Raise your hand if you love accountability.
What about a good staff evaluation? ????
Is that just your favorite?

Okay, what if you were told you got to have a coach or mentor or guide to meet with regularly as a support piece to your job? Does the change of phrase make a difference?

We’re guessing it does. Because nobody likes to feel like they’re being scrutinized. We’d all much rather be coached or mentored (dare we say, discipled) rather than supervised or evaluated. 

Maybe this is true because phrases like “annual evaluation” or “performance review” carry with them an expectation that feedback could be critical or that consequences exist for doing something wrong. 

Or maybe it’s true because there’s something far more caring about being intentionally tethered to someone who you know is going to walk with you vs. simply having a supervisor who’s only there to observe (judge) you from afar. 

Whatever the reason may be, how we talk about and approach THIS piece of vocational ministry matters. The church staff evaluation process matters. 

And the good news is, if you’re a supervisor of any kind: you get to set the tone! You get to establish a different way of walking with the people on your teams so that your church’s approach looks a lot more like thoughtful discipleship rather than anxiety-inducing dread brought on by an annual critique and threat of job loss.

Granted, there are a lot more ways to describe staff support in churches today than those two options. ???? So, let’s take a look at 4 features of a healthy staff evaluation process:

1. Meet WEEKLY (Not just for annual staff evaluations!)

  • Please hear us; we’re not saying have more meetings. We’re saying meet more with one another. Establish a standard that weekly, 15-minute check-ins happen between all supervisors and individual staff. Some weeks, you won’t go the full 15 minutes. Other weeks, you might need a longer stretch of time. But each week, every staff member is discussing these 3 questions with the person they report to / are supported by:
    • What are the big things this week?
    • Where are there potential challenges?
    • What can I do to help / Where do you need more support?
  • Don’t forget: lead pastors need people, too and should also have a ministry partner who they meet with weekly.

2. Review Roles and Reasons ANNUALLY

  • Once each year, take the time to review job descriptions and discuss the reasons why each role exists in the life of the church to help fulfill its mission.
    • This kind of conversation not only reminds each person of the purpose of their position but also provides an opportunity for any readjusting that might be needed so that everyone stays aligned and works towards the same goals. 
    • Be sure to include a visual of the larger organizational chart as a part of this review, too. Seeing where we fit and that we belong can be just as important as hearing how we’re doing.
  • If this annual conversation needs a refresh in your church, or you’d like to see a template for what this can be, click here for a free staff evaluation conversation guide.

3. Tend to the Team ROUTINELY

  • It sometimes doesn’t matter how much everyone loves Jesus, working on a team means working with other humans, and humans are human: we all fall short (and get on each others’ nerves.) This is why healthy staff support not only focuses on individuals, it also incorporates times when teammates can leave their desks and focus on their relationships with one another.
    • Idea: Host a team-time-out once a month, where everyone has some kind of fun together. (i.e., sharing lunch, going bowling, playing Mario Kart… this doesn’t have to cost a lot.)
    • Idea: Incorporate teammates’ feedback in the annual review process, allowing other staffers to provide insights and encouragement anonymously.
  • As a part of this piece, supervisors should aim to be observant of team dynamics and address any tensions that may exist with a Matthew 18 approach.

4. Be Clear CONSTANTLY

  • Clarity is kindness. Which means there should be no surprises at any checkpoint as to the following workplace questions:
    • Am I doing my job right?
    • How do others experience me?
    • What are my growing edges?
  • Clarity removes the suspense of surprise because feedback related to these questions is embedded throughout all the conversations happening above.

So how are you doing? 
Where could your church staff grow in how teammates invest in one another?

We’d love to hear!

And if you’re looking for more ideas on how to refresh your staff culture and approach this work from a place of discipleship, be sure to listen to this episode of The Ministry Architects Podcast.

Contributors:

David Gaddini

david.gaddini@ministryarchitects.com

David is the senior pastor at Fellowship of Faith in McHenry, Illinois. David produces a podcast, Questions You Never Thought You Could Ask in Church.

Brent Parker

brent.parker@ministryarchitects.com

Brent is the lead — and founding —pastor of The Church at Woodforest, a campus of The Woodlands Methodist Church north of Houston, Texas.

Anthony Prince

anthony.prince@ministryarchitects.com

Anthony currently serves as the Executive Pastor at Real Life Church of LA, a growing church plant in the foothills of Los Angeles, CA.