Alban’s Response to The Economic Situation
Although we had been paying attention all year to worrying signs about the economy—especially the impact of high gas prices and the collapse of the housing market—we still weren’t sure what to expect when we began to construct our business plans this Fall. Enough uncertainty had been introduced to make us reluctant to continue to claim a growth strategy, and when the liquidity crisis hit the news in mid-September, it became increasingly evident that this would not be a passing concern.
Everyone was suddenly very worried about the economy; we were especially uneasy about its impact on congregations because the crisis hit right in the middle of pledge season.
- How would that impact congregational budgets?
- How would it then impact congregational spending on Alban products and services?
The answer, of course, is not yet known, but it did seem necessary to construct contingency plans and to develop a strategy that it made it clear to congregations that we would be there for them and with them through what could be a difficult time.
It seems important at this time to demonstrate to congregations that we are an adaptive organization that adjusts to changes in the world that affect them. So, the current economic circumstance presents both a challenge and an opportunity.
One challenge is to continue to generate sufficient revenue to allow the institute to continue to pursue its mission with energy.
One opportunity is to demonstrate to congregations that we are not just trying to sell them a programmed approach, but rather that we are an organization that can work with them to address their most pressing issues in new and effective ways.
When the economic situation began to threaten to turn a downturn into a true crisis, we felt that we needed to reach out to our constituents. We expected that they were searching for ways to understand the role they could play in responding to the situation. And we felt that a failure to do so could threaten our relevance to those who look to us for leadership. At the same time, we did not want to do anything to exacerbate a sense of panic. We decided on the following initial actions:
- Focus a series of Alban Weekly newsletters on helpful approaches to congregational leadership in uncertain times. One of these elicited this response from a pastor in Wisconsin: “This was an excellent word in today’s worried times and we will use it as a bulletin insert and the story in our preaching this weekend. I love getting the weekly newsletter. Your organization seems to know just how to assist pastors at every step of the changing journey. Thank you!”
- Knowing that our consultants have a wealth of wisdom to share with leaders, but that their work is often focused on one congregation at a time, we organized a webinar with Alice Mann and Susan Beaumont on “Ministry and Mission in Uncertain Times.” Almost 100 connections (some with more than one person) from around the country heard Alice and Susan share approaches and processes to help congregations remain focused even when they don’t know what is ahead. The cost of the webinar was $25 per connection
- We created a blog at www.AlbanRoundtable.org to allow those who participated in the webinar and others to share with us and each other their concerns and approaches to the circumstances. We offer a collection of relevant resources at the site as well.
- We are creating a downloadable document containing helpful articles from past issues of Congregations to offer more insights (and create some sales).
- We will be offering follow-up webinars in the months to come.
- We are working to create a special issue of Congregations that focused on ministry and mission in uncertain times.
One truth we have recognized in this work is that that many of the congregations with which Alban works were not suddenly thrust by recent events from a position of certainty to one of uncertainty. Many have been dealing with uncertainty for some time. The current circumstances provide for us and them an opportunity to learn from approaches that have been under development for some time.
We invite you to share with us your experiences in the face of the economic situation we all share, especially the ways you have chosen to respond to the shifting needs, resources, and opportunities you face.
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