The second of Stephen Covey's habits of highly effective people is, "Begin with the end in mind."
From where I sit, having the end on mind may be the most glaring failing of the people of the CGGC who think of themselves as leaders of the church (as opposed to servants of the King).
And, even by their own admission, our leaders have not been effective people in their supposed leadership roles. Their writing of the 2017 new New Strategic Plan...
...and their description of the 2015 old New Strategic Plan as merely words on paper tells that tale.
Hovering up here from my 40,000 foot vantage point, observing the recent behavior of the ERC hierarch culture, I think it's clear what the end is that our hierarchs have in their heads:
The approval of the new New Strategic Plan.
Child's play.
In my many-decade-involvement in the Conference, leadership has never been denied official approval of its programs and strategies because...
...the delegates to Conference have always granted permission...
...of the words on paper.
What the Conference as a whole, has never done is to participate in the plans.
So, as I see it, the hierarchs' recent actions will end in a repeat of history in which they get approval...probably rather easy approval...
of their words on paper and nothing more.
Through the Round Table Meetings, according to the PDFs, the hierarch culture was adamant that the new New Strategic Plan would be implemented beginning January 1, though the people who attended those meetings, if the PDF is to be believed, had meaningful reservations about elements of the plan,...
...some even joining with me in doubting that the hierarchs had the authority, according to the covenant we have with each other other, as described in the Constitution, to implement the plan.
It seems clear to me that, at this moment, the new New Strategic Plan would be less than a month from implementation except that the Ad Council shouted, "Whoa Nellie Belle!" in that special meeting in November.
So, undaunted, the hierarchs are pushing it through, as best they can.
They picked Jim Moss to be the ERC's Interim Executive Director because he helped write the new New Strategic Plan, knows it inside and out, and is as excited about it as any four year old awaiting the coming of Santy Claus.
Then,...
...Jim introduced himself to the Conference as the new Interim Executive Director as someone who will be able to get the plan going when it is approved at the special Conference session in January.
The hierarchs are using a full court press to get the new New Strategic Plan approved when...
...as far as I can tell, approval is already a done deal.
After all,
The 2015 old New Strategic Plan was approved by the Conference in session...
...UNANIMOUSLY!
And, with much less effort than is being poured into the promotion of the new New Strategic Plan.
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Here, however, are some key realities about the new New Strategic Plan:
1. Very few people attended the Round Table Meetings. Therefore, very few people know what they will be asked to approve in January.
2. The lack of attendance suggests to me a lack of interest in the plan one way or the other.
3. Read the PDF of the questions and answers if you doubt this, but many questions were raised about the plan. And, my take on the questions is that few satisfactory answers were provided. I'll say this: Many of the questions raised are concerns I myself have and the answers didn't satisfy me.
4. Based on the lean attendance of the meetings, few in the ERC seem to care about the new New Strategic Plan.
5. Based on the questions raised at the meetings, among those who do care, many have concerns.
6. The end that Jim and the hierarchs seem to have in mind, is simply to get the plan officially approved...something that has never, ever been a problem in the first place.
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There is a culture in the ERC that allows the hierarchs to come together in the meeting rooms at the Church Center and plan and scheme to their hearts' content and, then, to beat their chests in pride over their fine work...
...so long as the Apathetics and the Cynics of the Conference have permission to give meaningless approval to their plans...
...and just so long as no one asks them to actually do anything about it.
That's exactly what happened, just two years ago, in 2015.
It's what the hierarch culture is working for now and...
...most likely, that's what it will get.
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If the hierarchs cared about anything else, based on the slim attendance at those Round Table Meetings, and the nature of the questions raised,...
...they'd be focusing on informing the members of the Eldership about the plan,...
...not pushing the ERC community for approval.
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What is likely, though, is, in the wake of the 2015 old New Strategic Plan,...
...we'll get Words on Paper 2.0.
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