Methodism as a resource for an alternative
Given these limitations of management and leadership under NPM regimes, I now turn to the Methodist Church in the UK as an exemplar of co-created leadership and management of a form that might act as a resource for public sector reform. The data used here is drawn from a two-year study of governance, leadership and management undertaken within the Methodist Church in the UK between 2011 – 2013 (Guerrier and Bond, 2012, 2013). Twenty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted with Methodist presbyters and those who work with them. Further quantitative data was gained through an online survey of 313 presbyters. All respondents have been anonymised through a pseudonym.
The Methodists are the fourth largest Christian denomination in Britain. Founded by John Wesley in the eighteenth century, Methodism is a non-conformist Protestant movement. There are about 5000 Methodist church communities in the UK, organised into circuits and, within them, districts. The key precepts of Methodism have led to the development of a structure which is different from many other established churches. Methodism emphasises egalitarianism, inclusiveness and openness (Clutterbuck, 2011; Methodist Church, 2012) and distinctions between lay members and clergy are minimised. There is an expectation that lay people will take on formal roles in organising, managing and setting the direction of the church at all levels of its operation. In terms of its governance and structural configuration, Methodism embraces a philosophy of organisation that it terms Connexion; the circuit structure is designed to provide a Connexion which supports and holds the Church together (Clutterbuck, 2011). Whilst this structure is complex it is non-hierarchical and for many it is what attracts them to Methodism, as two presbyters told us.
I think what’s particularly…..probably the reason, above all, that I am a Methodist, is the lack of hierarchy in Methodism, and the sense of sharing, and of equal responsibility… (Adam)
… you know, the sense of all being one, all sharing the responsibility for the decisions and, you know, we don’t have the hierarchy above us, you know, imposing things. So that… as I say, I think that, over the years, has reaffirmed why I feel comfortable as a Methodist, and that has led naturally, I think, into my leadership style, and the way I’ve talked with the people in my churches, rather than, sort of talking to them, so much. (Bob)
This in turn, leads the church to work with notions of ‘oversight’ as its primary approach to management and leadership. Oversight, in this context, is a derivation of the Greek word episkope – to keep an eye on what is happening. It is fundamental to Methodist practice that oversight is a shared responsibility between different groups, individuals and formal bodies across the whole church. The ultimate governing body is the Methodist Conference, a gathering of both lay and ordained representatives, which meets every June. A key facet of the exercise of governance and leadership within Methodism relates to the nature of the relationship that presbyters have with the church and the local communities in which they are ‘stationed’ to serve. Leaders often act as stewards or servants, and work with those whom they are serving in a complex relationship that recognises the integrity and egalitarianism in co-creating these relationships. One of the presbyters interviewed encapsulated the complexity of these relationships.
And I think there’s also within the church quite a strange, well, unusual relationship in that, effectively, I’m employed by the congregation and yet in a position of oversight over them, and that’s quite an interesting tension. (Elizabeth)