“Fundamentally, if you’re an organisation that says, “Our people are our greatest asset” (as most do), and you mean it, you must default to open. Otherwise, you’re lying to your people and to yourself. You’re saying people matter but treating them like they don’t. Openness demonstrates to your employees that you believe they are trustworthy and have good judgement. And giving them more context about what is happening (and how and why) will enable them to do their jobs more effectively and contribute in ways a top-down manager couldn’t anticipate.”
I couldn’t help wondering how this would work in a traditional management setting, or, more specific to our own church culture, in a traditional church setting. If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone say, “we’ve never done it this way before”, implying that any and every innovation is automatically doomed to fail, I would be a very wealthy man.
Previous generations did not embrace transparency as a culture. For instance, my mother had no idea how much money was in my father’s bank account…and yes, she did not have a bank account herself. In fact, my brother and I had no idea either until the day he died. He did it all himself and kept his cards close to his chest. Today, Louise and I have joint accounts and try to never do anything without prior consultation.
Hierarchical management systems tend to be more like my parents…the lower down the rung you are, the less you know. Boards meet behind close doors and make decisions employees are simply expected to implement. Budgets are closed books. Everything is controlled by a few…everyone is controlled…
Surely if we believe what Jesus said to His disciples in John 15:15, “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you“, we, as His Body, would embrace a culture of transparency…
But are we ready to forego that feeling of power that comes from being the only one who is in the know?
We need to be. People are voting with their feet. In todays’ Google culture, operating in a closed system tells your people that you think they are not capable, or not suitable, or that you simply do not trust them. This is not a work environment or church environment people are likely to define as ‘home’ and they will move on…