Tear Down the Silos

I encountered a blog post in my recent social media wandering that advocated integration in business. No…not the George Wallace kind. Rather the “get out of your silo” kind. I think that is a great idea for any leader.

And I think staying in your silo is particularly prevalent in churches.

There ~~is a~~ are several reasons for this, and in many instances, people are not even aware that it is happening, so let me elaborate.

Is this your typical staff meeting?

You meet early in the morning so that you still can get a full day’s work done. You spend time doing personal check-in and have a devotional time (not necessarily in that order). Then it is on to calendar issues, which mostly revolve around shared space, cross-program projects, and unexpected last-minute opportunities. Then it is time for prayer so that you can “get to work.”

My experience is that it is hard to break down silos in a calendar meeting.

OK then… is this your typical quarterly planning meeting?

You ~~meet early in the morning~~ go offsite so that you ~~still can get a full day’s work done~~ won’t be interrupted. You spend time doing personal check-in and have a devotional time (not necessarily in that order). You have lunch. Then it is on to calendar issues, which mostly revolve around ~~shared space~~ advance planning, cross-program projects, and ~~unexpected last-minute opportunities~~ vacation schedules. Then it is time for prayer so that you can ~~“get to work.”~~ can go back to the office to see if there have been any crises develop.

You see my point?

At some level, the only way out of your silo is to talk to each other, and not about calendar.

Here’s my suggestion. Make it a point to walk into every one of your “same level” colleagues’ office sometime in the next 30 days. Then ask the two golden questions:

What is the most important thing you are trying to accomplish in the next _______? (Fill in a time period — I suggest at least “quarter” but personally I would start with “year” — but it does depend upon the person with whom you are talking.)

How can I help?

I’d be willing to bet that by the time you have done this for a couple of weeks, you’ll start getting the same two questions asked back to you.

And isn’t it the point to tear down the silos?

Maybe you’ve got a better idea. If so, I’d like to know what it is. Either way, please leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Ipod shuffle status (What is this?): 4089 (Serendade to Music – Ralph Vaughan Williams) of 7875

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