What Congregations Need to Know About HR Matters

By Ken Godevenos, MBA, CCP, CHRP

Your senior pastor is on holiday in Hawaii. Your children's minister is sick in bed. The music director took the day off...and now he's sitting with his family somewhere in the pews enjoying the service. The youth pastor is off attending a special course. Your seniors pastor isn't here today because he's exhausted from so many visitations lately.

Although all of these things rarely happen in the same week, would you know just how much to tell your people if they do? When it comes to sharing news, the answers vary as much as the churches.

What's the best approach?

In my seminars, I often tell the participants that if they're caught off guard with a question they aren't sure how to answer, the best response is always, "It depends." This is also the proper answer to the question of how much to tell the congregation regarding staff HR matters. What you tell them ultimately depends on several factors: the nature of the item to be communicated, the type or level of staff person involved, the potential audience, the size and personality of your church, and of course, past practice, to name a few. As you can imagine, the matrix of possibilities can be extensive, considering these factors--so, how can we make it simpler?

Make two key decisions. Deciding which action to take in any situation is easier if you first adopt a philosophy on congregational communication with respect to staff matters. To do this, ask some basic questions:

• Is it reasonable to expect the whole congregation to be aware of what the pastoral and other staff are up to?
• Is the main congregation intimate enough with each other to be considered family-like? Or, because of its size, is this feeling reserved for members of individual small groups?
• Is sharing this type of information (especially during a service) likely to have a positive impact on how seekers or other visitors feel about the church?

Depending on how you answer these and related questions, you place yourself somewhere on the communication continuum. Positions range from "totally and aggressively open" to the opposite end of the spectrum: a "strictly on request and need-to-know" basis.

Once you've identified your general philosophy, consider your church's approach to answering the famous "W5" questions: what, where, who, when and why? What should you communicate? Where are the best places to do it? Who is the most appropriate person to communicate it? When is the best time to do it (including any protocols that need to be followed)? And why you are communicating it? (This last question should indicate any action you would like the audience to take, such us sending cards, visiting, praying for the staff member or rejoicing with them.)

Determining which action to take and how to answer these questions are two decisions that should not be made lightly. However, they also should not be decided in such a way that they can't be changed, or even used with a fair degree of flexibility as appropriate. The old adage "Never say never" applies well here.

Communication forms

In today's world, we don't need many reminders that communication involves more than the spoken word. Of course, the required timing and detail involved in a specific communication often helps to decide which tool is appropriate for a given situation. There is, however, one method that I discourage: public prayer. How often have groups been told things about other people or events by listening to someone else pray in public? I've personally heard churchgoers say things like, "I didn't know ___ had cancer/lost his job/had family problems until you prayed. Wow, was I surprised!"

Prayer is a communication with God. It involves praise, thanksgiving and supplication.

Public prayer is collective, with one person acting as a spokesperson. To me, leading people in praise, thanksgiving and supplication for something they didn't know about doesn't make a lot of sense. Public prayers aren't opportunities to save time during public announcements. On the last Sunday night of the year, I attended a service during which the minister asked God to bless the congregation "as we meet together tomorrow night for our New Year's Eve service starting at 9 pm in Fellowship Hall with Doctor so-and-so in charge." Tell your congregation what they need to know, then pray intelligently to God with them as appropriate.

Enemy #1: the "rumor mill"

In most organizations, there are ultimately very few (if any) real secrets. Depending on how "fascinating" it is, the truth eventually gets out. It's human nature. Until the majority of Christians reaches a high level of maturity, churches will always fight the rumor mill.

In one church, the music director handed his resignation to the senior pastor. There were decisions to make. Once key stakeholders were informed, it was decided that the rather large choir should be told at midweek rehearsal, and the congregation would get the news during the Sunday service a few days later.

Although I can't be certain, I'm fairly confident that the majority of the congregation was aware of his resignation before church on Sunday morning. I'm in no way suggesting this was "wrong," but remember that timing is everything and the rumor mill usually runs faster than official announcements. (Just read the newspaper! Ever wonder how so many journalists can be right about a player's upcoming trade? Or about some government official plans to resign or run for higher office?)

In this church's case, knowing that human nature is what it is, the news was bound to "leak." So the reaction to the Sunday morning announcement was quite predictable--and it didn't matter. The decision-makers decided to tell those who needed most to know first and the congregation later. To do this, they had to forfeit the "newsiness" of the Sunday announcement, and I think they made the right decision.

Circumstances for consideration

So far, we've discussed some general approaches to communication, but several of these can benefit from additional comments. Here are some HR issues that most churches encounter, and how to communicate them:

Pastoral vacations. Pastoral vacations are easily communicated. It helps visitors understand when a minister they expect to see isn't around. The congregation could be asked to pray for the safety of the pastor and his family during travel. Disclose the actual destination with discretion, however.

Special care should also be given if the pastor has a lot of vacation available but is taking only one week at a time. Continuously mentioning his leave makes it appear that he's always on holiday.

Illness. Deal with news of illness carefully. Much depends on the severity of the illness as well as the prognosis. Again, the purpose for sharing the news should be to encourage the congregation to pray and to support the family. Do not cause undue alarm that makes church members a burden to the family.

Days off. They aren't a sin, but days off certainly aren't worthy of special mention either--especially if that person is sitting in the pews. He or she will likely answer any questions themselves. And if yours is an "enabling church" (with leadership that empowers others), no one should be such a regular fixture in your services that one week's absence causes immediate concern.

Sometimes these days off are due to excessive, temporary overload of duties. There is no harm in sharing this with the congregation, providing it's evident to all and that the majority would readily approve. In these instances, make sure the individual concerned is a good steward of his or her time the rest of the year.

