The Called to Flourish Podcast

Robert Wachter
  • 4.7 (31)
  • Management
  • Biweekly

The CALLED TO FLOURISH Podcast from Best Christian Workplaces equips and inspires Christian leaders to transform their workplaces into beacons of hope where faith comes alive, people and organizations flourish, and the Gospel shines through flourishing culture.

  1. 1d ago

    A Strong Church Reputation Can Hide Staff Culture Problems — Tim McConnell, First Presbyterian Church

    A church can have a strong reputation and a long history while the people serving on its staff quietly wear down. When departures come as surprises, the harder question is whether leaders can see what their staff is experiencing. In this conversation, Tim McConnell, Lead Pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs, describes stepping into a 154-year-old church and finding deeper staff culture concerns the longer he looked. He explains why he asked his elders to prioritize staff health, what an outside, anonymous Best Christian Workplaces Employee Engagement Survey showed, and the steps that followed, including conflict training and a short weekly gathering for the whole staff. According to the church's survey reports, disengagement fell from 28.9% in 2023 to 2% in 2026. For pastors and ministry leaders, it is a candid look at how to measure and improve church staff health. You'll Gain Insight On: Why asking "are the right people staying or going?" can tell you more than overall turnover How an outside, anonymous survey can show what leaders can't see from their own chair Why healthy conflict and cross-team communication take deliberate practice What a lead pastor says it takes to begin: humility, patience, and outside help 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/unhealthy-church-staff-culture-how-to-spot-and-measure-it

    A Strong Church Reputation Can Hide Staff Culture Problems — Tim McConnell, First Presbyterian Church

  2. Oct 19

    You Say You Want Innovation. Your Culture May Want Excellence — Giselle Jenkins, Best Christian Workplaces

    Most leaders will tell you they want innovation. The harder question is what happens inside an organization when a new idea challenges how things have always been done. Giselle Jenkins, a Senior Consultant at Best Christian Workplaces, explains how tradition, founding DNA, and a deep commitment to excellence can quietly shut down new ideas, even in organizations that sincerely want to change. She walks leaders through why conflict is easier to navigate while an idea is still taking shape, how innovation moves from creativity to testing to implementation, and why starting with small mistakes builds a team's capacity for change. For leaders who sense their people have stopped offering ideas, this offers a practical guide to what to examine first. You'll Gain Insight On How to recognize when tradition, rather than mission, is driving your strategy Why innovation and excellence can pull against each other, and how to tell which your culture values most Why inviting people in early means facing disagreement early, and why that is worth it How to build your team's capacity for change by starting small and learning from mistakes 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/how-to-encourage-innovation-in-christian-led-workplaces

    You Say You Want Innovation. Your Culture May Want Excellence — Giselle Jenkins, Best Christian Workplaces

  3. Oct 5

    From "Barely Healthy" to One of America's Fastest-Growing Churches — Greg Anderson, Traders Point Christian Church

    Traders Point Christian Church's staff culture was once, in Greg Anderson's own words, "barely healthy." Since then, they've built a healthy, flourishing workplace culture — and the church itself has become one of the fastest-growing in the country. Executive Pastor Greg Anderson makes the case that those two facts are directly connected. He traces the turning point back to the humbling season after COVID, when an Employee Engagement Survey revealed a real disconnect: leadership thought the church's direction was clear, but staff didn't share that clarity. Greg discusses what his team changed in response, work that moved Traders Point into Best Christian Workplaces' flourishing range and earned it recognition as a Certified Best Christian Workplace. For any leader hoping to grow without it costing the staff who carry the mission, this conversation is worth the listen. You'll Gain Insight On: What a post-COVID survey revealed about the gap between leadership's clarity and staff's clarity Why a flourishing culture is what makes fast growth sustainable rather than destructive What it looks like to move a staff culture from barely healthy toward flourishing What leaders should protect first when growth accelerates You'll Gain Insight On: What a post-COVID survey revealed about the gap between leadership's clarity and staff's clarity How defining specific behaviors, not just values, shapes hiring, training, and accountability Why a flourishing culture is what makes fast growth sustainable rather than destructive What leaders should protect first when growth accelerates 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/how-traders-point-became-one-of-americas-fastest-growing-churches

    From "Barely Healthy" to One of America's Fastest-Growing Churches — Greg Anderson, Traders Point Christian Church

  4. Sep 21

    Your Leadership Can Look Healthy and Still Be Running on Empty — Mindy Caliguire, Soul Care

    A leader's metrics can be strong and their mission moving forward while their soul quietly erodes underneath — and most leaders miss it until it becomes a crisis. This conversation with Mindy Caliguire, co-founder and CEO of Soul Care, unpacks why external success so often hides internal depletion, what the early warning signs actually look like, and what it means to lead from overflow instead of constantly recovering to baseline. You'll Gain Insight On: The warning signs of soul depletion most leaders miss or ignore Why mission drive and soul care aren't meant to be opposing forces The difference between resting enough to function and leading from overflow A simple framework — a page, a person, a plan — for taking action 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/leadership-burnout-soul-care-for-christian-leaders-mindy-caliguire

