TERRITORIAL STRUCTURE UPDATE
Change when it’s needed Lieut-Colonel Dean Pallant presents the July update on the work of the Structure Co-ordination and Design Group THE Structure Co-ordination and Design Group (SCDG) has been developing an initial implementation plan while waiting to hear how International Headquarters and the SATCo Board respond to the ‘direction of travel’ that was approved by the Cabinet earlier this month. We will continue to update you, but we are now into the summer months and understandably the pace will slow while people take well-deserved holidays. One section of the report to IHQ and SATCo focused on the important question: ‘Why is change needed now?’ The biggest ‘why’ we do what we do is because we are part of God’s mission to the world. Our longing is for people, communities and nations to flourish and we do this through our mission priorities: sharing the good news of Jesus; serving without discrimination; making disciples of Jesus, caring for creation; and seeking justice and reconciliation. That’s the mission we want to deliver even more effectively across our territory, and the SCDG has been exploring, with your input, how we can better achieve this goal.
WHAT WILL CHANGE LOOK LIKE? We will prioritise local mission flourishing. Salvation Army people need systems that help them do their work. There have been concerns for years that the administrative burden placed on corps is too great – which was also confirmed during the Listening Phase of the project. People want to be released from this burden and focus on their local mission and for any support and oversight to help not hinder mission. Our Army must help people flourish. Change is a constant in life. However, the speed of change in the past decade has been remarkable. These days, large corporations are only business planning for the next 400 days because three to five-year plans can quickly become out of date. This context impacts our own work. We need processes, structures and an organisational culture that are adaptable, organic and flexible – without losing our mission focus to love God and love others. Therefore, we need to streamline and integrate our processes. We will empower people for mission. After a turbulent few years, many people are tired in our communities and in our
IS CHANGE REALLY NEEDED RIGHT NOW?
Yes! It’s important we act now because:
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We must prioritise local mission flourishing. This is God’s mission and we know our loving Heavenly Father wants people and communities and The Salvation Army to flourish. We need to help people flourish and we do this by focusing on our five mission priorities (see left). The people delivering The Salvation Army’s mission have told us they find many of our current processes and structures a burden. We must integrate and streamline the way we work. Our costs for support and oversight must be kept realistic, prudent and effective so we can spend/ release more money on local mission delivery. We must ensure that we have the data to prove that donations from the general public, as well as our loyal members, are always being used effectively.
territory. Some corps life is fragile as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic. Integration is one of the desired outcomes for this work, and what better time to strengthen The Salvation Army by increasing interaction, integration and collaboration between all expressions of our mission within a geographical region to improve our support of each other in the work? We must be good stewards of our people and financial resources. While finances haven’t been the driver for organisational change, we must, of course, be good stewards of the resources we have been entrusted with. Mission and people have come first because we know that God will meet our ‘needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus’ (Philippians 4:19). We do not approach this task with a mentality of scarcity but with the promise of abundance. The greatest risk for the future of this territory is a lack of covenanted disciples of Jesus who are called to serve through The Salvation Army – whether that is through officership, soldiership, adherency or local officership. Therefore, ensuring
that we have processes and structures that help people serve God through The Salvation Army now is critically important. Equally, we must make sure that our people are well cared for. Previous organisational changes have been extremely painful for many dedicated, faithful Salvation Army people.
HOW CAN I BE INVOLVED? While much of the preparatory work has now been completed by our Divisional Design Groups and Service Design Groups, you can still tell the SCDG about how mission is flourishing where you are. The SCDG continues to be grateful to those who have contacted us by emailing transformation@ salvationarmy.org.uk. We read and respond to every message. Please do continue to pray for the project as it begins to move into the implementation stage. Thank you for your prayers and continuing patience as we work through this process. LIEUT-COLONEL DEAN PALLANT Secretary for Communications THQ
Salvationist 30 July 2022
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