Excuse me, are you a Project Manager?

‘Project management’ the terminology almost unheard of in church ministry. Any corporate-ty word will be chuck aside by the majority. However, experience will demonstrate that planning and managing a project competently will ease the burden on the available resources, at the same time as allow the church to do well in large events and embark on new programs.

By profession, project management require a highly competent all rounder of the field and scope for that delivery, with a recognized project management methodology. As a result, the project manager will know exactly the stuffs that the team is doing and the ability with standardized terminology, expectations and management of all levels. However, the buzzword “PM” is heard in all industries and everyone seems to be a project manager ‘without credentials’.

Similarly, in any given task, Christian Leaders are call to lead projects in their Church or in their workplace, only to find that they possess little skills to manage project time, cost, scope, quality, human resource, procurement, communication, risk and integration.

Projects may be short or long; it is temporary in that it has a defined beginning and end in time, and therefore defined scope and resources (PMI). It is quick and unique, transient endeavor, undertaken to achieve planned objectives, which could be defined in terms of outputs, outcomes or benefits (APMUK) like running special services, evangelistic meetings, fund raising et al. It may be a ‘simple lunch meetings’ or ‘seminars’, a-walk-in-the-park for many experience leaders to run these projects. On the other hand, the spectrum may be massive and demanding like evangelistic meetings, concerts, building expansion projects. Project Management is the discipline of organizing and managing resources in such a way that these resources deliver all the work required to complete a project within defined scope, time and cost constraints. (MIM)

Without formal project management coaching or knowledge, project management can be a mammoth task for many leaders. While, many inborn leaders are gifted with good organizational and time management skills that come in handy, nevertheless there is no guarantee that the project will turn out to be successful.

Setting up a new ministry, hosting conventions or opening an outreach are additions to the departments’ regular activities that blast with loads of responsibility (Resources Constrain). Due to constraints in available time for the delivery or lack of funding and resources, lets checkout the relevancy to implementing project management concepts into our endeavors.

A biblical project management concept could be found in Nehemiah 1-2 (Read more: A Biblical Reference to Project Management: http://www.walkwiththeword.org/Studies/01_OT/16_Neh/16_Nehemiah_01-02.html)

The first step to jump-start:

Project Deliverables (Scope Management)

More often than not, unclear with the entire deliverable is the factor contribute to project failure more than others. What is the project objective? If you are unsure, how can you plan right and deliver with results? Would you know the demarcation of the project? The fundamental of project management is identifying the output without ambiguosity.

Once you know exactly the deliverables, you then breakdown into sub-deliveries and defining the scope. Scope management will be the exclusive accountability of the Project Manager. Work out and grasp all the areas of impact that need to be tackle or potentially involved. Make out the steps to take to complete each identified section. Allocate time to work this part out with the team (stakeholders). Document the decisions and phases and sign-off once concur. Many experience and long time leader assume project management methodology to be overkill or overload in church’s work, but over a period (sometime short duration) memories disappear gradually, work not done, responsibility pushes around and misunderstandings crop up. Consequently, run into disagreement, where it can be awfully destructive for the leader, the team and over and above the church. With good documentation, these issues are evitable.



Reference:
Mike Waddell (Project Management Guide for Christian Leaders)
Deborah Ike (Why Project Management Belongs in your Church)
Yngvi Rafn Yngvason (Jesus Christ the Project Leader)

Check back for more!

君子爱财 取之有道

钱财是身外物，生不带来、死不带去；

钱财是实用之物，虽然不是万能、没有它却万万不能；

钱财被适当的管理，带来许多好处、相反却祸患无穷；

钱财哪有限的功能：买得山珍海味、却买不到健康，

                                    买得昂贵真品、却买不到真心，

                                    买得真象牙床、却买不到睡眠，

                                    买得高尚豪宅、却买不到幸福家庭。

静默想想，当不偷窃、不投机和不急速、不求不义之财、不贪心时，反而殷勤和勤劳积蓄时，必见加增。耶和华曾说：『不可存心贪爱钱财，要以自己所有的为足，因为我总不撇下你，也不离弃你。若你遵行耶和华你神的话，福气必要追随你，临到你身上。』

赞美城市中文部牧师

My Definition of a Testimony

The Sharing by Ray was indeed a blessing as his life and testimony was a witness to God's word
Psalm 23. It reminded me that we are God's epistles and our life's testimonies should bear witness to the truth and dependability of God's word. Our life shows that the word we preach works.
I pray that we would also walk with God closely that our lives would bear a true witness to the gospel of hope with we preach.
God bless.
LA.

