We will identify the appropriate stakeholders for this conversation and work with them to update the Culture Map and / or change ministry as needed.

Milestone: Culture Map updated and accurately reflecting our ministry by March 31, 2023.

4. Aggregating KPIs

Once all the ministries, programs, and activities are defined, we will have a complete list of programs and activities that our church does each year, along with all the data we want to track for these ministries, programs, and activities. At that point, we will work with the Technology Department to determine how best to track data for KPIs. 

Milestone: KPIs aggregated by April 30, 2023.

5. Annual Rhythms

Once we have created this standard list of programs, ministries, and activities, along with how they all work together, we will create an annual rhythm for proposing changes to this standard list. In addition, we will create the annual process for fiscal year calendar decision-making.

Milestones: Complete process for making changes, additions, or deletions to ministries’ programs and activities by May 15, 2023, and the annual plan for creating each fiscal year calendar by May 31, 2023.

6. Communication Plan

Finally, we will work together on a communication plan so that our staff, elders, and other leaders understand our standard ministries, programs, and activities, the process to propose changing these standard ministries, programs, and activities, and how and when the annual calendar is created. We will need to consider how best to communicate to different audiences, including Division Heads, Department Leaders, and Elders. 

Milestone: Communication plan complete by June 30, 2023.

3. Train and Inspire the Church on the Unique Characteristics of Being The Austin Stone

Key Teams (Who)

  • Project owner: Donovan Golden
  • Project manager: Davina Adcock
  • Responsible development team: Creative Department (Comms, Design, Film)
  • Key Execution Stakeholders: Division Heads and Congregation Communication Leads
  • Teams needed for cooperation:
    • Ministry Strategies (ASI) for content development
    • Creative Ministries for content creation
    • Ministry Operations (HR) for onboarding rollout plan
    • Congregational Leadership for rollout plan

Background (why)

Given the complexity, scale, and rate of change within our church, we have experienced a significant barrier in God’s people joyfully participating in and advocating for the ministry of The Austin Stone.

Our hope is that every partner, regular attender*, and staff member knows, loves, and understands The Austin Stone so that they may better participate in the ministry of our church. Growth in understanding often leads to a growth in affinity and love. It's our hope that the people of The Austin Stone would experience a renewed and revived sense of participation in the church body as their understanding of the church increases.

*For the purposes of this Strategic Initiative, “regular attenders” refers to non-partners who attend 1-2 times each month and would consider The Austin Stone their home church.

Key Strategies (how) and Milestones (what and when

1. Define Scope and Starting Point

In order to clarify our church model in the body, we will seek to identify the key content and information needed to help people grow in their understanding of The Austin Stone. Part of this stage of the initiative will be to identify staff from congregations and central ministries to develop an Initiative Brain Trust team. This team will help us pinpoint the frequently asked questions about The Austin Stone that come up for partners and regular attenders. After identifying the information needed with the help of the Initiative Brain Trust, we will seek to work alongside these individuals to best resource and answer those questions.

Milestone: Define key information needed, develop Initiative Brain Trust team, collate content already created, and establish content creation timeline by August 31, 2022.

2. Complete Booklet Development

Once the key content has been approved and the timeline has been established, we will coordinate with the Austin Stone Institute (ASI) to begin developing written content and a timeline for content creation. This will include working with the Creative Team project coordinators and ASI leadership to plan out tasks, needs, workloads, and milestones, and evaluating time needed to begin and complete content creation.

Another aspect of this development stage will be ensuring that the content and delivery is consistent with stakeholder and leadership expectations. We plan to consistently seek feedback from stakeholders on content creation and products, as it is being built out.

Milestone: Begin content creation by October 3, 2022, and finalize all written content by June 30, 2023.

3. Onboarding Integration

For this booklet series to be most effective in helping our partners and regular attenders know, love, and understand The Austin Stone, it will need to be integrated into the existing new partner and new staff onboarding process. We will connect with Human Resources and congregation leaders to develop a plan for content usage among partners and new employees. 

Milestones: Begin coordination with HR and congregational leadership by October 3, 2022, and finalize onboarding plan and implementation logistics by June 30, 2023.

4. Communication Plan

We will work on a communication timeline to announce the booklets. We will need to consider how best to communicate to different audiences, including existing partners and employees. 

Milestone: Complete communication plan by June 30, 2023.

5. Finalize and Launch Booklets

Finally, we will seek feedback through surveys and conversations with stakeholders to evaluate the effectiveness of the booklets. As we receive feedback on the booklets, we can adjust the content as needed to help equip our people. We desire for every partner and regular attender to know, love, and understand The Austin Stone so that they may better participate in ministry. 

Milestone: Launch booklets by July 31, 2023.