Many United Methodist church leaders face challenges to achieve church sustainability. There is limited research that examines the leadership strategies that have been successful in ensuring sustainability. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Virginia United Methodist church leaders concerning leadership strategies to enhance church sustainability. The study’s conceptual framework consisted of Bass and Avolio’s full range leadership model and Lewin’s three-stage change model, which were used to interpret leaders’ experiences with implementing change by adopting effective leadership styles. The study population comprised United Methodist church leaders who held positions as Virginia Conference bishop, district superintendents, and pastors. Face-to-face, semistructured interviews with 10 participants and subsequent member checking was the data collection method. Thematic analysis of the data enabled the identification of findings that addressed the research questions, which relate to leadership strategies implemented to enhance church sustainability, and their effectiveness. The three themes that emerged from data analysis showed that church leaders used the following strategies to enhance church sustainability: 1) change the leadership culture, 2) encourage youth participation, and 3) develop strong stewardship and capital campaigns. The implication of this study for positive social change is church leaders’ greater understanding of effective strategies to enhance church sustainability and how to implement them. Church leaders could contribute to social change by implementing strategies to increase and sustain church membership and attendance, thus improving quality of life and the economy through church sustainability.
Adu-Gyamfi, Y. (2025). A Study of Pre-Christian and Christian Africa and Environmental Sustainability: A Reflection for the Church in Africa. E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, 6 , 1585-1594. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.20256823
Arenas, F. J., Connelly, D. A., & Williams, M. D. (2018). Developing Your Full Range of Leadership. Air University Press.
Asumeng, M. A. (2014). Managerial Competency Models: A Critical Review and Proposed Holistic-Domain Model. Journal of Management Research, 6, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.5296/jmr.v6i4.5596
Barna Group (2016). The Economy’s Impact on Churches: Congregational Budgets (Part 1 of 3) . https://www.barna.com/research/the-economys-impact-on-churches-congregational-budgets-part-1-of-3/
Basford, T. E., Offermann, L. R., & Behrend, T. S. (2014). Please Accept My Sincerest Apologies: Examining Follower Reactions to Leader Apology. Journal of Business Ethics, 119, 99-117. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1613-y
Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (1994). Improving Organizational Effectiveness through Transformational Leadership. Sage Publications.
Bergman, M., Bergman, Z., & Berger, L. (2017). An Empirical Exploration, Typology, and Definition of Corporate Sustainability. Sustainability, 9, Article 753. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9050753
Ceptureanu, S. I., Ceptureanu, E. G., Bogdan, V. L., & Radulescu, V. (2018). Sustainability Perceptions in Romanian Non-Profit Organizations: An Exploratory Study Using Success Factor Analysis. Sustainability, 10, Article 294. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020294
Davis Jr, A. P. (2021). Effective Decision-Making Strategies that Support Long-Term Sustainability in Nondenominational Churches . Doctoral Dissertation, Walden University. https://www.proquest.com/openview/dea8d102ab4b2afcdd2bafa97f8e8be2/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y
De Baerdemaeker, J., & Bruggeman, W. (2015). The Impact of Participation in Strategic Planning on Managers’ Creation of Budgetary Slack: The Mediating Role of Autonomous Motivation and Affective Organisational Commitment. Management Accounting Research, 29, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mar.2015.06.002
Engelberg, J., Fisman, R., Hartzell, J. C., & Parsons, C. A. (2016). Human Capital and the Supply of Religion. Review of Economics and Statistics, 98, 415-427. https://doi.org/10.1162/rest_a_00582
Grandy, G. (2013). An Exploratory Study of Strategic Leadership in Churches. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 34, 616-638. https://doi.org/10.1108/lodj-08-2011-0081
Hall, R. D., & Rowland, C. A. (2016). Leadership Development for Managers in Turbulent Times. Journal of Management Development, 35, 942-955. https://doi.org/10.1108/jmd-09-2015-0121
Hayek, M., Williams, W. A., Taneja Jr, S., & Salem, R. (2015). Effective Succession of Social Entrepreneurs: A Stewardship-Based Model. The Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship, 20, 93-111. https://doi.org/10.9774/gleaf.3709.2015.ap.00008
Hussain, S. T., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M. J., Hussain, S. H., & Ali, M. (2018). Kurt Lewin's Change Model: A Critical Review of the Role of Leadership and Employee Involvement in Organizational Change. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3, 123-127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jik.2016.07.002
van Ingen, E., & Moor, N. (2015). Explanations of Changes in Church Attendance between 1970 and 2009. Social Science Research, 52, 558-569. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2015.04.004
Jimenez, B. S. (2013). Strategic Planning and the Fiscal Performance of City Governments during the Great Recession. The American Review of Public Administration, 43, 581-601. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074012451051
Kiger, M. E., & Varpio, L. (2020). Thematic Analysis of Qualitative Data: AMEE Guide No. 131. Medical Teacher, 42, 846-854. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159x.2020.1755030
Kroeck, T. (2023). Mobilising Towards Environmental Sustainability—Challenges and Chances for Churches in Germany. Verbum et Ecclesia, 44, Article 2701. https://doi.org/10.4102/ve.v44i1.2701
Lewin, K. (1947). Understanding the Three Stages of Change. Harper & Row.
