Rethinking the international agency model in the pursuit of mutual mission sending partnerships with the majority world GUEST POST BY MICHAEL PREST The Challenges of the International Model For all the talk of polycentrism in mission circles today, in international mission organizations, it is often the multinational structure that persists. Internationalization strategies that added sending […]
Guest Post
OM International: The Case for Polycentric Mission
GUEST POST BY LAWRENCE TONG Our task, shared with other groups of Jesus followers, is to profoundly reduce the number of least reached anywhere in the world, making them disciple-makers to their people—the ultimate expression of polycentric mission! Every day, our world becomes more complicated and more difficult for God’s people to engage meaningfully with […]
How “distributed leadership” can help you navigate transformation
The new corporate landscape demands an approach to leadership based on empowering the “inner CEO.” GUEST POST BY JEREMY BLAIN As the already dizzying pace of the digital era continues to accelerate, many leaders have had to scramble to react. They often lag behind, having to grasp with known experience and the vastness of unknown […]
The Medici Effect and Leadership Toward a Polycentric Form of Leadership
BY JOSEPH HANDLEY & DANIEL OSPINA We live in an era of constant change and uncertainty. Countless companies have given up on making long term plans and, instead, work only within a three-year horizon. The speed of technological development, geopolitical changes, and rapidly evolving markets all fuel this trend. However, it would be too easy […]
Who’s in Charge
GUEST POST BY BRENT FULTON When Christians from China take the gospel to other nations, they encounter a double-edged cultural challenge. Not only do they need to adjust to the language and customs of their new host country; they must also negotiate relationships with Christian workers from other parts of the world with whom they […]
Movement Leadership: Embracing Chaord in the Missio Ecclesiae
GUEST POST BY MICHAEL COOPER History seems to repeat itself in a continual cycle of recapitulation. While there is a temptation to think of our particular period of history as unique, a student of the past quickly recognizes common characteristics and patterns that appear familiar across time. The study of leadership theory is no less the case as we […]
Crossover Global: A Case Study in Polycentric Leadership
In preparation for the World Evangelical Alliance Mission Commission Global Consultation (Jan 30 – Feb 3, 2023 in Chiang Mai, Thailand), Jay Matenga wrote:
Book Review: The Covenant Quarterly
Covenant Quarterly 81:2 – https://covquarterly.com/index.php/CQ/issue/view/25/7 Polycentric Mission Leadership – Book Review Joseph W. Handley Jr., Polycentric Mission Leadership: Toward a New Theoretical Model for Global Leadership (Oxford, UK: Regnum Books, 2022), 191 pp., $16.99. BOOK REVIEW BY PETER SUNG Joe Handley describes our world as increasingly complex, disrupted, and challenged, a world hurting for a […]
The Paradigm Shift: From Centralized to Decentralized Models in the Digital Age
GUEST POST BY MATTHEW NIERMANN In the landscape of the Internet’s evolution, we’ve traversed various phases, each marked by distinct characteristics shaping how we interact with digital content. Initially, with Web 1.0, the internet served as a repository of information, where users could only passively consume content.
What is Polycentric Mission?
Summary: The term polycentric mission has become popular. While the term has a more recent origin, the concept can be traced to the inception of the church. In its earliest days, no one place held authority. The West became a Christian center for a millennia, but now we see a return to polycentric Christianity that […]