Before you ask your congregation to make a significant financial commitment, it helps to know what your congregation is thinking.

“How much do you think we can raise?”

That’s usually one of the first questions I hear when a church begins talking about a capital campaign.

And it’s an important question. But it’s not the first question I want to answer.

Before we start talking about how much money a congregation might raise, I want to know something more basic: Is this congregation ready to undertake a capital campaign?

Do people understand the vision? Are the leaders on the same page? What concerns are out there? Is there enthusiasm for the project, or are people simply going along because nobody wants to be the one who says no?

That’s what a capital campaign readiness study is designed to help a church understand.

What Is a Capital Campaign Readiness Study?

A readiness study is a period of listening and assessment that takes place before a church launches a capital campaign. The purpose is not simply to determine whether the church can raise a particular amount of money. It is to help the congregation understand whether it is ready to undertake a campaign, what might need to happen before it does, and how the campaign should be structured if it moves forward.

That means looking at more than financial capacity. We want to know whether there is a clear and compelling vision, whether church leaders understand and support that vision, how members feel about the proposed project, what concerns or objections are likely to arise, whether there are unresolved issues within the congregation, who is likely to provide campaign leadership, and whether the proposed campaign goal is realistic.

Those are not questions you can answer by looking at a spreadsheet. You have to talk to people.

Why Do Churches Do a Readiness Study?

The temptation when a church has a big project in front of it is to start raising money immediately. Sometimes that works. But a campaign is a significant undertaking for a congregation, and mistakes made early can have consequences for years.

A readiness study gives the church a chance to slow down long enough to understand what it is getting into. It can help answer a very practical question: Are we ready to do this now?

Sometimes the answer is yes. Sometimes the answer is yes, but there are a few things we need to address first. And sometimes the answer is no. That last answer can be disappointing, but it can also be incredibly valuable. Finding out that you’re not ready before you’ve spent months campaigning for a project is a whole lot better than finding out halfway through the campaign.

What Happens During a Readiness Study?

The exact process varies from church to church, but I generally begin by learning as much as I can about the congregation and the proposed project. That means looking at the financial information, understanding the scope and cost of the project, talking with church leadership, and getting a sense of the congregation’s history.

But the heart of the process is conversation.

I typically conduct confidential interviews with the pastor, key leaders, and a representative group of members of the congregation. The people I talk with are encouraged to be candid. I want to know what they really think, not what they think they are supposed to say.

I’ll ask about the proposed project, but I’ll also ask broader questions. What do you love about this church? What do you think the church does particularly well? Where do you think it struggles? What excites you about the future? What concerns you? If the church undertakes this project, what do you hope it will make possible?

Sometimes I’ll hear things that nobody has said in a leadership meeting.

That’s important.

Why Confidential Interviews Matter

This may be the most important part of a readiness study. People will sometimes tell an outside consultant things they won’t tell their pastor, Session, board, or campaign committee. That doesn’t necessarily mean they are trying to undermine the church. Often, they simply don’t want to create conflict. They may have a concern that feels uncomfortable to raise in a room full of people they know, or they may disagree with the proposed project but don’t want to be the person who says so publicly.

A confidential interview gives people some room to be honest, and honesty is useful. If twenty people are worried about the same thing, I’d rather know that before the campaign begins. If people don’t understand why the church needs a project, I’d rather know that before we start asking them for money. If there is an old conflict sitting underneath the surface, I’d rather find it early. And if people are genuinely excited about the future of the church, I want to hear that, too.

A readiness study isn’t just about finding problems. It’s about finding the congregation’s energy, too.

What Are We Really Trying to Learn?

There are several questions wrapped up in a readiness study, and some of them have little to do with money.

Is the vision clear?

A church may know exactly what it wants to build and still have trouble explaining why it matters.

“We need a new fellowship hall” is a project. “We need a place where our congregation and our community can gather, where children can learn, where meals can be shared, and where our ministry can grow” begins to describe a vision. The difference matters because people give to things they care about. Before we ask them to give, we need to know whether they can see what the project will make possible.

