Want to know something almost no church consultant will tell you?A whopping 80% of all church consultations have no lasting effect on the church. That’s true whether a church calls a big “name” consultant, a “Church Health” consultant, a sticky church consultant, or any other style or brand of consultant. The reason consultations fail isn’t because the recommendations are bad … it’s because the congregation is unwilling to make the changes necessary for long-term transformation.
Why They Fail:
Because some may not like or agree with the advice
Because some prefer things the way they are
Because change will make some uncomfortable
Because the church leaders are afraid of ruffling feathers
Because risk is a four letter word
Because the church consultant wasn’t from “our” denomination
Because the church consultant was from “our” denomination
Because the church consultant isn’t from “around here”
Why Some Succeed
They understand their current reality
They understand the need for change
They understand the cost of change – and the cost of not changing
They are willing to pay the cost of change
They have built a trust-relationship with their consultant
So, will a consultation really help? That all depends on the congregation’s leadership. A consultation isn’t a quick fix and if the leadership is looking for a magic pill that will make everything alright, they’ll quickly find they’re the victim of the 80 percent statistic. We’ll look at what you can (and should) expect from a consultation in the next post.
What Every Pastor Should Know Before Hiring a Church Consultant
By: Bill Tenny-Brittian
Want to know something almost no church consultant will tell you? A whopping 80% of all church consultations have no lasting effect on the church. That’s true whether a church calls a big “name” consultant, a “Church Health” consultant, a sticky church consultant, or any other style or brand of consultant. The reason consultations fail isn’t because the recommendations are bad … it’s because the congregation is unwilling to make the changes necessary for long-term transformation.
Why They Fail:
Why Some Succeed
So, will a consultation really help? That all depends on the congregation’s leadership. A consultation isn’t a quick fix and if the leadership is looking for a magic pill that will make everything alright, they’ll quickly find they’re the victim of the 80 percent statistic. We’ll look at what you can (and should) expect from a consultation in the next post.