Page 43 - The Church of Ireland Apologetic for Mission?

chapter three
implementation deficit disorder
The Commission on Ministry gets things done because people are interested and motivated. It sets out tasks.
I value tradition ... it gives me comfort.
I don’t engage with (the organisation) because it is not relevant to what I do.
Diocesan meetings are a barren experience.
The Church of Ireland prefers to tweak things rather than going for the big decisions.
Church of Ireland systems are cumbersome and are mostly about buildings.
When identity is built around status, structures and roles then changes to these are deeply unsettling ... people don’t like change.
We are a well-resourced heritage society with a modest religious affairs department.
Protestants have prided themselves on keeping their heads down and are happy there.
The Church has painted itself into a corner of failure and is happy there.
The Church of Ireland is funny in what it values and is enthrall to.
Culture has changed and the church didn’t speak into it.62
62 Comments from miscellaneous interviewees
63 Presentation to Social Workers Adult Mental Health Conference (25/04/14)
64 Church of Ireland Gazette (24/11/07)
65 p 168 Hope Against Darkness
66 Ibid
Implementation Deficit Disorder is a term used by well-known Irish Management Consultant, Eddie Molloy.63 It describes the struggles that any organisation seeking to deliver on a priority can face. Identifying obstacles is not simply offering cynicism, which is as easy to do as it is de-motivating.
Entrepreneur Jerry Greenfield (Co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s) says, “One of the key roles of leadership is to tell your own people the truth about the way things really are on the ground”.64
Naming an obstacle gives the opportunity to address it. Richard Rohr says, “I am not saying there is no place for criticism, but there is the kind that opens possibility and the kind that merely spews and increases negative energy”.65
What are the obstacles that the Church of Ireland will face as it seeks to make good on a commitment to mission, or indeed any other major priority? In other words what are the potential causes of Implementation Deficit Disorder?
Molloy uses the image of an iceberg when describing the challenges that cause Implementation Deficit Disorder.66 He
talks of the visible part of the iceberg as representing visible challenges that can include structures, core processes, funding and skills. The invisible or hidden part of the iceberg represents the cultural challenges such as values, beliefs, attitudes, prejudice and mindset.
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