    Your Leadership Can Look Healthy and Still Be Running on Empty — Mindy Caliguire, Soul Care

  5. Sep 7

    Toxic Culture Doesn't Mean Bad People — It Means Nobody's Watering the Garden — Phil EuBank, Menlo Church

    Most leaders assume a toxic culture means bad people — but the leaders who turn it around know it usually means nobody's been tending the garden. Leaders inheriting a toxic culture face a familiar temptation: fix it fast, or avoid naming what's actually broken. Phil EuBank, Lead Pastor of Menlo Church, has led two church staff turnarounds — one in Colorado, one currently underway at Menlo Church— and shares what actually moves the needle versus what just feels like progress. This conversation covers honest measurement, difficult transitions, and the daily discipline healthy culture actually requires. You'll Gain Insight On Why culture assessments fail when leaders treat them as a checkbox instead of a growth tool The four-part framework for identifying where your team members stand on cultural change How to inherit a toxic culture without scapegoating the leaders who came before you Why full transparency with survey results builds more trust than a curated summary 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/toxic-culture-doesnt-mean-bad-people-it-means-nobodys-watering-the-garden

    Toxic Culture Doesn't Mean Bad People — It Means Nobody's Watering the Garden — Phil EuBank, Menlo Church

  6. Aug 24

    Your Staff Is Already Using AI. Do You Have a Policy? — Dustin W. Stout, Magai

    Most leaders think they still have time to figure out their AI policy. Dustin W. Stout says that clock ran out the moment their staff opened ChatGPT for the first time. Christian leaders are facing a technology shift moving faster than most policies can keep up with. In this episode, Dustin W. Stout — CEO of Magai and a former youth pastor — talks through why AI adoption inside organizations is already happening below the surface, why the extremes of fear and over-reliance both miss the point, and what it actually looks like to lead well through a moment this disruptive. You'll Gain Insight On Why "we haven't decided on AI yet" is already a decision How to think about AI as a tool rather than a threat or a savior What Dustin's own path from youth ministry to founding Magai reveals about calling and timing Where AI can free up a leader's time for the relational work only people can do 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/your-staff-is-already-using-ai.-do-you-have-a-policy

    Your Staff Is Already Using AI. Do You Have a Policy? — Dustin W. Stout, Magai

  7. Aug 10

    He Didn't Ask for a 360. He Chose What to Do With It. — David Corry, Liberty University

    Not every leader gets to choose when growth arrives. David Corry, General Counsel for Liberty University, didn't choose the timing — but what he did with the opportunity is the real story. When Liberty University committed to investing in its leaders' growth, David Corry was one of the executives given the chance to go through a full 360 assessment. In this episode, David shares why he chose to lean fully into the process — engaging honestly with feedback instead of simply going through the motions. His story offers a real look at what humility, coaching, and sustained growth look like in practice for a leader who'd spent nearly five decades in the workforce without this kind of opportunity before. You'll Gain Insight On: How to respond well when change is required, not requested How to turn feedback into a workable monthly growth plan instead of an overwhelming list What it takes to recognize and interrupt decades-old leadership habits How coaching and honest self-assessment work together, even for veteran leaders 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/he-didnt-ask-for-a-360-he-chose-what-to-do-with-it

    He Didn't Ask for a 360. He Chose What to Do With It. — David Corry, Liberty University

  8. Jul 27

    Women Aren't Leaving Over Pay — They're Leaving Because No One's Listening — Joanna Meyer, Denver Institute for Faith & Work

    Most Christian leaders believe they value women's full contribution — but the structures working against that belief are often invisible until someone measures them. Leaders in Christian-led organizations are facing a quiet retention problem: women disengaging not over pay, but over voice, access, and influence. This episode unpacks how ordinary policies — job descriptions, meeting habits, mentorship norms — can unintentionally exclude women from decision-making, and why leaders often don't see it until someone brings the data. You'll Gain Insight On: Why structural bias hides inside well-intentioned policies What BCW's engagement data reveals about how women experience culture differently Practical personal, relational, and structural habits that close the gap Early signs of quiet disengagement leaders often miss 👉 Subscribe to Called to Flourish and share this conversation with a fellow leader. Access full show notes, resources, and transcript at: https://workplaces.org/podcast/women-arent-leaving-over-pay-theyre-leaving-because-no-ones-listening

    Women Aren't Leaving Over Pay — They're Leaving Because No One's Listening — Joanna Meyer, Denver Institute for Faith & Work
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The CALLED TO FLOURISH Podcast from Best Christian Workplaces equips and inspires Christian leaders to transform their workplaces into beacons of hope where faith comes alive, people and organizations flourish, and the Gospel shines through flourishing culture.

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