4 More Qualifications for Local Officers (from O&R’s for Local officers)

This is the second of three posts in which I am discussing 12 essential qualifications for local officers.  The qualifications are taken straight from that incredibly wise set of documents built over one hundred years of Salvation Army practice, “Orders and Regulations”.   

Qualification #5:  The Local Officer has abilities in the field in which she is working

The basis for allocating local officership positions must be that of ability to do the job.  This almost always means that the local officer has the right spiritual gift mix, the right life experiences, the right personality, the right temperament, and the right skills to do the job. 

I once knew a bandmaster who was appointed to the position “because there was no-one else to do the job”.  He was a reasonable musician (much better than I will ever be), a good manager, an intelligent person, and a spiritually mature servant of God. In his secular job he was a leader. 

But he hated what he was doing!

He always thought that he was no good at it, but he loyally stuck to the job for many years because it was generally understood that the band would collapse if he didn’t do it. 

When I met him I was shocked by this state of affairs.  How could a man spend so many years in a ministry for which he was patently unsuited?  It was a daily assault on his self-esteem as he knew in his heart that he could only lead the band to mediocrity, at best.  

Though it was not my place to change his position, I had many conversations with him and (separately) with his corps officer, encouraging them both to consider something more suitable to his gift mix and abilities, rather than just his sense of duty.  (Duty is a great Salvo tradition, but sometimes it does us more harm than good.)  

My comments went unheeded.

Some years later I visited that corps and discovered that he had left to start a new corps plant (work that is in his gift mix).  And guess what?  The band hadn’t collapsed!  Rather new blood had stepped up to fill the gap.  Further, there was a whole new expression of musical ministry in that corps that hadn’t been there before.  A contemporary worship band and a revitalised and contemporary songster repertoire had risen up in the new environment. 

(But, so what if the band had collapsed?  Would it have been the end of the world?  No; but it would mean the corps would be different; not ineffective, just different.)

Qualification #6:  The Local Officer regularly attends (Sunday) meetings

Of course, the local officer is expected to set the example in meeting attendance, but equally as important, attendance at meetings is one of his primary mechanisms for staying in touch with the people for whom he is responsible.  One of the key activities of leadership is networking, and what better time to do it than before and after the meeting.  

Qualification #7:  The Local Officer obeys his/her officer

How do we reconcile this with “Qualification #1:  The Local Officer is able to take on responsibility” and “Qualification #2:  The Local Officer is able to advise and assist the Corps Officer”?

In those qualifications the local officer is expected to take responsibility and exercise leadership, but now she is being told to obey his officer.  It seems that she is expected to express her opinion and even robustly argue for the things that she thinks are important.  How does this work?  How does this reconcile with being obedient to her officer. 

The Salvation Army has a clear understanding of how this should work, an understanding that is consistently adopted and used at all levels of the organisation all over the world.  (It’s probably one of the few things that is!)  It goes like this:

1. When a matter is being considered, local officers are expected contribute to the discussion with their grassroots knowledge, opinions based on first-hand experience, and anything else they can bring to the table. 
2. If there is something vitally important to the interest of the ministry of local officer she is expected to robustly advocate for it.
3. A good corps officer will try to reach some degree of consensus, and it’s usually possible to do so.
4. Whether or not consensus is reached, the time will come when the corps officer has to decide, and the decision may go against the opinion of the local officer. 
5. This is when she expresses her loyalty.  Outside of that meeting she defends the decision as though it was her own; she carries out the instructions of the corps officer as if they were her idea in the first place. 
6. Later, if there are negative outcomes of the decision, she quietly and discreetly goes to her corps officer and explains them, so that the corps officer is equipped to consider revising the decision in the light of new information.  

 This is loyalty, Salvation Army style.

Qualification #8:  The Local Officer fires a cartridge and leads in giving to appeals

If you are a local officer and you are not 110% sold on the idea of tithing and supporting the world wide mission of The Salvation Army, you should seriously consider handing in your commission. 

