Been to any good budget meetings lately?

By Fr. Jeff Lorig, Director of Pastoral Services

Budgets are on the minds of many of our pastors and parish and school leaders. We’ve certainly had our share of budget meetings at the chancery too. While most leaders can’t predict a massive economic downturn, it would be unwise not to plan for one. Of course, it probably would have been better to plan for it five years ago rather than right now. Add “emergency funding” to the list of “Things I’ll work on before the next pandemic.”

1. Budgets Clarify Things

While painful, this round of emergency budget planning hasn’t been a total loss. The real fruit of budget conversations is how very clarifying they can be. They clarify:

• Organizational priorities and values
• Individual priorities and values
• What’s really essential
• Who’s really essential
• Team dynamics and trust levels
• Knowledge and appreciation of what other departments and their team members do

I’m happy to say that the Pastoral Vision and Priorities remain the priority of the Archdiocese of Omaha. It is driving our decisions. What’s driving your budget decisions lately?

2. Welcome the Scrutiny

It has become painfully clear that many both inside and outside the chancery don’t actually know what our Pastoral Services teams do. It reminds me that as leaders we not only have to scrutinize our own work, but we have to allow and welcome others to do the same. I used to be a cranky pastor who complained about the chancery. Now I’m a cranky priest who works in the chancery. God is hilarious. I was one of the priests who constantly questioned the value and purpose of our Pastoral Services – and still do. Would anyone notice if these offices existed or not? What I’ve learned since working here is that everyday I get to work with some of the most faith filled, Jesus loving, Church loyal, Kingdom impassioned, smart, self-aware, leaders I’ve ever met and a budget meeting helped clarify this for me.

Okay, they’re great people, but are they effective? Do their services actually add value to our parishes?

3. What Do You Guys Even Do?

Money will be tighter than ever in the next couple of years. Because of this, people feel a little freer to ask the question, “What do you guys even do?” It’s hard to answer this question in a few sentences even if you do regular check-ins. Maybe budget time is the best time to review job descriptions and ministry objectives to see if they’re aligned with the overall vision of your organization. The question prompted me to create a list of services offered by our Family Life Office and Office of Evangelization and Catechesis, which I’ll review with them during this emergency planning.

4. Healthier Conflict

Believe me, there’s plenty of healthy, but uncomfortable conflict around these budget and priority questions everyday in our offices. I’d rather have unhealthy conflict than no conflict at all. You can always apologize if you step over the “unhealthy” line, but progress will never happen when we avoid the discomfort. When we avoid conflict altogether, we never reach the full potential of our team. The best way to get better at conflict is to practice even if you stink at it. Even Michael Jordan missed a few layups. I would recommend, however, not waiting until budget time to have these crucial conversations. Sometimes the most important result of budget planning is not the budget, but an honest assessment of the health of your team.

Join us Friday, May 1 at 3:30 PM

EquipCast 12: The Ideal Parishioner – It’s not who you think.

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