Ken Blanchard famously says, “Feedback is the breakfast of champions.” That being true, the new BCWI Reader Survey results offers a bowl-full of fresh, practical insights you can begin to apply today.

We asked ministry leaders, including top CEOs, senior pastors and executive directors of Christian ministry organizations throughout the U.S. and Canada, what they wanted to learn more about to improve their workplace culture. Here’s what they said:

Where do you find yourself saying “Yes . . . Absolutely . . . Perhaps . . . Tell me more?”

My initial read on the results:

• No surprise that leaders’ two top-ranked priorities for creating a healthy, flourishing workplace culture were:
  1. Building culture of trust, open communication and fairness
  2. Spiritual leadership development practices
• One eyebrow raised that a whopping 85% of top ministry leaders are active on Facebook on a weekly basis, compared to 54% on the more business-networked LinkedIn.
• Two eyebrows raised that only 30% of top ministry leaders ranked “Inspiring employees with meaningful work” as one of the top priorities for building a flourishing culture. Fact: Research based on our BCWI Employee Engagement Survey completed by 100,000 employees in 700-plus organizations shows that employees place great value and priority on deriving meaning and purpose from life-giving work. It’s an easy and important way to build staff engagement in ministry.
• One last jaw-dropping result: Top leaders are concerned with dealing effectively with poor performers, yet retaining their best performers falls to the bottom of the Wishlist. Our recommendation: An effective talent management approach positively focused on retaining and developing your top talent will provide a framework for dealing with poor performers.

The big affirmation is that the Top 10 Wishlist, above, aligns very closely to our eight essentials for creating a flourishing workplace:

• Fantastic Teams
• Life-giving Work
• Outstanding Talent
• Uplifting Growth
• Rewarding Compensation
• Inspirational Leadership
• Sustainable Strategy
• Healthy Communication

In closing, a personal invitation:

Share the information in this post with your leadership team. Together, ask:

• What outcomes do we want most for our workplace culture?
• What are the questions and challenges that motivate our need and desire to experience these outcomes?

These very questions provide some of the best starting points for creating a flourishing workplace that drives productivity, efficiency and organizational impact.

I welcome your feedback! Please comment below, email me personally, or share your insight with us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.