The ninth article of the Soldier’s Covenant (which you signed up to when you became a soldier) says:

“I will be actively involved, as I am able, in the life, work, worship and witness of the corps, giving as large a proportion of my income as possible to support its ministries and the worldwide work of the Army.”

What more needs to be said?

Some questions to think about

1. You may know of some local officers who do not have some of these characteristics.  What have you noticed about their effectiveness, and about their impact on the corps? 
2. How do you feel about the concept of obedience?  Are you ready for the faith it requires and the vulnerability it places you in? What should you do if your corps officer is not worthy of obedience (because she is incompetent, dishonest, lazy or some other reason)?
3. Are you 110% sold on the idea of tithing and supporting the worldwide mission of The Salvation Army?  If not, do you know what is preventing you from being so?  Are you prepared to do what it takes to get past that barrier?

4 Qualifications for Local Officers (from O&R’s for Local Officers)

Over the next three posts I am going to share with you 12 essential qualifications for local officers lifted straight from Orders and Regulations for Local Officers.  Here are the first four. 

(BTW:  Most of these principles apply to CO’s and just about any other kind of leader.  The names of the titles change and the responsibility may be different, but that’s about the only difference.)

Qualification #1:  The Local Officer is able to take on responsibility

She will have the capacity to take on responsibility for a particularly section or role in the corps.  Ideally she will have had some area of responsibility in other areas of her life, perhaps as a supervisor, teacher or parent.  Taking on responsibility means being able to carry out the four functions of management; planning, leadership, organising and control.  It may be that this position is a stretch for the local officer (in fact all the better if it is – it will enable her to grow), but it should be within her grasp. 

Qualification #2:  The Local Officer is able to advise and assist the Corps Officer

After settling in to the position, the local officer will be expected to be an advisor and assistant to the corps officer.  He should be able to give guidance to the CO about the best course of action for his own specialist area of work and for the corps generally. From the CO’s point of view, the best kind of local officer is one who forms a team with his colleague local officers to closely support the CO in understanding the needs of the corps, planning and decision-making.  He will become one of a trusted team of confidants who together will own the responsibility for taking the corps forward.

Qualification #3: The Local officer is able to work in the corps and work in regular employment

This is not to say that a stay-at-home-mum or a retiree cannot be a local officer.  Rather it is meant to imply that local officership is a service to God, not a paid position.  The old saying, “If you want to get a job done, ask a busy person” tends to be true of most good local officers.  Their zest for life is evident in the corps and in other areas of their life.  (Warning:  Work / Life balance can be an issue – more on that in a future post.)

Qualification #4:  The Local Officer is a Godly, loyal and devoted Salvationist

I once had a conversation with some Salvationists who shared with me the pain of being associated with local officers who did not have this qualification. 

In their corps two of the local officers were both egocentric and selfish people, who sought glory for themselves.  In fact, just under the surface, a lifelong competition for attention had raged between them.  One day this competitiveness burst into the open when they had a loud and fierce argument in front of many members of the corps.  Both acted in an ungodly and disloyal way, but neither would back down, apologise or even admit they had acted inappropriately.   Over the ensuing weeks, they dragged more and more people into the conflict until the whole corps was divided into two factions.  Further, the other local officers and the corps officer did not act to bring the warring factions to resolution.  Within a few months the corps crashed from a regular attendance of several hundred to about forty. 

I cannot say it strongly enough, local officers must be Godly, loyal and devoted Salvationists. 

Some questions to ponder: 

1. Can you be certain you would never act in the way the egocentric local officers did?
2. If you were the Corps Sergeant Major or Corps Officer in this situation what would you do? 
3. If you were the corps officer of local officers who were not Godly, loyal and devoted, what would you do to bring them up to standard? 
4. Do you know any corps officers who do not meet these qualifications?   If you were their Divisional Commander what would you do? 
5. If you are a corps officer who has some local officers who are like those described in “Qualification 4” above, you have a problem.  What are you going to do to judiciously and carefully address it?

Essential Measures (A Letter from the Founder)

About six months before he died, General William Booth wrote a letter to Territorial Commanders around the world outlining six essential measures for the success of The Salvation Army in each of their territories.  Only recently has this letter been published, but the principles are as valid today as they ever were and they are valid for corps officers as they are Territorial Commanders.  Here are the six measures. 

