OQM for churches and Christian organisations
Find out what carries your community – and what holds it back.
For care organisations, ministries, schools and congregations: OQM shows strengths and the minimum factor in your collaboration. Business or Christian: we choose the version that fits your team.
- For all Christian denominations
- Christian version: 80 questions on 8 characteristics
- Confidential, no assessment of individuals
Christian and non-profit organisations working with OQM
“For the first time, I worked with a partner and consultant who understood that it is not only about economic success, but about sustainable, values-based growth.”
Who it’s for
One calling. Different realities.
Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox or free church: your calling, your people and their everyday collaboration matter. Together we clarify which organisational unit and questionnaire version fit your context.
Provisional AI-generated images; not client references.
Does this sound familiar?
So much heart and effort – and still everyday life drains your energy.
Care organisations, ministries, schools and congregations ask a great deal of their teams. Unclear responsibility and friction in collaboration can drain energy alongside pressure on time.
The same few carry everything
A handful of committed people keep things running and reach their limits.
GoalService that fits people’s gifts
Many programmes, little fruit
New activities keep being added, but energy is spread across too many fronts.
GoalEnergy flows into what carries
Leaders caught between expectations
Every group has its own idea of what matters most right now.
GoalLeaders and community pull together
Retreat decisions, unchanged routine
Good intentions fade because nobody knows where to start.
GoalAnswers turn into steps
How it works
Four steps from question to priority.
Discover
In an initial conversation we choose the Business or Christian version and agree the unit, participants, voluntary participation and confidentiality.
Survey
Staff and volunteers answer the 80 questions anonymously on a phone or computer.
Understand
The profile is ready as soon as the survey closes. Together you identify strengths and the minimum factor.
Act and look again
You agree on a few concrete steps. After 10 to 12 months a follow-up survey shows what has changed.
The questionnaire should fit the team, not just the provider.
Care services, ministries and schools include people with different beliefs. You have a choice. A Christian identity does not oblige you to ask personal faith questions.
We clarify language, voluntary participation, confidentiality and reporting first. Questionnaires are not arbitrarily mixed or rewritten. Different versions are not automatically directly comparable.
The example profile above and eight characteristics below illustrate the Christian version. Your preference for the initial conversation does not commit you to a questionnaire.
Why OQM is different
The weakest characteristic sets the limit.
A barrel can only hold as much water as its shortest stave allows. Good programmes help little if people burn out or conflicts go unspoken. OQM finds that shortest stave – your minimum factor.
Instead of working on everything at once, you know where the next step will do the most good.
What OQM looks at
Eight characteristics shape how healthy your community is.
Ten questions per characteristic. They show how staff and volunteers actually experience working together – not whether a programme exists for it.
Characteristic 1 of 8
01 / 08
Empowering leadership
Who could take responsibility if leaders did not have to make every decision themselves?
In the tree: the trunk. It carries and nourishes, but doesn’t dictate where each branch grows.
Sample question · translated from the German version
“The person responsible for my area involves me in decisions that are relevant to me.”
02 / 08
Gift-oriented contribution
Which task fits a person’s gifts, and which continues simply out of habit?
In the tree: the leaves. Each one sits where it catches the most light.
Sample question · translated from the German version
“The tasks I do match my abilities.”
03 / 08
Passionate life of faith
How does our shared spiritual calling connect with the everyday experience of our work?
In the tree: the light. Everything grows towards it.
Sample question · translated from the German version
“The spiritual calling of our organisation motivates me in my everyday life too.”
04 / 08
Effective structures
Which decision or handover process would support the team rather than hold it back?
In the tree: the sap. Water and nutrients reach the places that need them.
Sample question · translated from the German version
“In my team, tasks are distributed so that the work runs smoothly.”
05 / 08
Internalised values & culture
Where can people experience our values in action rather than only in a mission statement?
In the tree: the roots. Unseen, yet everything stands on them.
Sample question · translated from the German version
“The spiritual atmosphere in my team is one of the reasons I enjoy working here.”
06 / 08
Holistic teams
What does our team need, beyond a completed work plan, to remain a supportive community?
In the tree: the branches. Each carries its share; the crown only forms together.