My reflection from our trip to Kuala Krai

I was inspired to do something, anything to really touch the lives of people especially those who  our fast-paced society easily forget. "Jesus said I was hungry and you fed me, naked and you clothed me, homeless and you took me in..."

The One Thing Great Leaders Know They Must Do by Joseph Lalonde

Great leaders know they must do lots of things. Great leaders need to be aware of their team’s emotions. Great leaders need to be consuming and creating fresh content. Great leaders need to take people to new heights.

But great leaders also know there’s one thing that is required to lead well. What is that one thing? Keep reading to find out.

Great Leaders Do This

We already know that great leaders do many things. All of them are part of great leadership but there’s one thing that help mediocre leaders move to the level of greatness.

This action is something most of us have done all of our lives. Yet we hate it. We struggle with taking this action.

Sometimes we feel uncomfortable because doing this makes us feel like less of a leader. Other times we don’t think we can do this because we haven’t been able to find the right one.

So, what is it that great leaders do?

Great leaders know they must be followers if they’re going to lead well.

That’s right. You read that last line correctly.

Great leaders are great followers.

They find leaders who are one, two, three, or more steps ahead of them. Then they study and learn from the masters.

Why Great Leaders Must Be Great Followers

Something magical happens when we begin to follow great leaders who are ahead of us. Their wisdom and knowledge begins to be passed down to us. We’re able to learn from those who are better than us (and yes, there are tons of people who are better than you).

Not only will you gain knowledge and insight from following these leaders, you’ll also remember what it’s like to be a follower. This will remind you to treat those you’re leading well. You’re in the same position and another leader could treat you poorly. And I know you don’t want that to happen.

Who I’m Following

I’ve made a habit of studying great leaders and what they’ve done right. I’ve become a follower of these men and women. To honor these people, I wanted to give a shout out so they know I appreciate their hard work and leadership.

Who are you following and why? Take a minute to honor these leaders by sharing who they are and what they’ve done in your life.

NEAR DEATH AND BACK

This is an account of a family tragedy that was avoided because of God's grace and the prayers of the saints at Praise City Church. Once again I am reminded that God is Almighty in life and in death. This account is to give God the glory and to thank those who have been praying for us.

It started with my daughter, Eunice, coming down with fever on June 30, 2014. The following day I called our family clinic to arrange for a blood test to scan for dengue fever. The clinic instructed us to come after the third day of fever for the tests to be accurate. By Saturday, July 5, her fever broke. Even though she recovered from fever, she felt nauseous and tired. On the morning of July 8, she started having rashes. That afternoon I took her to our family clinic for a blood test and her blood palette count was 122, slightly below normal. I believed she was recovering from dengue. Two days later, a blood test revealed her blood palette count was back to normal. The whole family was oblivious about Eunice having contracted and recovered from dengue fever.

Two days later, on July 12, my wife, Jacqlyn developed fever. On July 14, I drove her to Columbia Asia Hospital Balakong and she was admitted on suspicion of dengue. We have medical insurance and believe she has good medical care. I know there is no cure for dengue fever. Upon admission her blood palette count was normal at 130. That was a Monday. Her palette count dropped daily. By Thursday it was 30 and she was admitted to Intensive Care Unit. She was bleeding continuously for 2 days from the nose, gums and other parts of the body. On Friday her palette count had dropped to 10. The following day she vomited in ICU. She was very weak and disorientated. By this time she was getting confused with events and time. However one memory stood out crystal clear for her. She remembered clearly during the most trying period, her non Christian brother encouraged her to pray to Jesus for quick healing. Jacqlyn remembered a surge of faith and prayed specifically for immediate healing. The good Lord was gracious to answer her prayer. There is power in the name of Jesus. Many leaders, members and christian friends were informed and praying for Jacqlyn by the second day of her admission. Pastors and members from PCC visited and prayed for her. Heartfelt thanks to all for prayers and concern. I believe the Lord answered our prayers and delivered Jacqlyn from death.

