Strategic Planning For Church

Church strategic planning church plan  is a critical process that must be undertaken by every church to succeed over time. It involves the organization in foresight of how it will look, feel and function in the future. It not only helps you avoid failure but also helps you determine how to successfully meet the needs of your people today — for tomorrow’s generations.

Strategic planning for churches can be a lot of fun and a great source of feedback. When setting up your church’s strategic plan, you’ll want to think about what their goals are and how they interact with other ministries in the church. Oh, and don’t forget about financial planning! This is a list of questions to help you get started developing your church’s strategic plan. You may have several of these questions or none at all. Either way, this is a great way to get started thinking about and planning for the future in a fun and easy format.

Right here on Churchgists, you are privy to a litany of relevant information on Strategic planning for church, When Should Leadership Create a Church Strategic Plan, Assess Your Current Situation, Layout Policies and Procedures and so much more. Take out time to surf through our catalog for more information on related topics. You don’t want to miss this!

Strategic Planning For Church

A strategic plan can help your church to align its programs and processes with the mission and vision of the church. A strategic plan provides the information necessary for improving day-to-day operations, planning future development and identifying gaps that may exist in areas such as fundraising, membership development, or communications.

Planning is an important part of your spiritual development, and there’s no time like it. You’re growing everyday, so you have to keep your eyes on the prize of becoming a leader in this world. But there’s a lot of information out there that can be confusing or even contradictory at times. So how do you make sense of it all? Through strategic planning. As an established church leader, you’ll require both personal and professional growth if you intend to see the vision through successfully.

CHURCH STRATEGIC PLAN – A DEFINITIVE GUIDE

Developing a church strategic plan can take place at any point in a ministry. A pastor starting a church has the same challenges as someone taking over an existing church or restructuring their current ministry. 

With about 380,000 churches in the U.S., leaders recognize members have options. Strategic planning for churches has the potential to reignite an organization. It also can become a stressful situation if not done right.

Learn more about how to develop your church’s strategic blueprint. Read our guide on creating a church plan.

Steps to Church Strategic Planning

1. Create a Vision, Mission and Values Statement.
2. Do (SWOT) Analysis.
3. Perform Gap Analysis.
4. Write Organizational Goals.
5. Church Budget Is Important.

When Should Leadership Create a Church Strategic Plan?

There’s no time like the present to create a church strategic plan. The timing will dictate the urgency and implementation. As the pastor or leader of a religious organization, you first need to have a clear understanding of how you want the ministry to function.

If the leader isn’t clear on their intentions, it’s a recipe for disaster, and friction can quickly set in. 

New Pastor

A new pastor starting a church should create a strategic ministry plan before opening the church doors. Start-up is the most crucial time for the leader. Every business owner will tell you that failing to plan is a plan for failure.

There are many things to consider when starting a church. You’ll need to answer the following questions.

• Who is your intended audience?
• What denomination will you serve under?
• When do you plan to open?
• Where do you plan to locate the church?
• Why will people want to join?

Without the answers to the five Ws, you will have a misguided strategic plan and are sure to experience pastoral care challenges.

Incoming Pastor

It’s common for a pastor to inherit a church. This means there’s an existing church, and a pastor has resigned, retired, passed away or been removed from the leadership role.

An incoming pastor will have many challenges. It doesn’t matter if they served in a leadership capacity in the church. Senior pastors are often beloved by the congregation. When their seat becomes vacant, it’s difficult for someone to come in with a new vision. Members will want the church to operate the same.

Many new churches have formed due to a split in leadership following a disagreement in church management. Regardless of how you earned the title of head pastor, a strategic leadership plan is needed.

Current Pastor

As an existing pastor, you must have a pulse for your church at all times. This includes your administrative staff, leadership and membership. Pastors wear many titles, and it’s easy to become overwhelmed.

Having a strong support system is essential. When it’s time to reassess how the church is doing, hard decisions come into play. 

Ongoing strategic planning for churches and ministries is a must. It doesn’t mean each year you overall the church operations. Instead, you understand what is working and what isn’t. What is trending in ministry, and what members are no longer responding to?

This article will address a church strategy plan for existing churches. However, the information is also valuable for a new ministry as the same rules will apply now and in the future.

