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| Leadership Network | |
|---|---|
| Name | Leadership Network |
| Formation | 1984 |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | Dallas, Texas |
| Region served | United States, International |
| Leader title | President |
| Leader name | Rick Trotter |
Leadership Network is an American nonprofit organization focused on developing influential leaders among evangelical and Protestant Christian communities. It convenes pastors, church planters, nonprofit executives, and denominational leaders for peer learning, research, and collaborative projects. The organization emphasizes innovation, church planting strategies, cultural engagement, and multiplying congregations through networks of high-capacity leaders.
Leadership Network operates as a convener and think tank among contemporary religious leaders, aiming to accelerate church planting, urban ministry, and mission initiatives. It hosts conferences, peer cohorts, and research initiatives that intersect with figures and institutions such as Rick Warren, Bill Hybels, Saddleback Church, Willow Creek Community Church, Acts 29, and National Association of Evangelicals. Its programs often engage networked partners including The Gospel Coalition, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Cru (organization), Southern Baptist Convention, and seminary systems like Dallas Theological Seminary and Fuller Theological Seminary.
Founded in the 1980s amid shifts in American evangelicalism, the organization grew alongside movements such as the church growth movement associated with Donald McGavran and strategic innovators like Ed Stetzer and Rick Warren. Early decades connected with leaders from North Point Community Church, Redeemer Presbyterian Church (New York City), and denominational renewal efforts in bodies like the United Methodist Church and Presbyterian Church in America. In the 1990s and 2000s it expanded programming to address urban ministry trends exemplified by initiatives in cities like Dallas, Texas, Atlanta, Georgia, New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. The organization’s trajectory intersected with events such as the rise of multisite churches, the growth of parachurch networks like Compassion International, and global mission conferences including Lausanne Movement gatherings.
The organization’s governance combines a board of advisors and executive leadership modeled on nonprofit peers such as Leadership Network (other) (note: name usage restricted) and boards like those of World Vision, Samaritan's Purse, and denominational synods. Membership includes senior pastors, church planters, nonprofit executives, and denominational executives from movements such as Assemblies of God, American Baptist Churches USA, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and independent evangelical networks. Participants come from large congregations like North Point Ministries, Saddleback Church, Lakewood Church, and smaller urban church plants affiliated with networks like Acts 29 and NewThing. The organization leverages partnerships with academic institutions including Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and research centers such as Barna Group.
Major initiatives include peer learning cohorts, church planting accelerators, urban church networks, and leadership summits that feature speakers and collaborators tied to institutions such as Samaritan's Purse, The Navigators, Moody Bible Institute, and Biola University. The group has run initiatives aligned with church multiplication strategies promoted by leaders like David Platt, Tim Keller, and Colin Marshall. It has also convened thematic projects on racial reconciliation alongside organizations such as Sojourners and on global missions in tandem with networks connected to Missions Advancement Program and the Lausanne Movement. Research collaborations with firms like McKinsey & Company and polling organizations like Pew Research Center have informed strategy labs and white papers.
Proponents credit the organization with catalyzing church planting movements, cross-denominational cooperation, and adoption of multisite models in churches associated with Saddleback Church, Willow Creek Community Church, and North Point Community Church. Critics point to potential entanglements with megachurch culture, questions raised by commentators at outlets like Christianity Today, and debates about accountability highlighted in cases involving leaders such as Bill Hybels. Concerns have been raised regarding influence on theological trajectories tracked by scholars at Fuller Theological Seminary, Wheaton College, and commentators affiliated with The Gospel Coalition and Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.
Notable individuals who have participated in or been associated with programs include pastors, church planters, and executives such as Rick Warren, Bill Hybels, Ed Stetzer, Tim Keller, David Platt, Andy Stanley, Craig Groeschel, John Piper, Al Mohler, and denominational leaders from Southern Baptist Convention and Presbyterian Church in America. Other affiliated figures include urban ministry leaders linked to The Urban Ministry Institute, missiologists from Lausanne Movement, and nonprofit executives from organizations like Compassion International and World Vision.
Category:Nonprofit organizations based in the United States