In a company, business, or church, the chain of command refers to levels of authority from the top position, such as CEO, owner, or pastor down to upper and mid-level supervisors and then to front line workers. Hierarchal organizations institute a chain of command structure to improve communication, supervision, problem solving, efficiency and effectiveness at all levels. In fact, rank... Continue Reading
Before every commercial airplane takes off a flight attendant reviews various safety reminders. One of those is how to use the oxygen masks should the cabin depressurize. Passengers are reminded to always put their own masks on first before attempting to help others. The rationale is obvious, if you don’t first ensure your own safety you won’t be able to... Continue Reading
With change permeating the church, evolving work environments, and the needs of next generation employees, maximizing the performance of staff is more important than ever – for both employee satisfaction and church effectiveness. Unfortunately, Gallup Surveys indicate just one in five employees strongly agree their performance is managed in a way that motivates them to perform outstanding work. Further, millennial... Continue Reading
The primary purpose of conducting an exit interview is to identify opportunities for improvement within the church and staff culture. A well designed exit interview will allow you to see patterns in feedback from departing staff, understand the reasons people are leaving, and identify actions that can be taken to avoid future loss of valuable employees. Unfortunately, most churches miss... Continue Reading
Pre-employment screening is a vital component of a comprehensive church staff hiring process. Pre-employment screening can make the difference between a successful and an unfortunate hire. A thorough pre-employment screening process includes both reference and background checks. What is Included in a Reference Check? A reference check is when an employer contacts a job applicants previous employers, friends, associates, schools,... Continue Reading
When a staff member has difficulty assimilating into a new church culture, we often reference the dissonance as a “fit” issue. And, increasingly we see more emphasis being placed on “fit” during the hiring process. I have found it helpful though to further differentiate into “fit” and “fit in” factors. For purposes of this discussion, “fit” related factors are more... Continue Reading
The breadth of responsibilities for the typical Executive Pastor makes it difficult to briefly describe the position’s job duties. The pithiest description I’ve heard is “the Executive Pastor does everything the Pastor can’t do, won’t do, and shouldn’t do, and if did do, we’d be in big do.” Aside from witty maxims, analogies can be most helpful. The analogy of... Continue Reading
Following World War II, English historian, C. Northcote Parkinson wrote a well-known book, Parkinson’s Law: The Pursuit of Progress, where he ridiculed the excesses of government bureaucracy. Parkinson cited as an example the 5,000 employees supporting 5,000 English Navy vessels during the war and the same number of employees supporting only 500 vessels following the war. Parkinson’s “Laws,” though satirical,... Continue Reading
The staffing structures of many Southern Baptist Churches has been influenced by the philosophy of W.A. Criswell, Pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas (1944-1991). Dr. Criswell was known to employee numerous Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary students and graduates to oversee very narrow and specific age demographics. Criswell was said to have set recruitment goals for church staff based upon... Continue Reading
Much is being written about the evidence that leaner church staffs result in increased numbers of volunteers. For some it appears the verdict is in and they are prepared to declare unequivocally that too many staff negatively impacts volunteerism. My problem with this assumption, besides my own experience to the contrary, is summed up in the “post hoc, ergo propter... Continue Reading
In last week’s post, Where Are You On The Leader Engagement Continuum?, we looked at the symptoms of too much, too little, too early, and too late leader engagement with subordinates. This week we examine the causes of ineffective leader engagement and the behaviors that lead to appropriate and timely leader engagement with those they supervise and lead. Causes of... Continue Reading
One of a church leader’s continual challenges is knowing when and how much to engage with their employees, volunteers, or teams. Leader engagement is the face to face or transmitted interactions and involvement with those they lead, and falls on a continuum from low to high, and from too early to too late. Much like the concept of situational leadership,... Continue Reading
Jim is a Church Organizational Leadership and Management Coach, Consultant and Trainer. Throughout his career Jim has demonstrated a passion for showing Pastors and Ministers how to use organizational tools for church and personal growth and health.
More About Jim“For I may be absent in body, but I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see how well ordered you are and the strength of your faith in Christ.” Colossians 2:5