SMART Goals for Good Churches

by William Cowles

In the business world, SMART Goals (Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-Framed) are widely used to keep projects focused, on track, and to give them the best chances of ending successfully. The model has been around in business for years – because it works. It works in churches, just as well.

Good churches rarely happen by accident. Even when they do emerge spontaneously and serendipitously, it takes long-term goal-setting, planning, and a high level of execution to maintain vitality and growth. Over the long haul, good churches distinguish themselves by setting and obtaining yearly goals.

If your church needs help with its annual goals, the SMART Goals model is an easy way for you to involve both professional and volunteer lay leaders in the planning and implementation process. The SMART Goal model can help you take worthy dreams and turn them into working plans, and you don’t even need advanced degrees in management. 

Here’s a typical church goal that illustrates how to work the SMART Goals model into any church’s yearly goal planning:

• Typical Goal: Increase worship attendance in 2014.

Increasing worship attendance always is a high priority – it means more people are hearing God’s word; more are getting connected to share the journey with others; more are engaging in opportunities to serve community needs; and, more are becoming more Christ-like. All good. 

But, how many times have faithful, well-intended church leaders written down goals such as that – maybe even published them in the newsletter, preached them on Sunday, and posted them on bulletin boards – and then left them to live or die on their own? Too many. 

Now here’s the same weak goal expressed as a SMART Goal:

S – Specific: To increase the combined average weekly attendance by both members and visitors/guests at MyChurch’s three Sunday services by 50%.

M – Measurable: Weekly worship service totals will be accumulated from applicable sources and combined into a monthly report that compares current with year-ago totals. Adults, youth, and children will be counted separately; as will members and guests.

A – Actionable: Pastors will create quarterly sermon series that support generating interest in worship attendance. Staff and Ministry Team Leaders will develop resources and discussions that support the series themes.Communication media will feature the sermon themes.

R – Realistic: Seasonal swings in attendance patterns are to be expected, based on school calendars, holiday seasons, and individual/family travel. As such, weekly, monthly, and quarterly trends will be tracked only against year-ago totals.

T – Time-Framed: First Quarter (Jan-Mar) – 15% overall increase; Second Quarter (Apr-Jun) – 10% overall increase; Third Quarter (Jul-Sep) – 10% overall increase; Fourth Quarter (Oct-Dec) – 15% overall increase. Year = 50% overall increase.

Can you see MyChurch reaching their goal? Does it sound as though SMART Goals are more than just goals? Do they sound a bit like Action Plans, or at least the framework for an Action Plan? Absolutely. SMART Goal planning forces you to think about the why, how, who, where and when.

Developing SMART Goals is harder than making a wish list. It takes more time. It takes more involvement, more communication, more planning. And, when you do that hard work first, the chances are far greater that you’ll accomplish more of your goals.

In 2014, the Good churches are going to be the SMART churches!