Sample question · translated from the German version
“In my team we trust each other.”
07 / 08
Need-oriented service
Whom does our work serve, and do we listen closely enough to what those people need?
In the tree: the fruit. What the tree produces for others.
Sample question · translated from the German version
“We want to give our best in our respective areas of work.”
08 / 08
Loving relationships
Can someone raise a difficult issue without losing belonging or appreciation?
In the tree: the fungal network between the roots. Through it, trees supply one another.
Which characteristic is the minimum factor in your community?
Arrange an initial conversationSample question · translated from the German version
“In our team, conflicts are resolved in a positive way.”
With each characteristic, another part of the tree comes to life.
A community is healthy when all eight characteristics work together. OQM shows which one needs the most attention right now.
What you get
The right questions. A clear picture of collaboration.
Business or Christian: we choose the instrument for your actual team. The same prices apply as for businesses.
OQM 80 profile in the appropriate version
Eight factors, strengths and the minimum factor for your unit. Questions and factor names follow the agreed version.
Comparison profile
Compare teams, sites or two time points within the same version. Different questionnaire versions cannot simply be compared side by side.
Action Guide
Prioritised steps for the lowest scores – for leadership, teams and staff.
OQM Health, if you need it
The assessment of psychological strain for your employed staff.
Why OQM
“Growth cannot be “made”. But environmental influences that could impair it can be reduced as far as possible. If this succeeds, growth happens.”Dr. Stephan Wesely (1967–2026)Co-founder of OQM International
That is why OQM does not start with yet more programmes, but with the conditions in which people can flourish – with the minimum factor.
Translated from: Stephan Wesely, Dialogisch orientiertes Organisches Qualitätsmanagement (OQM). Doctoral thesis, University of Koblenz-Landau, 2011, p. 38.
FAQ
Questions before taking the first step
Which organisations belong in this area?
Charitable organisations and care, Christian ministries and missions, Christian schools and education, and congregations and local churches. The worldview-neutral Business questionnaire may better fit teams with different beliefs. Choice depends on the actual team, not just provider identity.
Can we choose the Business questionnaire instead of the Christian version?
Yes. A Christian or nonprofit organisation can also choose the worldview-neutral Business questionnaire. The relevant team matters, not just provider identity. This version may better suit care, ministry or education teams with different beliefs. In a congregation, the Christian version may better reflect a shared spiritual calling. We clarify choice, voluntary participation and confidentiality beforehand; questions and results from different versions are not mixed without appropriate review.
How much does OQM cost for churches and Christian organisations?
The same prices apply as for businesses. Use the price calculator on this page to work out your price; the annual package already includes one OQM 80 profile.
Is this only for independent or free churches?
No. We address Christian organisations across denominations, including Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox and free-church contexts. Before starting, we clarify terminology, working practices and questionnaire fit rather than assuming an identical application for everyone.
Are these the same questions as in the business version?
No. The Christian OQM 80 version contains 80 questions across eight characteristics and explicitly addresses gifts, faith, spiritual culture and service. The business version uses different terminology and questions. The choice is clarified before a survey.
Does OQM judge individual people’s faith?
Its purpose is organisational development through dialogue, not a ranking of personal devotion. The questionnaire includes personal faith statements, so voluntary participation, confidentiality and appropriate reporting must be agreed first. OQM does not replace pastoral care, safeguarding or responses to abuse and acute conflict.
Is OQM an NCD product?
No. OQM has historical roots in Natural Church Development but is an independent offering today. We do not present a current partnership or imply that the questionnaires or products are identical.
Does it guarantee more members or particular results?
No. OQM helps organisations consider conditions for collaboration and develop improvements together. Change depends on the context and implementation. Membership growth is not a guaranteed outcome of an analysis.
Can the survey be used in English or Spanish?
This website explains the approach in three languages. The current Christian questionnaire underlying this area is German. Before commissioning, we clarify which approved language version is available and suitable for your organisation.
Intro call
What should work better together in your organisation?
Tell us about your care service, ministry, school or church. We clarify the right unit and questionnaire: Christian or worldview-neutral Business. Please do not send personal faith, health or care information.
Your contacts