Lourenco, I. C., Callen, J. L., Branco, M. C., & Curto, J. D. (2014). The Value Relevance of Reputation for Sustainability Leadership. Journal of Business Ethics, 119, 17-28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1617-7
Luederitz, C., Caniglia, G., Colbert, B., & Burch, S. (2021). How Do Small Businesses Pursue Sustainability? The Role of Collective Agency for Integrating Planned and Emergent Strategy Making. Business Strategy and the Environment, 30, 3376-3393. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2808
Magezi, V., Moyo, I., & Nanthambwe, P. (2024). Need for Continuous Leadership Training on Sustainability of United Baptist Church of Zimbabwe. In die Skriflig , 5 8 , 1-9.
Mintzberg, H., Lampel, J. B., Quinn, J. B., & Gholshal, S. (2003). The Strategy Process. Pearson.
Mwita, K. M. (2022). Factors Influencing Data Saturation in Qualitative Studies. International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science , 11, 414-420.
Paulen, K. (2021). The Role of Leadership within Nonprofits . https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=goal-17-partnerships
Pearse, N. J. (2011). Effective Strategic Leadership: Balancing Roles during Church Transitions. HTS Teologiese Studies, 67, 980-987. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v67i2.980
Phipps, A., & Burbach, M. E. (2010). Strategic Leadership in the Nonprofit Sector: Opportunities for Research Authors. Journal of Behavioral & Applied Management, 11 , 137-154.
Pillow, M. (2018). Servant Leaders Making a Difference . In United Methodist Church Virginia Annual Conference.
Robert, D., & Scott, D. (2011). World Growth of the United Methodist Church in Comparative Perspective: A Brief Statistical Analysis. Methodist Review, 3 , 37-54. https://methodistreview.org/index.php/mr/article/view/48
Schoemaker, P. J. H., Heaton, S., & Teece, D. (2018). Innovation, Dynamic Capabilities, and Leadership. California Management Review, 61, 15-42. https://doi.org/10.1177/0008125618790246
Shin, J., Taylor, M. S., & Seo, M. (2012). Resources for Change: The Relationships of Organizational Inducements and Psychological Resilience to Employees’ Attitudes and Behaviors toward Organizational Change. Academy of Management Journal, 55, 727-748. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2010.0325
Slappy, L. (2019). Strategies for Not-for-Profit Sustainability . Doctoral Dissertation, Walden University. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/6766
Tauni, M. Z., Fang, H. X., & Iqbal, A. (2017). The Role of Financial Advice and Word-Of-Mouth Communication on the Association between Investor Personality and Stock Trading Behavior: Evidence from Chinese Stock Market. Personality and Individual Differences, 108, 55-65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2016.11.048
Tjosvold, D. (2014). Reflecting on Reviewing: Applying Conflict Management Research. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 35, 1079-1092. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.1964
Wellings, M. (2014). Renewal, Reunion, and Revival: Three British Methodist Approaches to “Serving the Present Age” in the 1950s. Methodist History , 53 , 1-23.
Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in Organizations (8th ed.). Pearson.
Zampelli, E. M., & Yen, S. T. (2017). The Impact of Tax Price Changes on Charitable Contributions to the Needy. Contemporary Economic Policy, 35, 113-124. https://doi.org/10.1111/coep.12177