I am a RAVING fan of a company named Cogun led by CEO Bill Couchenour.  Cogun was formed in 1970 in response to a need for an organization committed to assisting churches with the challenges and opportunities of expansion. Cogun works with architectural firms to design and build unbelievable church facilities. In the past 40+ years, they have successfully designed and built over 660 church buildings.
As a member of Injoy Stewardship Solutions, my primary contact at Cogun is a great friend named Richard Chancy. Richard and I initially starting serving churches together ten years ago when we both worked for John Maxwell.
If you are a pastor or church leader who is thinking about building a new facility, relocating, expanding, renovating, or doing a multi-site in the next five years, I recommend you contact Richard early in the process. You can connect with him either on Twitter or his great blog www.ChurchConstructionBlog.com.
Pastors, the following are the effective practices I have seen him do as he serves church leaders.
- He Deeply Loves The Local Church – This speaks to his heart. Jesus died for the local church. You cannot effectively serve church leaders unless you deeply love the local church.
- He Is Generous – Richard is very proactive in helping churches save money allowing those resources to be funneled back into ministry. Furthermore, he goes into great detail helping church leaders understand the cost of building so they can make God-honoring decisions moving forward.
- He Is Proactive – I have always been impressed that Cogun does not do a “hard sale”. Richard, as well as their entire team, likes to engage churches very early in the decision process. They want to help church leaders ask the right questions about facilities and know what to expect well in advance.
- He Is Relevant – Richard is up-to-date on all current technological and church trends. Therefore, church leaders always have the best information available when making strategic decisions.
- He Connects Facilities To Ministry - It is all about people. The purpose of buildings is to more effectively facilitate ministry. Richard understands ministry and life-change. Therefore, he has a great ability to understand the individual ministry desires of a church and help their vision become reality.
- He Works Well Within A Team – As a project manager, Richard is a leader of leaders. You will be assured that the architects and contractors he oversees will perform at a cost-effective, high level.
- He Creatively Finds Solutions – Nothing in ministry is easy, especially new construction. Richard is smart and a great listener. He has the ability to listen to a church leader and come up with out-of-the-box solutions that result in on-time, improved facilities.
- He Has Great People Skills – Richard becomes a friend and valued advisor to every church he serves. Anyone who serves churches understands that the most effective partnerships go beyond a church-vendor relationship.
- He Is Accessible – When serving church leaders, you must prioritize the relationship and ensure them that they are not alone. Thanks to frequent on-site visits, cell phones, Skype, and other forms of communication, you will always feel like you have a trusted friend during the process.
- He Follows Through Well – Great leaders never quit. And the people who serve them do not have the option of quitting as well. People like Richard stay with the leaders throughout the entire process.
Once again, you may or may not use Cogun on your next project. However, you will want to speak to a Highly Successful individual like Richard and have him be a part of your decision process before making your final call. He will add immeasurable value to the process.
If you have used Cogun before, please feel free to share you testimonial about your experience with this great organization.
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