Leadership Models

If you have been a part of many churches (or corporations for that matter), you recognize pretty quickly that there are many different models for church leadership. I'm not even talking about church governance... I'm talking about church leadership. Churches have various ways of "getting things done," and most of them find at least some anecdotal support in Scripture. Here are some of the ones I think are most popular: 

The Hero Model:

There is a primary leader that everyone within the organization looks to. He is the gatekeeper for vision, direction, and change management. He is also the "face" of the organization. It works well when the Hero is a godly leader, but can be catastrophic when he falls, dies, or retires.  James seems to have been this kind of key leader in the Jerusalem Church (Acts 15:13-21). Moses was certainly this kind of leader, at least initially (Exodus 18). 

The Team Model: 

Two or more leaders share responsibility as the leader of the organization, something like Siamese twins. They lead together, and are seen as co-equals although they may serve different specific functions. Without one of them, the church/organization would lose its heartbeat. This works well as long as the team works in complete unity and humility, and as long as the leaders complement each other. However, errors in communication, challenges in perception, and confusion from subordinates can cause this leadership style to falter. Paul seems to have been involved in the Team Model a lot; with Barnabas (Acts 13-15), and Silas (Acts 16-17). 

Bottom-Up Leadership: 

The leadership is done by those involved in the organization at the bottom levels as much as the top levels. This is more than just servant leadership; it reflects a more congregational approach where everyone has a say in major decisions. This works best in small organizations where people are able to be intimately involved and are therefore able to make decisions with the big picture in mind. It fails when the vision leaks, or when the organization gets so big the "average" person is unable to know the big picture. Certainly the apostles worked this approach in the early days immediately following Christ's ascension into heaven (Acts 1:12-26).

Those are just three models, but they seem to be the most prevalent. Two questions: (1) Are you aware of others?  (2) Which do you feel is most effective in leading a church overall? They all have biblical precedent; which one is the most practical? Again, not in overall governance - that is a discussion for another day. Which model is best for managing the day-to-day operation and execution within an organization or church?