Larry Osborne’s Sticky Teams: Keeping Your Leadership Team and Staff on the Same Page is a practical and down-to-earth book on church leadership. Osborne doesn’t just talk theory, he draws from decades of leading a growing church and the lessons he learned the hard way. I appreciate his emphasis on building healthy, unified teams that know how to disagree well. As he put it, “Sticky teams aren’t made up of mindless clones; they’re made up of widely divergent personalities and viewpoints. Their team members often disagree, but they know how to fight fair.”
One of Osborne’s core insights is that “as the board goes, so goes the rest of the church.” He urges leaders to prioritize unity at the top, because if the board is divided, the congregation will soon follow. He also gives very practical advice about team size, meeting rhythms, and even something as simple as the meeting environment. I appreciated his honesty about the challenges of church growth, how moving from a “basketball team” to a “football team” changes the way leaders relate and communicate. Growth brings complexity, and if leaders don’t adapt, frustration follows.
Something I found interesting was his opinion that leadership isn’t about polling the congregation. “Leadership teams have only one question: what does God want us to do?” That clarity helps cut through competing agendas and keeps the mission front and center. Osborne also isn’t afraid to be blunt, encouraging churches to “let dying programs die” and “ignore your weaknesses” while leaning into strengths.
I found this book to be both challenging and encouraging. Osborne provides a roadmap for leading well, staying unified, and making the hard changes churches need as they grow. Sticky Teams is definitely worth reading for pastors, elders, and anyone leading in the church.
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