7 Practical Questions to Create Your Best Strategy
1. Who Is the Point Leader, and Who’s on the Team?
Leadership always matters. God’s presence and power is essential, but He chooses to work through called and gifted leaders who are committed to His purpose.
It starts with the point leader. Do you have the right person for the job? And then who is on the team? It matters to get the right mix of talent and the right chemistry.
An important but seldom asked question in the strategic process is, “Are you and your team excited and passionate about what you are doing?”
Going through the motions because something seems like the right thing to do will rarely get you across the goal line. Instead, a God-inspired purpose and plan are needed with a high passion for seeing it through.
2. What Is God Saying to You?
God has gifted you with wisdom, experience, and cumulative insight from the team, but keep listening while you design and implement your strategy. Then, give God room to change it as needed.
This may seem blatantly obvious, but it’s best to start with God, not your strategy. Meaning don’t create your strategy and ask God to bless it. Instead, ask God to guide you while you design your plan, and then ask for his favor and power upon it.
3. How Will Decisions Be Made?
Curiously, from the highest levels in any church, this question is not often answered quickly or with clarity.
How are decisions made?
Whether it’s the whole church, a campus, or a ministry area, how decisions are made is a critical strategic question.
Your decision-making process shapes productivity, group chemistry, morale, creativity, clarity, and workflow.
The actual process matters, but it’s more important that you have an intentional decision-making process and that everyone on the team understands it.
One of the best ways to avoid organizational bottlenecks is to know who makes what decisions and how the process works.
4. What Are the Key Objectives and the Preferred Timeline?
Designing a good strategic plan starts with clear written objectives in tandem with a written timeline. Don’t rush this process.
Full ownership by the team is essential to gain the commitment and energy that will inspire the necessary follow-through.
When you have the key objectives in chronological order, you then begin to list the next steps to achieve the objectives in order.
At this point in the process, the details of the plan are developed.
The details need not be so micro that you bog the group down, but enough detail, so it’s crystal clear about who owns what.
