A closed leadership assigns each task and controls all activities. Although managing a business is much different from leading a family or church, some principles prevail in both contexts. Robert Blake and Jane Mouton identify two dimensions of organizational leadership that apply to the growth potential of a church. They argue that the goal is a team effort in which all share a common concern and commitment. Me other extreme is just as common.
Leaders can be so threatened by the winds of change that they develop a closed style of leadership.
Because they do not trust the members, they do not allow congregational meetings, make decisions without input from the members, and stress themes like submission and unity. Such an inward focus will not develop a new generation of leaders. The longer a church goes without new or younger elders, the greater the distance the leadership grows from the congregation and the more the elders bear all the responsibility. This style of leadership frustrates members because they cannot develop or use their gifts. Nance concludes that this situation often leads to a split where the talented members leave or to a revolt against the elders.