1.     The absolute necessity of spiritual life

It is necessary for spiritual life in both ourselves and in our soldiery.  Of course our soldiers will never be spiritual people if we are not ourselves.  But we should campaign hard to develop a deep spirituality in our people.  We should aim to grow a corps culture in which soldiers expect a high level of spirituality from each other and themselves. 

2.     Training in the skills that are necessary for the work of The Salvation Army

Training for training’s sake achieves nothing, but training that gives skills to our soldiers to do the work of mission, to lead people to Christ, to nurture newcomers, to help people grow spiritually, these are the skills that The Salvation Army needs. 

3.     Faithful oversight

There are a number of elements to be a faithful shepherd and leader.

a.     Dealing with rumours and gossip

Are there rumours or gossip that a soldier is not being true to the standards of Salvationism?  Then that matter should be addressed promptly, but lovingly, firmly and discretely.  It is often so difficult the right balance in matters like these.  Careful prayer and thoughtfulness are required.  Is there a person in the corps who is a rumour-monger?  Then that behaviour must also be addressed. 

b.    Setting the Direction

Most people want to be led and they also want to be part of the winning team.  Most of our soldiers will follow if we set a strong direction and help them to maintain commitment to that direction. 

c.     Affirming our Soldiers

Our relationships with our people should be affirming and positive, doing what we can to build them up, reward them for effort and life them to the next level of their capacity. 

d.    Impartial correction and discipline

On the other hand, there are times when we have to correct our people.  In these cases we should do so consistently and fairly. 

4.     Encouragement

Encouragement is the key to motivating our soldiers.  Are they stretching themselves for the sake of God?  Encouragement from the CO will motivate them to continue to give their best for God.  Or, are they just beginning to respond to what God wants of them?  Encouragement will strengthen their resolve and empower them to take it to the next level.

5.     Suitable work

Each of our soldiers and other members of the congregation have unique talents, abilities and spiritual gifts.  When each one is working mostly in the area of their spiritual gifts and other abilities, the corps is likely to be at its most effective.  When they are doing the most suitable work for them, they find it easy and they are good at it.  When we put soldiers into unsuitable positions, perhaps only because a position needs to be filled, we are causing them to waste a lot of energy and heartache trying to do something they can never excel in.  This is a recipe for frustration and failure and worst and mediocrity at best. 

6.     The Officer’s own example

The example of your life is probably one of the loudest ways in which you speak to your soldiers. 

a.     Your assurance of salvation:  Are you deeply and passionately sure that you are going to heaven and that you enjoy a deep personal relationship with Jesus, who is the one and only way to the Father?  Or do you slip into thinking that probably Jesus is way, and you can’t think of anything better at the moment?  Whichever it is, your soldiers will pick up on it and will follow your example.  Be sure of your salvation, and if you are not, work to bring the matter to resolution as soon as you can. 

b.    Holiness:  What is your experience of holiness (Holy Spirit empowered living)?  When you became an officer you promised to actively pursue the experience.  Have you continued in that promise? 

c.     Restless passion for souls:  Do your soldiers have a sense of urgency about the dying souls around them?  Do they see in you a person that will go to any lengths to introduce members of your community to Jesus?  When they look at you, do they see a person who is passionately concerned about the eternal fate of those about him/her?  Or do they see someone who just turns up for work every day? 

d.    Courage:  Do your soldiers see you doing things in the name of Christ of which you are afraid?  Do they see you doing these things even though you are afraid?  Or do they see you shrinking back, because it makes you feel frightened, nervous, or even embarrassed.  Courage is being afraid and still doing what God wants us to do.  Do your soldiers see this in you?

e.     Zeal:  How do your soldiers view your level of enthusiasm?  Does it appear to them you are just doing a job?  Or do they see you throwing your energy into changing lives?

How universal these principles are.  They apply to every level of Salvation Army leadership.  How are they working in your ministry? 

