In the past 40 years there have been 3 Shul models in America.
The first wave was big full service Shuls. They were the center of Jewish Life.
Yoing Israels dominated the scene and the OU was originally the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America.
The Shul was were you prayed, socialized and learned Torah.
The second wave was the move away from the big Shuls as central. As Torah learning increased the yeshivos took a big bite out of the Torah centrality of the Big Shuls.
Another factor of the second wave was the desire produce a more customized experience. Some with a more serious davening. Some with a Rabbi who fulfilled the needs of a subset of the Big Shul. These second wave shuls were significantly smaller than the big first wavers.
Now we are entering the third wave where the centrality of Shuls is being replaced by the centrality of the individual with the Shuls trying to fulfill their needs. A more streamlined davening. A better kiddush. A focus on the particular learning needs of the community such as Daf Yomi.
One manifestations of these changes is that many of the big and medium Shuls have diminished attendance as community members migrate to the yeshivos and the more geshmak experiences for Shabbos morning davening.
A second manifestation is the financial structure of the third wave Shuls are centered on bigger donors, contributing a bigger share of the budget and more control of the Shul’s functioning.
A third manifestation is the running of the 1st and 2nd wave Shuls. An aging population and a young population not so interested in volunteering changes the Shul management dynamic.
These changes can be disconcerting to some, but they’re probably here to stay and now the challenge is to tailor the Shul to meet the needs of the diverse group of members. Not a simple task, but I have faith that we’ll find the right path with the proper guidance.