The roles and pressures of committees

One of the classes I took while studying at Christ Church was Money & Soul of the Global Market. The class was taught by Bishop Peter Selby, Bishop of Worcester. There was a lot of great material from the class that I'll be coming back to as I think it relates to the work we are trying to do as Servant-Leaders.

However, I want to point out a lecture that Bishop Selby gave in May at Westminster Abbey. The title of the lecture was Structures of Disdain - and how they might be redeemed. It deals with two rather complex issues he was part of in his role within the Anglican church.

In particular, Bishop Selby is concerned about the role that a specific committee plays in making decisions that affect a large group of people, especially when that large group is not represented within the committee. Let me share just a brief quote from the lecture:

Pressures to circumvent, abbreviate or even eliminate processes that lengthen the time it takes to reach decisions are everywhere to be seen. Government dislikes delay - unless it is itself in charge of the delay.......From urgency come structures of disdain.

It is an oustanding lecture that I highly encourage you to take the time to read. I'm anxious to hear some of your thoughts.