(If you would like a copy General Booth’s letter in the form of a book “Essential Elements” - in English - please let me know and I can arrange for a copy to be sent to you.)

(This post first appeared in "From the commander's Desk - June 2010, an e-newsletter for officers of the Taiwan Region.)

I wish they told me this when I was starting out in leadership

One of the world’s greatest leadership gurus in recent times has been Peter Drucker, who died at the age of 96 in November 2005, still consulting and sharing ideas on management and leadership. 

He was a man who began his management consulting career in the days when the study of management was unknown, but by 1942 he was a well-known commentator on leadership, management, organisations and society.  During his life time he consulted for General Electric, Coca-Cola, IBM, Intel, Citicorp, Toyota, the Ito-Yokado group, the American Red Cross, the Navajo Indian Tribe, and (you guessed it) The Salvation Army. 

His work was not only recognised in the West, but he gained incredible respect in Japan, and his work inspired the anime film series, “Moshidora - What If the Female Manager of a High School Baseball Team read Drucker's ‘Management’?”

He never fully stopped working, and in the latter part of his life he headed up his research organisation, the Drucker Institute.  This highly professional body became synonymous with world class quality research on leadership, organisations and society.  (Many of the online business innovations that we have today were forecast by the Drucker Institute back in the 1990’s.)

In 2006 a leading  management magazine published an interview they had conducted with Drucker shortly before he died.   

In it he drew from his years of experience of observing leaders, and from the empirical data collected by the Drucker Institute.  So when he was asked, “What are the characteristics that make good leaders?”, he was one of the few people who really knew what they are talking about.  He could answer from both empirical evidence and years of practice wisdom. 

So what is this holy grail of leadership, this answer to the leadership question of life, the universe and everything? 

This is what Drucker said are the characteristics that appear almost universally in good leaders:

ü  Psychological resilience,

ü  Good communication,

ü  The ability to manage complexity.

When I read this in 2006 it had a profound effect on me, for several reasons. 

Firstly, it resonated as being self-evidently true.  Secondly, all three characteristics can be learned, nurtured, developed and built up; and thirdly, they are the kinds of characteristics I wouldn’t think of working on unless this truth was pointed out to me. 

When I look back on my leadership experience, the fact that I am still in leadership must indicate that, to some degree or another, I have been able to build these characteristics.  But how much better would it have been if I had had the opportunity to recognise their importance at the beginning and to focus on their development.  I hope you take this opportunity today. 

I would predict that, depending on your personality type, one of these is going to be relatively easy for you to develop and the other two are going to be a struggle.  (For me, the easiest is managing complexity.  Communication and psychological resilience are the two that have required the most work, but for you it may be different.)

Now, almost every time I deliver training on leadership, I mention this truth at some point in the session, and I amazed at the moment of “Ah ha” that is produces for so many people.

Building these characteristics is a life’s work, so there is no quick fix, but here a few pointers. 

ü  Psychological Resilience:  Think spiritual life and keeping yourself in the centre of God's will, exposure to challenging and difficult experiences, strong support networks,

ü  Good communication:  Think listening and attending skills, think repetition to the point of redundancy, think systems and mechanisms (such as meetings, newsletters, etc.),

ü  The ability to manage complexity: Think time management, accurate and copious note-taking, more overview, less detail.

So, now you have an advantage starting out that not many leaders before you had.  Take it and get started!

(BTW:  Read Drucker.  I think you would have liked him.  He was passionate about the role of the non-profit sector as an essential ingredient in a healthy society, the importance of people as assets in the workplace, the need to routinely get rid of stale old ideas and practices, and the need for real community.  You can look at samplers of his work at the Drucker Institute website, http://www.druckerinstitute.com/ .)

What is Management? (It's not the same as leadership!)

When we hear the word manager, we generally think of a stuffy middle aged man in a suit, who bosses people around all day and doesn’t understand what the ordinary person feels or thinks. 

Well, think again.  If you’re in any kind of position of responsibility in The Salvation Army, you’re probably spending a lot of your time doing management. 

ü  If you’re organising materials, people, rosters, finances or equipment then you’re doing management.  

