Learning leading to effectiveness: Two studies (Evangelism, Operations)

Two studies came to my attention today, one because of my role on a team of operations leaders around the country, the other because of using twitter and Google Reader. Both studies have results/conclusions that are fascinating, encouraging, and challenging...

Study #1 - Brian Barela shared a link on his blog to an evangelism study that the Mid-Atlantic region of Campus Crusade has done. It is long, but certainly worth reading...especially for staff. Here is the purpose of the study:

How can we increase the evangelistic satisfaction and effectiveness of Campus Crusade for Christ staff so that more lost students are presented with the gospel in culturally appropriate, positive ways and more students decide to place their trust in Christ?

I like that objective. One of my favorite parts so far (haven't finished it yet) were the results from a focus group they did with a group of students that were self-identified non-Christians. Their insights are enlightening, and generally match what I have experienced during my time on campus as a student and staff member. I'm looking forward to reading the rest and perhaps adding more thoughts in a future post.

Study #2 - Once a month, Operations leaders from around the US have a web/phone conference. I'm the new guy on the team at this point (15-20 people) so I'm trying to be a learner and figure out where and when to contribute. Today, one of our Operations leaders in Orlando shared the results of an "ethnography study" that was done to...

Gain a perspective on the Campus Crusade field experience so the organization can design systems to meet users’ needs.

Systems are used by field staff and volunteers and encompass things like finance, events, HR, communication, and professional development.

There were some conclusions presented and I would say they all line up with my experience as field staff:

The Campus Crusade ministry leader (staff, volunteer, student) is...

- independent and entrepreneurial when creating solutions

- determined to learn and thrive - and appreciates help from peers

- struggling to keep up with changes in technology

- mobile, and closely connected to constituents - but information is not

- supportive of organizational responsibility - but procedural complexity makes compliance difficult

There are a lot of sub-points and examples under each, along with next steps, but this paints the broad strokes. So encouraging to see, as the "new guy" on the team, that we're thinking about the right things. Figuring out the solutions to problems that were identified will be a large part of our job in the near future.

Summary: I'm looking forward to the challenge and the role I get to play as an Operations leader to translate study #2 into greater impact and effectiveness in areas related to study #1: Jesus known and God glorified on the campuses of the NW, US, and the world.