Director of Leadership Development

The Director of Leadership Development’s primary role is to identify, support, and equip lay leaders in service of congregational mission. Through workshops, retreat facilitation, and consultation with congregational leaders, Doug builds leaders’ capacity to nurture healthy, vital congregations. He creates leadership development curriculum and trains teams of skilled lay leaders to provide support and service to sister congregations.

Don’t hesitate to call or write Doug if you have questions about or need consultation on these vital areas of congregational life:

• developing and implementing leadership development strategies in your congregation
• discerning mission and vision in all areas of congregational life
• using mission and vision to fuel growth and vitality
• building Unitarian Universalist identity
• lay leadership as a spiritual practice
• identifying leadership gifts among congregational members; nurturing new leaders
• helping your congregation connect to Unitarian Universalism in neighboring congregations, in New England, and the wider world

Doug is in his 6th year working with congregations as the Director of Leadership Development, first in the Metro New York District and currently in the Massachusetts and Clara Barton Districts of the UUA.  During this time he has worked with almost 50 congregations spread across 6 eastern states, with sizes ranging from 7 to 700 members, and with issues ranging from ministerial transitions and startups to mission development and conflict resolution.  

He honed his skills during 20 years of organizational development work with human service nonprofit agencies and city and county government in Columbus, Ohio.  These skills were augmented with training from Gil Rendle, Peter Steinke, Loren Mead, Alice Mann, and Alexander Grashow.  He is versed in Family Systems Theory, Appreciative Inquiry, Change Theory, Congregational Size Transitions, Adaptive Leadership, UU Identity Formation and Covenant Formation.

For the last 3 years he has led the group that determines the workshops for General Assembly and now leads the New England Regional Leap of Faith Initiative. Recently he was recruited to sit on the Skinner House Editorial Board.  

His current interests focus on spiritual leadership for the laity, congregational renewal for the 21st century, and UU identity formation.