ü  If you’re planning events, meetings, schedules, appeals or campaigns then you’re doing management. 

ü  If you’re sharing a vision with people, and persuading them to buy-in to that vision then you’re doing management. 

ü  If you’re teaching and training, monitoring and correcting, challenging and encouraging then you’re doing management. 

Management has four basic elements, and, in no particular order, they are planning, leading, organisation and control (sometimes called monitoring).  That’s it.  That’s all you have to do if you are a manager. 

But of course, hidden away in these four little words are depths of meaning that lead people to spend a life time of learning, getting MBA’s and doctorates, and soaring to new heights in research knowledge. 

But don’t worry; we’re going to keep to the KISS principle here.  My goal is to simply help you do your ministry. 

So let’s take a closer look at these four elements of management:

Planning: 

This is, as it suggests, looking at where we are now, where we want to be in the future, and working out the steps to get there.  It can be as small as organising a morning tea for a member of your team’s birthday next week, or as big as developing the strategic direction of your territory over the next five years. 

But beware; planning is not just dreaming dreams.  It’s about working out the monthly, weekly and daily steps required to get from where we are now to where we want to be in the future.  It’s answering the question, “To achieve this goal, how is it going to change what we do each day?”

Leadership:

Yes, that’s right leadership is a subset of management.  It’s hard to believe isn’t it?  It seems such a big thing.  But as your understanding of leadership and management grow you will begin to appreciate this more and more. 

Essential elements of leadership include:

ü  Creating a vision for the future (in cooperation with God, and members of our leadership team if you have one),

ü  Communicating the vision to the members of your territory, division corps or section,

ü  Getting them to buy-in to the vision and work towards its achievement.

Leadership includes a whole raft of skills, attitudes, values and competencies that we are going to unpack over the coming months. 

Organisation: 

This is the “getting things done” part of the management.  It is pulling together all the various strands that make everything work.  It is you being the glue that binds everything together.  It is making sure that rosters are prepared, that meetings are scheduled, that notes are taken, that materials are purchased, that bills are paid, that breakdowns in communication are fixed, that forgotten things are remembered, that someone covers for the person who phones in sick, and so on. 

That’s not to say that the manager does all these things, but she has to ensure that they are getting done by someone.  (If you’re doing it all yourself, you’re probably doing it wrong – more on delegation in future blogs.)

Control (also known as monitoring): 

This is the aspect of management that most managers like least of all – yet it is so essential. 

Control is:

1. Collecting the information we need to make sure everything is in order, up-to-standard, or progressing towards the goal,
2. Understanding that information,
3. Providing feedback to the people who are doing the work,
4. Getting problems fixed.

It appears in all areas of Army life.  For example, every corps submits financial reports to its headquarters, so if the corps is getting into financial trouble, headquarters is in a position to see what’s going on and work with the corps officers and treasurer to help find solutions.  That is control.

An officer may have a number of social workers working for her.  One of things she may regularly do is conduct performance appraisals, in which she objectively evaluates their performance against the requirements of their position descriptions.  If one of the social workers is not coming up to standard, after appropriate coaching, training and warnings she may have to dismiss him.  That is control.  

So now we’ve got the basic definitions out of the way, let’s look forward to getting into the meaty stuff.  Watch this space. 

(Something to think about: A good number of the managers in the New Testament come in for criticism from Jesus.  What does that imply about the importance of good quality management? Luke 12:42-48, Luke 16:1-13)

What’s coming up in Discover Leadership?

Here is a list (in no particular order) of some of the things I am looking forward to sharing with you going forward . . . .

ü  What I wish I had known when I was just starting out in leadership

ü  Being an agent of change

ü  Dealing with the difficult team member

ü  Managing yourself

ü  An emergency plan for saving time when you are ultra-busy

ü  Spiritual self-nurture

ü  Recruiting and keeping volunteers

ü  Never say “No” – Well, only on very rare occasions!

