Ten C’s of Leadership Team Building

One of the privileges of leadership is choosing your own leadership team. In principle, you should not work with people on your team you did not choose. Though we must be open to accept those God sends us, and though others may expect us to “inherit” team members by virtue of the fact that they were there before us, in the end, a pastor or movement leader should carefully choose their own team.

You have the final say in who joins your leadership team, and you should exercise that God given responsibility with care, courage and wisdom.

We all want to work with great people. But how do we go about selecting a leadership team? Far too many of us accept the first person that is eager to join us, without taking time to probe deeper.  Don’t let desperation for help drive your team building!

Effective team leaders define the key roles they need filled on their team, but more importantly, they have a clearly thought through set of qualifications in mind for team members.

• Courtesy - Does the prospective team member know how to respect other team members? Can they listen, learn and adjust their convictions? Do they have emotional intelligence (healthy self-awareness, self-control, self-initiative, social skills, healthy empathy)? Are they collaborative in their approach to decision making?

• Chemistry - Do they have good chemistry with the team leader and other team members? Are they likeable and can have a good time with those they work with?

• Competence - Do they have the skills necessary to add strength to the team? If they don’t, are they willing to learn the skills needed? Do they demonstrate the communication skills necessary to carry out their assignments?

• Character - Are they a servant? Do they show integrity? Are they reliable and do they keep their word? Team members have to be responsible and show initiative.

• Core Values - Are they aligned in their core values with the rest of the team and the church/organization/movement? Have they demonstrated their core values by the fruit of their life?

• Courage - Are they willing to take risks? Are they a person of faith who is willing to take on new challenges, should they be called for? Are they creative and innovative?

• Capacity - Do they have the emotional capacity for the responsibility? Can they handle stress and pressure? Can they handle the load of added work that serving on a team requires?

• Culture - Do they work well with people of other cultures? Are they sensitive and adaptive to different cultural contexts?

• Calling/Commitment - What are their spiritual gifts and do they complement the team? Do they have a call from God to serve in this regard? Does this role match their leadership gifts? Do they demonstrate commitment to the vision of the church/organization/movement? 

• Clear Expectations - Have you discussed your expectations and theirs? Do they understand the role of the team and are they clear about what is expected of them in terms of time, resources, and responsibilities?