Pull Together a Planning Team

The first step for creating a church strategic plan is to assemble a team. The team will include the following:

• someone from administration.
• individuals from your leadership team.
• ministry leaders.
• business people from within the congregation.
• business people from the community.
• someone with project management experience.
• other community partners.

Create a list of qualifications for team members. Ensure the people you chose have diverse backgrounds and reflect the demographics of your congregation. 

Establish rules of order to control the climate of meetings. Set a schedule for meetings and a timeframe to conclude the project. 

A person starting a church may find this process runs smoother than someone coming into an established ministry.

Conduct a Church Survey

Conducting a church survey on your own or employing a third-party to administer it is a great way to get a pulse for how the church operates. Your members will access the confidential survey from an online portal outside the church.

The administrator of the survey will ask questions based on the interview they conduct with you. There are sections for members, ministry volunteers and leaders and the administrative staff. Questions can also focus on the church demographics to help drill down on any generational, race or gender divides.

Once the church survey is completed, you’ll receive a comprehensive report and tools to help guide your strategic plan. There are also recommendations on addressing the congregation with the results and next steps to grow a better ministry.

Assess Your Current Situation

A church strategic plan requires transparency and an open mind. Having the courage to pull in the reigns and go in a different direction takes courage and shows you are a true leader.

Before meeting with your team, make a list of the things you see and what are the causes for concern. List what is working, what is stagnant, and what needs revamping.

Meet with the administrative staff to get their thoughts. Let them know your ideas for strategic planning for the church and ministries. If you have engaged and supportive staff members, their input will mean a lot in the implementation stages.  

Determine Your Desired Outcome

Now that you have laid out the church’s current status, it’s time to start thinking about the desired outcomes. Examples of outcomes include:

• Growing church membership.
• Changing the culture of the church.
• Building a diverse and global audience.
• Increasing stewardship and giving.
• Creating satellite churches.
• Opening a social services arm of the church
• Being more involved in the community.
• Providing more opportunities for members to serve.
• Fulfilling personal goals to bring more attention to the ministry.

Being intentional about the direction you want to take the church doesn’t mean the process will become easier. However, it does make the goals clear and helps pave the path to success.

Write Out a Business Plan

Churches need a business plan. Often, church management turns away from a business structure because they don’t want to confuse business with their mission. Unfortunately, this is the wrong way to look at planning and structure. 

The reality is, the senior pastor is the CEO, the associate pastors are VPs, and ministry leaders are your departmental managers. You might have a secretary, volunteers and other roles who make up your customer service team. 

Planning for all these roles as the church grows is easily managed when you have foreseen the church’s future.

What Does the Business Plan Include?

1. Mission statement – a short statement that addresses the focus and what the church stands for.
2. Executive summary – a summary of what the church will offer and why it’s beneficial to your intended audience.
3. Market research – determine if there’s a need for your church and how it will compare to the competition. Invest in studies to see how and what churches similar to yours are doing.
4. Church marketing plan – what tools you’ll need to attract people to the church.
5. Management structure – what will it look like. Who is paid and who isn’t.
6. Day-to-day operations – what are the church’s business hours? When are services? How do ministries meet?
7. Finances – how will you fund the church? How will tithes and offerings get distributed, and how will capital improvement projects get funded? How to build banking relationships.

Keep in mind, the business plan is separate from a church strategic plan. The business plan should have been a part of the church’s original start-up. It’s a document you can look back on and revise at five-year increments. 

Define the Role of the Church in Current Times

For your strategy plan, define the role of the church in current times. On the surface, people understand the church is there to further the mission of Jesus through discipleship. But what does that look like now?

It’s no secret that the church is steadily evolving. Churches are loosening some of their stringent rules and becoming more flexible on traditional practices.

As conversations ramp up regarding secularism entering the church, you’ll need a strategic plan to address these concerns. Things to look at are:

• Theology
• Dress codes
• Music
• New ministries

Changes in church culture are huge. As older members are unable to serve or pass away, younger influences will take hold.

Create a Vision Statement

Popular in protestant churches are vision and mission statements. This is different from the mission statement in the business plan.

The church’s vision and mission is a call to action for the congregation. It’s an open statement that becomes a part of the church brand. The statement appears on the church website, marketing materials and something members know by memory.