Special training, assignments at other churches, etc. Circumstances like these are worth mentioning, especially if the training or assignment benefits the church. Letting the congregation know only helps communicate the mission of the church beyond today and the physical walls.

Staff squabbles. There is no basis for publicly communicating existing or potential disagreements between staff members.

New appointments and dismissals. Appointments and dismissals should be communicated right away, the latter with considerable caution and minimum details.

Salary increases, new perquisites, etc. Personal issues like these should never be communicated in a church service. If done at all, communications should be limited to an annual report and/or meeting, and even then, only in very general terms or when specific questions are asked. Some churches go as far as to reserve the right to keep salary figures and related information limited to board members, executives and/or the Human Resources Committee.

Obvious errors. When a staff member makes a mistake that affects the congregation or one that's obvious, find a way to let him admit it. This is a very healthy approach. It speaks volumes to the congregation regarding Christian practice, both in terms of confession and forgiveness.

In general, churches tend to err on the side of not saying enough. I prefer erring on the side of too much information. It lets you beat the rumor mill, shows respect and confidence in your congregation, and generally recognizes that, small or large, you're a family.

A church exists for its people and by its people. In fact, it is its people.

Ken Godevenos has more than 27 years of experience in the HR field and has served on and/or chaired several church boards. He is an independent Human Resources and church consultant, a trained National Church Development coach, and a member of the National Advisory Council of The Leadership Center--Willow Creek Association Canada. Share your experiences and views on the difficult issue of congregational communication by calling (416) 449-7282, or write to Godevenos at kgod@accordconsulting.com. Visit www.accordconsulting.com for more information.

QUESTION OF THE MONTH

Q: One of our staff members prefers to work from home and has asked for more freedom to do so. What ground rules should we establish? And if we agree to this arrangement, what are the implications for the rest of the staff?

A: It's interesting to see business world issues keep creeping into the church. It doesn't surprise me at all, but many churches still refuse to recognize the similarities between managing church staff and those that exist in any well-run organization.

We continue operating (since the word "managing" would be inappropriate) the Church as if it is beyond such treatment. I recognize the importance of the church leadership seeking God's direction in all matters, including staff relations. However, it's difficult to sympathize with leaders who continue to either turn a blind eye to sound personnel practices and policies, or worse still, ones who pick and choose when to use them.

Circumstances like those raised in this Question of the Month are all too common, especially in churches. Why? First and foremost is your staff, especially younger members who are part of double-income couples. When young children are a part of these families, their busy schedules (often irregular and usually to satisfy their parents) necessitate the presence of one of the parents at some point in the day. The flexibility that lets one or both parents work from home is a big benefit.

Second, greater computer mobility provides the ability to work from almost anywhere. Employees say that they can work more effectively without spending hours getting ready and traveling on busy city routes to and from work. Add to this the fact that offices lend to extreme interaction and inefficiency--especially if little privacy is afforded--and the arguments sound good.

But also remember that corporations began encouraging working at home to reduce expenditures for office space. By working at home and coming in only for meetings, they reasoned, one office space could be shared by a whole group of employees. For corporations, management consultants (myself included) started calling for compensation systems that didn't reward employees just because they were at work. Rather, workers were rewarded for the contributions and results they added to the bottom line.

"Who cares where they work!" was the frequent cry. And although our Christian spirits desired that we be "separate and non-conforming" to the world, as the apostle Paul encourages us to be in Romans 12, our weak carnal bodies kept insisting that what's good for them is good for us. So there we were.

We embraced a philosophy of work performance and evaluation that said, "Give me lots to do and then check to see if it's done, not where I do it." The whole issue became a matter of trust between employer and employee. In industry, it was argued that employees could be trusted with millions of dollars of equipment or business, so why shouldn't they be trusted to work effectively at home? In the Church, the unspoken rationale is, "If you can trust me to guide the souls of our parishioners, you can trust me to work from home." Sure enough, we do. It's one way of the present, and all indications are that it'll be a way of the future. So, what do you need to do about it?

First, communicate the idea that even in churches, working at home is still a privilege, not a right. If it's misused individually or collectively, it may be lost.

Also, you should know by now that I'm a strong believer in having a human resources policy in place for this and many more staffing issues. Identify the following parameters clearly in your work-at-home policy:

Who must adhere to this policy? Is it intended for regular staff or all staff (full-time and/or part-time)? Is a minimum period of service required to qualify? Does this policy also apply to pastoral and/or administration staff?

What are the limits for working at home? What percentage or number of days per week or month should be spent working at home?

What are the requirements for attending staff meetings or other events?

What are the reporting or in-office availability notice requirements? Can people make appointments and plan meetings for which they can assume all staff members will be present?

Will these arrangements be assessed periodically and even cancelled if appropriate? And if so, by whom? Will you implement trial periods with specific review conditions?

When establishing your policy, be sensitive to the needs of not only the employee's clients and supervisors but also his or her subordinates, as well as peers.

In your question, you also ask how awarding more freedom to one employee will impact the rest of the staff. For starters, be prepared for others to request the same privileges. Knowing this, you may wish to either control the specific categories (pastoral staff only, for example) and/or control the number of employees in each department or category who take advantage of this arrangement at a given time. In this area, seniority privileges could come into play, but using a common sense, job-specific approach might be a better idea.

Finally, be sure your policy is written in a way that management reserves the right to withdraw this privilege if "reasonable"(i.e., if performance is inefficient or bears poorly accepted appearance to the stakeholders). Also, consider extending these privileges to staff for limited periods at a time--quarterly, for instance--rather than indefinitely.

Send your Questions of the Month to Ken Godevenos at kgod@accordconsulting.com. Comments or suggestions will be addressed directly or in upcoming Staff Management columns. All requests for confidentiality will be honored.