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Nathan Kirkpatrick: Are churches counting what counts?
Beyond average Sunday attendance, there are other ways to measure the role of churches in the community. Things like footprint, partners, impact and calling also tell a story.
Evaluation & assessment
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Jeffrey Kaster: Why I love program evaluation
Yes, many people think evaluation is a chore. But done right, it can be an astonishingly effective tool in building excellent ministry, writes the director of a Youth in Theology and Ministry program.
Inquiry and curiosity are at the core of an approach to evaluation that changes the tone and character of the questions we ask. iStock / Golubovy
Susan M. Weber: Reframing evaluation
Effective evaluation is about learning from one’s work, not judgment. It is a process that must be in place from the beginning of a project and be done in community, writes the director of the Evaluation & Communication Project at the Center for Congregations.
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Gretchen E. Ziegenhals: The how of asking good questions
Christian leaders spend their workdays asking questions, but few are trained in how to ask good ones. Good questions are powerful tools for building relationships, assessing needs, creating an atmosphere of inquiry and imagination, and charting a way forward.
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Dave Odom: Name your mission, develop strategies and then evaluate impact
Clarifying mission is just the first step. Leaders must then align strategies with the desired impact, writes the executive director of Leadership Education at Duke Divinity.
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Nathan Kirkpatrick: How to encourage constructive, honest feedback
Many churches and institutions ask for feedback yet signal in subtle or not-so-subtle ways that they only want to hear what they’re doing well, writes a managing director at Leadership Education at Duke Divinity.
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Dave Odom: Measuring ministry impact takes years
Your supporters might want to see immediate results. But your role as an institutional leader is to focus conversations around long-term impact and vision.
L. Roger Owens: The better way to 360-degree feedback
Leaders of all stripes need feedback -- the good, the bad and the ugly. But such honesty is possible only in the context of covenant, says a professor of leadership and ministry.
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RIP, average attendance
That number means much less today because the definition of an active congregation member has shifted. So, what numbers should we track now?
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Howard Bloom: Ask hard questions
New programs and interventions often seem sure to work. But success is rare, and evaluation is critical to understanding whether and why efforts to help underserved people are in fact effective, says an evaluation research methodologist.