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Understanding and working with your church's culture

A great challenge to leaders is to read and relate with the culture of the group or organization in which they serve. Culture is "the integrated pattern of human behavior that includes thought, speech, actions, and artifacts and depends on man's capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations: the customary beliefs, social forms and material traits of a...group." Organizational culture develops from shared assumptions of a group that shape their attitudes, actions, and awareness. Simply, it is "the way we do things around here."

Characteristics and Functions of Organizational Culture

1. OC is built on the accumulation of shared values, beliefs, experiences and expectations.
Groups form to accomplish some purpose. The process of working toward the goal is driven by values, beliefs, experiences, and expectations. Over time, a certain way of doing things and relating within the group develops, and a culture emerges.

2. OC is driven by subconscious assumptions.
Most human behavior is driven by assumptions. For example, what we assume about differences between men and women causes us to treat them in distinctive ways. Group experiences, expectations, and activities lead to basic assumptions, and then the assumptions may begin to dictate nearly every facet of the group's interaction and involvement. David Bohm, in an "On Dialog" seminar discussing the power of shared assumptions within a group says, "Shared assumptions derive their power from the fact that they begin to operate outside of awareness. Furthermore, once formed and taken for granted, they become a defining property of the group that permits the group to differentiate itself from other groups, and in that process, value is attached to such assumptions." (J. Thomas Wren, The Leader's Companion: Insights on Leadership Through the Ages (New York: The Free Press, 1995) 278.

3. OC drives all aspects of group life.
The strength of culture is that it drives all aspects of group life subconsciously. The group doesn't talk about its culture and shared assumptions, but its culture dictates the way the group works and the way members relate to each other. So the culture comes to define who we are, a type of identity for the group. You can see the effects of the organizational culture, but the assumptions that drive it are more difficult to detect. A good leader knows how to interpret it and relate in appropriate ways.

4. OC is expressed in formal and informal rules.
Group norms or rules direct the work and relationships in a group. Generally, the rules are based in the group's shared values and are expressions of underlying shared assumptions. Then often the rules become more important than the values on which they were based. For example, a group may value holy living. This is often translated appropriately as avoiding certain activities. Over time, the value of living a holy life is replaced by a rule that says certain activities are always wrong and should be avoided. You can often identify lost values by looking at the rules. What values produced the rules? Are they still relevant?

5. OC is not easily changed.
Organizational culture comes to be taken for granted. Assumptions may never be discussed and are seldom examined. But we vigorously defend the culture because we have emotionally invested in it. The rules must be right because our group has operated by them successfully: "The way we do things here is right because it has worked."

6. OC helps us predict individual and group behavior.
The way decisions are made, how problems are dealt with, how planning is done, how plans are implemented, how communication takes place, the roles of leadership and members, and how new members enter the group are fairly predictable when we understand the organizational culture. The organizational culture screens out participants, information, and activities. Acceptance within a group comes at the cost of being excluded from another group. People relate to each other based on culturally conditioned and acceptable ways.

7. OC and leadership cannot be separated.
Leaders create cultures by starting groups and organizations, but once these are formed, leaders are governed by the group's culture. In The Leader's Companion: Insights on Leadership Through the Ages (281), J. Thomas Wren discusses the connection between leadership and organizational culture: "Culture and leadership are two sides of the same coin in that leaders first create cultures when they create groups and organizations. Once cultures exist, they determine the criteria for leadership and thus determine who will or will not be a leader." Taken a step further, the culture determines if the positional leader is really the leader and what specific role he or she will play in all dimensions of the group's life.

Wren goes on to say (281) that "it is the unique function of leadership to perceive the functional and dysfunctional elements of the existing culture and to manage cultural evolution and change in such a way that the group can survive in a changing environment. The bottom line for leaders is that if they do not become conscious of the cultures in which they are embedded, those cultures will manage them. Cultural understanding is desirable for all of us, but it is essential to leaders if they are to lead."

8. Different leadership style is needed for different types of OC.
There are at least five primary church types based on their size and organizational culture. Each requires a different type of leadership.

* The Primary Family Church (30-50 average worship attendance). This type of church is most like a single family. The pastor is like a stepfather who has married into the family, sometimes with less than enthusiastic acceptance. The leader's role is to manage the expectations and care for the family's needs. His role is not to take charge. This would create the same tension in the church as it would in a family if the stepfather tried to take charge.

* The Extended Family Church (50-150 average worship attendance). This type of church is most like a clan, a large close-knit family that has grown up and now has their own families. The pastor who comes into this type of church is treated much like an outsider. He is treated as a new friend of certain members and invited to participate in activities. But he is only there and allowed to participate as the clan permits. His approach to leading must be understood in a similar context to that of a clan.

* The Family Owned Enterprise Church (150-350 average worship attendance). This type of church is most like a family owned business. It has more structure and focus but is still very tied to the family. The pastor's role is more like that of a hired worker. However, his relationship with the family and expertise regarding the business increase his ability to lead and his effectiveness as a leader.

* The Corporate Enterprise Church (350-800 average worship attendance). This type of church is most like a corporation. The pastor's role is more like that of a COO (chief operations officer). The business and administrative duties are demanding. He is to give strong leadership to the organization while making certain that the needs and expectations of the members are cared for.

* The Corporate Multienterprise Church (800-plus average worship attendance). This type of church is most like a franchised corporation or a multidimension corporation. Many different subgroups and ministries exist, each with its own focuses and resources. There is a strong overall culture, but each division has a culture all its own. The pastor's role in this type of church is more that of a CEO (chief executive officer). He sets the course and provides overall vision and leadership to the organization.

Reading and adapting to the OC is possible if we will:

1. Relate. Take time to build meaningful relationship with those in the group, especially those who have primary influence in the group. You can't lead without them or beyond them.
2. Listen. Take time to hear individual and organization stories. Try to identify dreams and aspirations. Listen to discover values and shared assumptions.
3. Look. Observe the actions and activities of the group. Observe the formal and informal rules. Observe how members work and relate.
4. Respond. In appropriate time and manner match your leadership to the culture of the group.

Like Christ, who came into our culture, understood, and related to us, we must lead in the same way. It is essential to our success. The leader who understands and adapts to the organizational culture is more likely to lead the church forward and enjoy the journey.

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