In some churches, members recite the statement every Sunday. It’s a ritual similar to the Pledge of Allegiance. Reciting the statement each week reinforces the vision and goals of the church’s overall plan and vision for the future. 

Outline a Budget

A ministry’s strategic plan will have a section for a budget. The budget is a detailed outline of categories that need funding and resources for getting the money that’s needed.

Churches have options for accounting software to help manage finances and stay on track. It’s important to understand how money is coming in and going out. Equally important is to become intentional about spending.

There are traditional and alternative revenue sources churches use. Not all of them work for every congregation or have the same results.

Outline in your strategic plan which options you’ll use along with financial projections. Alongside traditional tithes and offerings, the church relies on these fundraising sources.

• Annual pledges of support
• Bake sales
• Events
• Fundraisers
• Grants
• Memorial donations
• Special giving opportunities

Before starting a new church, the pastor and leadership need to have enough cash on hand to carry the church for at least two years. 

Set Criteria for Leadership Roles

As the church grows, there will be opportunities to select associate pastors and other executive leadership roles. Leadership in ministry has a higher calling than someone in a secular organization.

People placed in these roles are charged with overseeing ministries and volunteers. They need to have integrity and above-average people management skills.

Misconduct by church leadership can significantly impact your church’s reputation and standing in the community. It can also lead to legal liability.

Determine how many leadership roles you’ll need and under what circumstances additional roles will get added. Also, ask yourself if there are leadership roles that aren’t directly related to a specific ministry. For example, deacons, deaconesses, trustees and attorneys. 

The criteria will include:

• Who makes selections.
• How long do appointments last.
• Is compensation involved.
• Roles and responsibilities.

A lot of the duties and responsibilities will depend on the size of the congregation. 

Layout Policies and Procedures

The church will need policies and procedures as it pertains to the operation of the church. In addition, you’ll need policies and procedures in the church strategic plan that deals with ministries and the use of church growth tools.

Without having policies in place, you run the risk of people taking ownership of procedures and tailoring them to fit their needs.  

New Membership Tools

It’s one thing to bring people into your ministry. It’s another to shepherd and watch over their spiritual growth. 

After extending the invitation to individuals, devise a way to gather demographic information. Will your church offer new membership courses? Decide how and when courses are administered. How many courses are offered, and if they’ll be available online? The end goal of new membership courses is to reinforce stewardship and encourage people to join a ministry.

It’s a nice gesture to celebrate members that successfully complete new membership programs. One Sunday each month, introduce new members to the congregation and host a meet and greet. 

Creating a Ministry

There are basic ministries that every church has. These include men, women, youth, and young adult ministries. What happens when a member has an idea for a new ministry?

Strategic planning for churches and ministries must be in place to examine the need of the ministry vs. the culture of the church.

Ideas for new ministries must align with the church’s core values and have a spiritual and Biblical foundation.

Joining a Ministry

Not everyone wants to join a ministry. For those excited about giving service to kingdom building, you’ll need guidelines. Some churches require membership and the completion of membership classes before joining a ministry.

Other policies can include the number of ministries a person can serve on at once. How long does a person have to volunteer in a ministry before assuming a leadership role? In addition, guidelines are needed to cover terms of leadership and successor training.

Street Teams

A street team is a new-age term used to reference evangelism duties. Since the members of these teams are going into the community as representatives of the church, you may become exposed to legal liability.

Consult with your insurance representative to discuss the church’s exposure in the event someone is injured. You’ll want to have policies on passing out materials, taking pictures, recording footage and supervision for minors.  

Community Outreach

Community outreach can include many activities. The activities will need individual listings. For the most part, these activities will include partnerships with other churches, non-profits and civic organizations.

Anytime your members and leadership have an opportunity to engage with people in the neighborhood, it shows you are committed to the community. In times like the COVID-19 pandemic, the church has many ways to perform outreach.

When a strategic plan is in place, it becomes easier to mobilize and reach those in need. 

Invest in Branding and Marketing

Strategic planning for churches and ministries isn’t complete without a plan for branding and marketing. With today’s technology, apps, and digital content, churches can easily strategize how to get in front of their target audience. 

Your church brand is how people will identify and connect with your ministry. Larger churches have put a lot into branding. Everything from logos to catchphrases to color schemes are created with care. 

The ultimate goal in marketing is to grow your platform using name recognition. Here are must-haves for your strategic plan.