Some churches we meet and speak with have some sort of leadership team or Diaconate or council to whom decision making processes refer.  Church life often seems to sit slightly outside the world view of secular governance as matters of spirituality, doctrine and theology don’t quite permeate or dominate the governing of a secular organisation as they do a church.

Sometimes churches believe they are a family and Christian first and that matters of governance and the world will ‘sort themselves out 'with Gods guidance.  I recently was told by a church leader that the last thing they wanted was to “commercialise church and bring in corporate managers”.   That said, if we look at ‘Church’ in the macro sense.  How do we get the right balance?

Leadership KSE – Many leadership teams have passionate, dedicated and committed leaders. The key in expanding mission is to ensure the necessary Knowledge, Skill and Experience (KSE) is functionally present at a leadership level in churches.  Not simply in individuals but in the roles assigned.  There is little point in considering renovating kitchen space, worship space and the baptistry if there is no operational KSE to manage the decisions about systems, services and people management of those respective elements. Who is on your leadership team that can take responsibility for Human Resource management, fire risk, food safety, maintenance and other aspects of the functional life of the church.  A busy fool is of no use to you or your church. Nor is a worn out volunteer who seems to have the largest portfolio of anyone in the organization.  

Organisational Development (OD)– How are your people managed?  who is paid to do what?  Churches cannot simply hire staff to do ‘stuff’.  Even volunteers need job descriptions and contracts and terms of employment: as well as the paid staff.  There are laws and best practice relating to job descriptions, training, DBS, GDPR and induction et al when managing people.  Who manages who?  What type of professional development do you have in place? Is there progression and promotion built into the OD of the church?

o  What training is in place to ensure those responsible for areas of church life are competent and qualified?  Working with children, vulnerable adults, those with addictions, mental health issues and homelessness require a sensitive yet pragmatic character. Christ called his people to the poor and needy, but managing the risk of supporting those who are poor (both physically and in spirit) requires scheduled, consistent training to keep volunteers and staff up to date on the law and best practice.

o  Do you have correct and appropriate safeguarding and safe to grow policies and procedures for your staff and volunteers?  Policies and procedures are only as good as the transferred knowledge of their content.  These critical documents must ‘live’ as part of the organizational DNA of the church. Staff and Volunteers must ALL know and adhere.  Not just a few.

Systems and Services – What are you paying for and why.  Do you need to pay for fire extinguisher checks each year, vermin control, plumbing insurance cover, boiler servicing et al.  What should you be servicing and are not paying for?  Its best to investigate the contracts for services you have and provide clear recommendations for future use of the building.

Overhead Review – Do you really know what it costs to operate the building?  Not just the staff costs but insurance, energy bills and servicing costs etc.  Did you know that your empty space costs more if unused than if used.  It costs more to warm an empty space than a used one.  Do you have up to date water and energy efficient devices and systems?  

Income Streams – Its not a bad idea to review your income streams in relation to the whole building and show what the costs are and what can be achieved with various measures. One of the measures is the paid use of space.  Approximately 10% of church space is used on a weekly basis.  Room hire provides vital income to offset operating costs for the space used and can provide significant mission opportunities at the same time.  You will need to provide guidance and legally approved documentation to enable your church to hire out space. In the process it would be worth spending so time educating church decision makers in the principle thinking of managing overheads. This isn’t commercialization of a church.  Rather, its stewardship of Gods provision.

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