One resource helpful for assigning and evaluating responsibilities for a specific task or ministry is the RACI Matrix. It forces the organization to assign specific responsibility and understanding to a project. This eliminates confusion, helps insure projects have the people resources to be completed and provides for accountability.
I work with lots of church plants and young ventures. I love the enthusiasm and momentum an organization has early in its life. I hope to always be a part of starting something. As I’ve gotten older, however, I’m equally as concerned about sustainability. The right energy and vision will create growth fast, but building an organization that lasts requires having a plan for maintaining viability.
We also learn, however, by the wisdom of others and humbling ourselves enough to accept the correction or criticism others offer can often help us avoid costly mistakes. The verse ends with a warning of such, “will suddenly be broken beyond healing”. That part of the principle doesn’t ignore grace or the ability to recover, but it does point out that some mistakes can leave lasting consequences.
There are times when an employee is no longer a good fit for the position and sometimes for the organization. At times like this a fine line exists between what is fair for the organization and what is fair for the employee. The bottom line is that doing the best thing for the organization often involves making hard decisions. Leaders who succeed are not held back because of the level of difficulty.
Since government economic numbers lag real time, we were technically in this current recession before we knew it. My prediction is that we will find months from now that the recession has already officially ended by this point and the recovery has slowly begun.
Apparently people still use these. I thought paper calendars had disappeared. I am a scheduled individual, but I haven’t used one in years. I have used Google calendar, Outlook, iCal, and my Blackberry, but all online. I even had a period where I used a Lotus Spreadsheet, but I never printed it.
What tips do you have to make sure a project is completed successfully?
There are signs of encouragement and life returning to the economy. The unemployment rate is a factor that usually lags behind other indicators, so that’s still very discouraging, but there are hints of better days to come. How should we react during the waiting times like this? Let me offer a few suggestions:
The list of top small workplaces for 2008 is challenging and inspiring, even convicting at times. Some of the practices of these companies address issues our organization is experiencing and that was reflected in the staff’s evaluation of my leadership.
With the process of inviting our staff to evaluate my leadership two things needing improvement in our organization were clearly evident. My current thought is that these two things apply to every organization that desires to function effectively as a team.
