2025 Transition news

Meeting summary

Quick recap

The meeting focused on reviewing and refining various aspects of church staffing and leadership positions, including a successful Q&A session and transition landing page. The team discussed job qualifications, responsibilities, and documentation formats for multiple positions, with particular attention to ordination requirements and ministerial leadership criteria. The group addressed hiring processes, including considerations for internal candidates, job announcement strategies, and the development of a new Performance Work Statement for staff evaluation.

Next steps

• Transition Committee: Finalize job description before proceeding with internal/external hiring decision
• Anthony/Saun: Revise job qualification criteria, removing specific numbers and focusing on spiritual qualities and leadership capabilities
• Anthony/Saun: Update document formatting to remove strike-through text and maintain only final approved language
• Randy: Email the Performance Work Statement document to all committee members for review
• Committee: Review and digest the PWS document
• Committee: Discuss how the PWS will be used in conjunction with the job description during the hiring process
• Committee: Establish evaluation metrics and processes based on the PWS for future candidates
• Committee: Determine who will collect and manage job applications
• Committee: Decide on internal vs external hiring timeline and process
• Committee: Finalize job announcement and advertising strategy
• Latosha: Make the document editable and put it on the link tonight
• Latosha: Remove comments and create a refreshed job announcement document
• Latosha: Share the link showing where job announcements are typically hung on Disciples Today
• Committee: Decide on the timeline for the job advertisement and application process
• Mark: Send out meeting notes to all attendees
• Committee: Review and approve meeting notes before posting
• Latosha: Add references section to job announcement
• Team: Establish clear criteria for church leadership experience vs. group leadership experience
• Team: Determine mechanism for gathering church feedback on internal vs external candidate search
• Team: Meet Saturday during Pacific Southwest Conference to accommodate Anthony and Saun's absence

Summary

Sunday Q&A and Job Posting Review

The meeting focused on reviewing the Sunday Q&A session, which was deemed successful with positive feedback on communication and transparency. The group discussed the transition landing page, with Andy and Jordan praised for their quick response in creating it. There was a debate on whether to prioritize completing the job description before announcing the position internally or externally, with some members advocating for finishing the description first while others suggested advertising internally first. The committee agreed to continue working on the job description and to ensure internal candidates are not involved in the discussion.

Ordination and Document Reorganization

The group discussed the reorganization of document formatting and agreed to consolidate content under a general responsibilities section. They also had a detailed discussion about the meaning of ordination, with participants clarifying that while it's primarily a recognition of role and responsibility rather than an elevation of status, it serves practical purposes like hospital visitation rights and legal recognition. The conversation emphasized that while ordination has formal legal aspects, the church maintains its belief in the priesthood of all believers and seeks to avoid clergy-laity separation.

Ministerial Qualifications Focus on Character

The team discussed and refined qualifications for a ministerial position, focusing on spiritual and leadership qualities rather than specific numerical metrics. They debated the importance of experience leading larger ministries, with Anthony and David suggesting a focus on character and potential ability rather than specific attendance numbers. The group agreed to remove references to organizing retreats of 50+ people and instead emphasized demonstrated ability to lead complex ministry environments, while ensuring the qualifications would be appropriate for both large and small church contexts.

Leadership Qualification Standards Discussion

The team discussed and refined job qualifications and responsibilities for a leadership position, focusing on the phrase "proven ability to lead a multifaceted church" while avoiding terms like "diverse" due to government hiring restrictions. They debated the minimum experience requirement, ultimately deciding to keep "5+ years" rather than "7+ years" with a note that the recommendation could be waived for exceptional candidates. The team also removed subjective terms like "character" and "passion" from the qualifications, agreeing to emphasize humility and spiritual maturity through other aspects of the job description.

Job Responsibilities Document Review

The team reviewed and refined a document outlining job responsibilities and expectations, focusing on areas such as discipleship, pastoral ministry, leadership development, and broader church engagement. They agreed to remove redundant language, clarify the role of hospitality, and ensure proper representation in church meetings and conferences. Latosha raised a question about supervision duties, which Anthony addressed by incorporating relevant points into the leadership development section. The group decided the document was nearly complete and ready for comparison with the PWS (Performance Work Statement) to determine which format to use moving forward.

Performance Work Statement for Ministry Staff

The meeting focused on a new Performance Work Statement (PWS) document for hiring staff at the Oahu Church of Christ. Randy presented the PWS, which includes detailed job responsibilities, metrics, and deliverables, explaining how it differs from traditional position descriptions. The group discussed concerns about using numerical targets in ministry roles, with Saun expressing caution about the potential for pressure. David noted the PWS's prescriptive nature compared to position descriptions used for internal hiring. The committee agreed to review the document further, with Randy offering to email it out for more detailed consideration. They also discussed how the PWS could be used in conjunction with an evaluation process for staff performance.

Job Descriptions and Hiring Timelines

The group discussed job descriptions for several positions, including the lead minister and women's ministry leader roles. They agreed to move forward with the current lead minister description while considering the women's ministry leader position to be similar. Randy will reformat the document to be editable and trackable. The committee discussed timelines for hiring, with Saun emphasizing the importance of completing an external hire by October. Latosha and others agreed to work on the administrator position description separately from the lead minister role. The group also touched on compensation considerations for women's ministry leaders, with Randy expressing concerns about pay disparities.

Internal vs External Leadership Search

The committee discussed whether to consider internal candidates, particularly Nick and Shelly, alongside external candidates for the leadership position. While some members expressed openness to internal applications, Latosha and David raised concerns about potential perceptions and the need for transparency, suggesting an anonymous survey to gauge the church's preferences. The group agreed to proceed with advertising the position externally while ensuring internal candidates like Nick and Shelly are included in the process, with further discussion on application collection methods planned for the next meeting.

Church Leader Job Announcement Discussion

The group discussed the job announcement for a church leader position, including where it would be posted and how long the application period should be. They agreed to review and refine the announcement, with Latosha offering to make suggested edits. The team also addressed potential start dates and the need to be flexible for candidates with school-age children. They scheduled the next meeting for Saturday during the Pacific Southwest Conference, with Anthony and Saun planning to participate despite their attendance at the conference.