ü  Problem solving

ü  Assertion

ü  Brainstorming

ü  Managing your boss

ü  Overcoming resistance to change

ü  Keeping other accountable

ü  Dealing with complaints

ü  Making all your conversations intentional

ü  How to handle criticism

ü  How to give criticism

ü  Rewarding good performance

ü  Nurturing talent

ü  Managing stress

ü  Public speaking

ü  Conducting meetings

ü  What makes people follow?

ü  What are the characteristics of a good leader? (There will be many posts on this)

ü  Developing vision

ü  How to communicate vision

ü  Implementing vision

ü  Team participation styles

ü  Management styles

ü  The Hawthorne Effect

ü  Theory X and Theory Y

ü  Incremental “selling”

ü  Motivating yourself

ü  Motivating others

ü  What is success in ministry?

ü  The importance of firm boundaries

ü  Creating an emotionally safe working environment for your team

ü  Communication doesn’t always happen when you preach

ü  Communication can always happen when you preach

ü  Training others

ü  Selecting your “inner circle”

ü  Consistency over the long haul

ü  The self-discipline of the leader – emotions

ü  The self-discipline of the leader – possessions

ü  The self-discipline of the leader – recognition

ü  The self-discipline of the leader – accomplishment

ü  The self-discipline of the leader – ideas

ü  The self-discipline of the leader – relationships

ü  Start learning about governance now – you might be a TC one day!

ü  Apples and oranges

ü  And more . . . .

What is Leadership?

There is a lot of mumbo jumbo spoken about leadership, such as the oft quoted assertion that” leaders are born not made”.   But how much of it is true?

My purpose in this blog is to debunk all those myths and old-wives’ tales and show you what leadership really is.  I want you to learn the things about leadership that will enable you to be the best leader you can be. 

And on the way, I will show you want management is too.  Leadership and management are different to each other, but in many ways they are so intertwined as to be almost inseparable.  (But more of that later.)

So what is leadership? 

Leadership is the capacity to get people to follow you. (Duhh!)  It is the ability to influence people to work towards achieving collective goals, and to behave in ways that will support the achievement of those goals.   

In leaders there is a set of set of skills, values, attitudes and behaviours (collectively we call these the “leadership competencies”) that combine to enable the leader to lead.

But it’s not quite that simple.

Over the centuries many classical scholars, elder statesmen and leading military strategists in both the East and in the West tried to codify the list of traits that make up a leader.  And since the birth of psychology and the development of behavioural management research over the past century or so, the quest has intensified. 

Now there are hundreds of lists of leadership traits.  Some of the traits that frequently appear in these lists include vision, intelligence, awareness to the needs of others, initiative, drive, high energy levels, self-confidence, good communications skills, perseverance, the desire to lead, honesty and integrity, task-relevant knowledge, resilience, and the ability to handle complexity. 

Some of these lists are supported by greater evidence than others, yet none seem to apply universally in all situations.  None of the lists would fully predict or explain why some people are leaders and most are not.  For example, they cannot explain why the leader who is highly successful in a Western culture may be only moderately successful or even a failure in an Eastern culture.  Nor do they explain why some people seem to have all the traits on the list but are not leaders, or why some people rise up as leaders in a crisis but seem weak and ineffectual at other times.  . 

In response to this conundrum researchers concluded that there must be other factors that make leadership work or fail.  As a result we now know that effective leadership works because of many factors, some of which are beyond the control of the leader.  These are factors like the make-up of the group being led, their history and background, the stability of the membership of the group, the history of the group’s relationship with the leader, the situation, and the current circumstances surrounding them.   

Despite this, the leader does have a great deal of control how he lives his life and how he practices leadership.  He can skill himself and position himself to be the best possible leader regardless of the factors outside of his control.

The Salvation Army officer or local officer finds himself in a situation where he has to lead.  He has to point out where the people of God are now, where they should be, and how they are going to get there.  He has to persuade them to come with him.  There is no leverage that he can bring to bear, no punishment for those that will not comply.  He is 100% reliant on being able to lead.  It can only be done by influence.  He needs to develop his leadership competencies. 

Are you ready?

(To learn about leadership principles in the Bible read the book of Nehemiah.  Look out for the various leadership traits listed above.)