Leading the Church in a VUCA World

Until a couple of weeks ago I had never heard the term “VUCA”, but when I first listened to an explanation of the meaning of this term I immediately connected with it.  It describes the environment in which I am seeking to lead my team and my organization each and every day.  My team just so happens to be a group of staff and volunteers, and my organization is a historical church in my denomination, but nonetheless they are looking to me for leadership.

VUCA is a military term that was introduced following the Cold War and was used to describe the landscape of a changing world where they were seeking to train and equip leaders to respond to a world that was volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous.  Many of us were awakened to the reality of a VUCA world following the events of 9/11 and then again after the financial crisis of 2008-2009.  Businesses and organizations that once enjoyed decades of stability and predictability found themselves scrambling to make sense of this new world.

The Church has not been immune to these seismic shifts in the way this new world operates.  Most churches and leaders are confused about how to respond to this VUCA world.  The churches they know and love once enjoyed a great deal of stability and even predictability when it came to projecting what the coming year’s attendance, budgets, and ministry needs would be.  They are now left with a church that is staggering around dazed and confused, unable to gather themselves and respond to the VUCA that is happening all around them at warp speed.

Businesses are now taking their cues from the military and are seeking to train their corporate leaders to lead differently in this new world were VUCA is the order of the day.  If the church is going to adapt to this new world and seek to not merely exist, but thrive in this new world then we must learn to lead differently as well.  Bob Johansen, of the Institute For The Future, has helped businesses and denominations equip leaders to respond to these new challenges. He suggests that in a VUCA world volatility yields to vision, uncertainty yields to understanding, complexity yields to clarity, and ambiguity yields to agility.  These are specific responses we must provide as leaders in our new environment.

The old world in which the church existed is gone for good and with it our idols of comfort and stability.  Over the next couple of weeks my goal is to unpack how we can lead more effectively in this new world.  It’s a world with immense possibilities to the leaders and churches who will choose to adapt and respond.

For more resources on Vibrant Church Renewal and Evangelism go to:

http://www.usacanadaregion.org/church-renewal

http://www.usacanadaregion.org/evangelism