Is the leadership ready?

A campaign needs more than a pastor who is enthusiastic about the project. The Session or board needs to understand it, key lay leaders need to be willing to participate, and there needs to be enough agreement about the direction of the church to give the campaign a reasonable foundation.

That doesn’t mean everyone has to agree about everything. It does mean that the people responsible for leading the congregation need to be able to move forward together.

What does the congregation think?

This is where the interviews become particularly useful. A leadership team can be very excited about a project and still be surprised by what they hear from the congregation. Maybe people think the project is too expensive. Maybe they don’t understand why it is necessary. Maybe they love the project but aren’t convinced the timing is right. Maybe they have another idea entirely.

Those things aren’t necessarily reasons to abandon a campaign. But they are things you need to know.

What level of support might be possible?

This is the part people usually have in mind when they hear the word “feasibility.” How much might people give? What gifts might be available from the congregation? Who might provide leadership gifts? Is the proposed campaign goal within the congregation’s reach?

Those questions matter. But they are only part of the picture. A church can have the financial capacity to conduct a campaign and still not be ready to conduct one. That’s why I prefer to talk about readiness rather than simply feasibility.

Readiness Study or Feasibility Study?

You’ll hear both terms. Some consultants use “feasibility study.” Others use “readiness study.” There can be some differences in how different consultants define the terms, so it’s worth asking what a consultant actually means when they use either one.

I tend to use readiness study because I think it better describes what we’re trying to learn. We’re certainly interested in financial feasibility, but we’re also interested in leadership, vision, congregational support, timing, communication, and the overall health of the campaign environment.

The question isn’t simply, “Can we raise the money?” It’s “Are we ready to ask our congregation to do this?”

What Happens When the Study Is Finished?

A good readiness study should give the church something more useful than a thumbs-up or thumbs-down. It should help the congregation understand what it has learned. You should know where there is enthusiasm and where there are concerns. You should have a clearer sense of the strengths and challenges of the proposed campaign, along with recommendations about what needs to happen next.

Sometimes that means moving ahead with a campaign. Sometimes it means making some changes to the project or the way the vision is being presented. Sometimes it means doing some additional work with the congregation before beginning a campaign. And occasionally, it means deciding that now is not the right time.

All of those can be successful outcomes of a readiness study.

The point isn’t to get a consultant to tell you what you want to hear. The point is to find out what you need to know.

A Readiness Study Isn’t a Mini Capital Campaign

One misconception I sometimes encounter is that the readiness study is essentially the first stage of the fundraising campaign. It isn’t. The readiness study is about listening and learning.

You aren’t trying to convince people to give. You’re trying to understand what they think. That’s an important distinction. If you spend the entire study telling people why the project is wonderful, you aren’t really conducting a study. You’re already campaigning.

The campaign comes later. First, listen. Then decide what you’ve learned. Then determine what needs to happen next.

What Makes a Good Readiness Study?

For me, a good readiness study comes down to a few things.

People need to be able to speak honestly. If everyone thinks they’re being evaluated or that their comments will get back to the pastor, you won’t hear what you need to hear. The study also needs to look at the whole picture. Financial capacity matters, but so do leadership, vision, history, timing, and congregational relationships.

And the consultant needs to be willing to tell the church things it may not want to hear. If the answer is “not yet,” that’s the answer the church needs.

Finally, the study should leave the congregation better prepared for whatever comes next. Even if the church decides not to launch a campaign immediately, it should have a better understanding of itself and its future.

Before You Ask, Listen

A capital campaign asks a lot of a congregation. It asks people to make significant financial commitments. It asks leaders to give their time and energy. It asks the church to talk honestly about its priorities and its future.

That’s why I think listening should come before asking.

A readiness study won’t guarantee that a campaign will succeed. It won’t make every disagreement disappear, and it certainly can’t tell you exactly how much every person will give. What it can do is give you a much clearer picture of the congregation you’re asking to make this journey with you.

And that’s a pretty good place to start.