Lausanne World Pulse – Urban Articles – Learning from Ants: Missionary Teams and the Pyramid Model
By Justin Long Dell does this by measuring every aspect of its operation. “When you have basically zero inventory, it’s like draining a swamp—all the stumps start to show,” says Kevin Rollins, Chief Executive Officer of Dell. “The problems reveal themselves, and you can take immediate corrective action to fix them.”
Dell is a “metrics-obsessed organization.” Company engineers viewed videotapes of the assembly of computers, constantly refining the construction of the computer models until today a trained technician can assemble one in three minutes.
Dell also measures how well its suppliers do their job. It rates every supplier on its ability to compete and posts their scores daily on a private website. Future business is awarded based on past performance.
The Pyramid Model and Missions
It might be possible to rapidly build up mission agencies focused on core niches. For example, we might build mission agencies targeting each of the major world regions (Southeast Asia, South-Central Asia, Western Asia, North Africa, West Africa, East Africa, etc). Or, we might build up agencies targeting major issues: sports partnerships like KidsGames, development agencies like Compassion or Food for the Hungry, or agencies focused on persecution or education issues. We might create agencies focused on particular people group clusters (like the Horn of Africa peoples, the Iranian peoples or the Malay peoples). We might build up agencies for megacities or for particular religions (as Frontiers focuses on Muslim peoples).
By aggressively aiming for growth, and measuring and responding to every aspect of the mission, an agency could grow rapidly to fit its particular niche. They could attract people who agree with the core mission, and funding that could help them develop. However, there are some problems with this approach.
- Pyramids have a very narrow focus. Pyramid-like missions do not see much outside their interests. For example, I have had some good friends who work with a global network of Christians who are absolutely, passionately, sometimes overwhelmingly focused on children. This group has partnerships with other ministries to meet the needs of their target group—but I doubt it would do much work with the elderly. They are outside its narrow focus.
- Pyramids do not go out of their way to partner. The narrowness of their focus and their purpose means pyramid organizations are fairly self-sufficient. They often invite others to come partner in what they are doing, but rarely go out of their way to seek partnerships with organizations that have different goals. When they do, the partnerships are usually pretty formalized and important.
- Pyramids are fixed to their place and their niche. This is an advantage that lends them stability and endurance, but it is also a danger. When you build a structure of steel or stone, chances are you will end up staying right where you are. An organization can grow stagnant and dated. World trends can pass it by, and it can become ineffective. In the long run, the pyramids of Egypt are graves—monuments to kings long dead. If they are not careful, “pyramid” organizations run the risk of dying, too.
There is a third model, but I will warn you up front: it is a little buggy. We will look at it next month.