Till now it is still scary and shocking. Jaclyn's palette count rapidly dropped in a week! In a way, the Lord spared me from this dreaded week of fear and torment. I came down with fever on Tuesday, the second day of Jacqlyn's hospital stay. Previously, I determined to bring food, fruits and home cooked soup for her hospital stay but I could not. All I could do was short visits once a day. From Tuesday through Friday I was sleeping 16-19 hours a day. It was sleep, drink some soup and back to sleep. I couldn't send Joshua to school. With myself knocked out, there was little time or energy to worry and tremble about a dying wife. My fever broke on Friday and the following day I taught Sound Engineering at a Subang church. By Sunday I developed rashes which confirmed I had dengue as well. The following day, Monday, Joshua came down with fever and a few days later he had rashes as well. In 3 weeks the whole family came down with dengue fever.

Jacqlyn's turning point came on Saturday, July 19. Her palette count started rising in the afternoon. By Monday, July 21, she was transferred back to normal ward and was discharged the following day. The family took almost a month to recover and gain back strength from this ordeal. I suffered from tiredness and depression for 2 weeks since my fever broke.

In retrospect, Jacqlyn came so close to death without the family realising or feeling it. I know if I had not been knocked out I would have been very worried. Life and death is in our Father's hand. God alone is able to bring us out of the valley of the shadow of death. Once again, there is power in corporate prayer and a God whose wisdom transcends above the workings on man. All glory to God and thank you members of Praise City Church for your care and support.

Tim. L S.O.A

How To Deal With The Rapid Increase In Innovation by Joseph Lalonde

Blink and another innovation has passed you by. You might even be like Blockbuster Video or Blackberry and crumbling as we speak.

All because innovation came and you weren’t ready.

Know what I’m saying? Innovation is moving at an ever increasing pace. This leaves many businesses struggling to play catchup. Some never do.What Is Innovation?

Leaders can get caught up in trying to define innovation. It’s really simple in concept: Innovation is the process of change.

The innovation may be:

• VHS moving to DVD moving to streaming video
• Mechanical hard drives changing to solid state drives
• Print media moving towards digital media

These innovations provided a slight shift and change in the way we consumed and stored data. Honestly, it’s crazy how quickly these changes happened.

Your business may see different innovations happening. There’s a long list that I’m sure I could never accurately capture so think on some of the innovations you’ve seen and how they’ve affected your business.

How To Deal With Innovation

Your business depends on how you deal with the innovations hitting your industry. You’ve got to be nimble and quick in making the transitions and figuring out if the new innovation is here to stay or will be gone tomorrow.

Blockbuster doubted the power of streaming video and getting a DVD by mail compared to visiting a physical location. Eventually Netflix, Redbox, and other innovative entertainment companies put Blockbuster out of business.

Had Blockbuster taken note of the changes in their industry sooner, there may have been a different story.

Imagine, for a minute, had Blockbuster reacted proactively to the changes in the home entertainment industry. Instead of holding tight to their brick and mortar stores, could Blockbuster have transitioned into a new media powerhouse?

I think it’s possible. They even tried by going the mail order route but took too long to hop in.

Businesses need to be quick in noticing the new innovative trends in their industries. This means keeping an ear to the ground and listening for the faint rumble of change.

Businesses need to be willing to take a chance on innovation. You can’t sit around doing the same thing over and over again. Especially as new technology is emerging. You’ve got to quickly adapt your business to the ever-changing world around you.

Businesses need to be able to form partnerships. Facebook and Google know this. They’re quickly acquiring new technology companies that help expand their technology portfolios. They know by joining with others, they enhance their own work.

Don’t be scared to embrace new innovations (6 Ways To Be An Innovative Leader). They’re going to be what gets your company through the next 5-10 years. Be willing to be the leader your business needs it to be.

What’s that leader look like?

• He is willing to stick his neck out on new techniques
• He is able to sense the shift in the way business is done
• He is looking for the next big thing (How to think bigger today)

Now, go and be that leader!

Question: How do you deal with innovations in your business? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Joseph Lalonde currently serve on the leadership staff for E3(formerly HYM, Haven Youth Ministry), the youth group of Oakcrest Church of God. Joseph have mentored many students and have seen their lives changed through our teachings. Serving on the staff of E3 has been one of the most fulfilling experiences one could imagine.

Joe & his wife recently were asked to become the leaders of a small group of married couples that meet two to three times a month. We are excited to see where this leadership opportunity will bring us.

Great stories include relationships, leaders, adventure, and inspiration. Great stories excite us, intrigue us, and leave us wanting more.

I hope you will notice these aspects on my site and in my life. Enjoy!

Source: http://www.jmlalonde.com/