438: From Feedback to Flourishing: Building a Unified Team Around Mission and Culture

What happens when a ministry fully aligns its strategy with its mission? In this episode, hear how Summit Ministries President Dr. Jeff Myers and author of Truth Changes Everything, and CFO Jeff Wood are building a culture of trust, collaboration, and engagement—all while equipping the next generation of Christian leaders.

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In this episode:

Mission & Impact of Summit Ministries

• Founded in 1962 to equip young leaders with a biblical worldview and the courage to speak truth into every area of life. (06:08)
• Over 1 million young adults trained through curriculum and in-person programs. (06:30)
• Graduates have gone into a wide range of fields: politics, business, science, education, agriculture, etc. (06:44)
• Focus: shaping truth-tellers who can influence culture through leadership grounded in faith. (07:00)

Example of a Transformed Leader

• Caleb Ragland, a Kentucky soybean farmer and Summit grad, is now President of the American Soybean Association. (07:06)
• Demonstrated the ability to engage in respectful public discourse, even when it meant disagreeing with political allies. (07:44)
• Serves as an example of Summit’s impact in unexpected sectors like agriculture. (07:57)

Why Summit Partnered with Best Christian Workplaces

• Jeff sought a biblically-aligned survey tool after previous experience using employee engagement tools. (08:43)
• Summit began using the Employee Engagement Survey in 2019. (09:10)
• High engagement: 100% employee participation each year. (09:38)

Key Practices for Building a Healthy Workplace

• Leadership reviews survey results and staff comments annually. (09:23)
• Staff-wide workshops held to identify improvement areas. (09:51)
• “Dot voting” used to prioritize ideas—employees choose top issues to focus on. (10:00)
• Leadership creates annual engagement commitments based on staff input. (10:22)
• Accountability: Each year, commitments are reviewed and measured against new survey results. (10:38)

Tangible Changes from Survey Feedback

• Improved communication about leadership decisions. (11:00)
• Developed and now regularly updates a strategic plan. (11:07)
• Launched continuous leadership training. (11:16)
• Built a robust onboarding process. (11:23)
• Enhanced PTO and holiday policies. (11:33)
• Formed a Leadership Advisory Council for broader decision-making input. (11:42)

Collaboration and Ownership Culture

• Collaboration is seen as essential to organizational health and effectiveness. (13:40)
• Summit teaches students that influence is built on truth + relationship—applied internally too. (13:49)
• Staff workshops have become the most valued meetings of the year, fostering participation and ownership. (14:30)

Tools to Understand Working Styles

• Tools like Mind Styles and 6 Types of Working Genius are used to enhance team dynamics. (15:02)
• Leadership team complements each other with different strengths (e.g., enablement vs. invention). (15:19)
• Recognizing these differences builds trust and synergy within the team. (15:42)

Strategic Alignment Through Collaboration and Shared Vision

• Vision and Values Refresh: The leadership team updated the organization’s vision and mission statements, along with a renewed focus on core values. (16:45)
• Monthly Staff Chapels: These gatherings provide both spiritual alignment and relational connection, including time for informal conversations and celebrating team achievements. (16:51)
• Intentional Cross-Functional Teams: During early growth stages, many roles were unfunded, so cross-functional teams filled the gap—this helped break down silos and foster collaboration across departments. (17:40)
• Distinct Program Areas: The organization manages two very different core functions—publishing and in-person programs—that require intentional effort to collaborate effectively. (18:01)
• Collaborative Leadership Team: Vice Presidents operate with strong trust and collaboration, making operational decisions in Dr. Jeff’s absence and supporting each other’s areas as needed. (18:36)
• Flexible Resource Allocation: The team demonstrates a shared commitment to the vision by trading off priorities and reallocating resources (e.g., postponing events) to fund what’s most critical at a given time. (19:05)

Long-term Commitment to Flourishing Culture:

• Summit Ministries has pursued workplace flourishing consistently since 2019. (19:48)

• The ministry had to pivot during COVID due to its reliance on in-person programs. (19:50)

Staff Investment and Compensation Philosophy:

• Summit hires mission-driven staff but refuses to exploit that motivation. (21:04)

• Offers generous benefits, including access to housing at fair-market rates. (21:36)

• Ensures competitive pay by conducting annual salary surveys. (23:59)

• Provides annual total compensation statements to staff to highlight the full value of employment. (24:14)

COVID Response as a Catalyst for Innovation:

• First all-staff Zoom meeting during COVID became a turning point. (22:07)

• Emphasis on boldness and faith rather than shrinking back in crisis. (22:25)

• Program team created 200+ ideas in one session, resulting in a successful virtual conference format that expanded Summit’s global reach. (22:51)

Technology and Process Improvements:

• Ongoing investment in infrastructure (e.g., AV equipment, accounting systems) to support staff and student experience. (24:46)

• Emphasis on steady, manageable improvements rather than overwhelming change. (25:12)

Focused Action Planning:

• Initial years included too many (e.g., 5) action items; now limited to 1–2 key initiatives per year for greater impact. (25:28)

• Some past efforts (e.g., Lunch and Learns) were fun but had limited impact. (26:04)

• Sustainable and effective changes are now integrated into the culture. (26:16)

Scalable Practices for Smaller Organizations:

• Small to midsize organizations can see culture shifts faster than large, global ones. (27:16)

• Summit (50–60 employees) has seen measurable impact within 1–2 years. (27:33)

• Leverages outside resources and expert guidance (e.g., from Best Christian Workplaces consultant Giselle Jenkins). (28:14)

• Used books and external expertise (e.g., “Lead, Develop, Care”) to support leadership development and employee performance conversations. (28:00)

Importance of Biblical Truth in Leadership Development:

• Dr. Jeff’s book Truth Changes Everything responds to cultural belief that truth is self-defined. (29:55)

• Majority of young adults struggle with purpose, anxiety, and depression. (30:56)

• The book emphasizes the need for objective, biblical truth as a foundation for meaning and leadership. (31:35)

• Encourages helping the next generation see their identity and purpose through a biblical worldview. (37:02)

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