The ministry’s staff is arguably the most important part of the entire organization. They are the backbone of the organization and without them, everything would fall apart. For this reason, it’s critical that you, as a leader, are able to find ways to keep valuable staff members in your ministry. When turnover rates rise, leaders are more likely to make mistakes or hire the wrong people out of desperation. Don’t let that happen to you. By taking steps to help your team, you’ll be more likely to keep the right people around.
Be supportive
Staff members who feel that they are not appreciated or valued will move on to other things. Make sure you’re being supportive and letting everyone know how important they are to the success of the ministry. Also, if you notice someone struggling, make sure to help them in any way that you can. Someone who constantly feels like they have too much work to do will start looking elsewhere. Support them with extra training, tips and tricks to get the job done or simply provide them with a little more encouragement.
“While you can’t always lighten the load, you can provide staff members with better tools to handle their job.”
Provide the right tools
When employees work long and hard they can suffer from burnout. This will cause them to either do a poor job or leave their position. While you can’t always lighten the load, you can provide them with better tools to handle the work they have. According to Stride, providing the right tools can be motivating to employees because they will feel like you truly care about what they’re doing.
Ministry software can be a very useful tool for staff members. Whether you need something to handle donation management, events, child sponsorship or the entire ministry in general, there is a software solution you can use. Standard spreadsheets and email can only take you so far. If you notice your staff struggling under a heavy workload, consider adding a new software tool to help them manage their work.
Build a strong team
A good team of people will be dedicated and qualified to getting the work done. This can be hard to find, and sometimes you’re not going to be able to hire people with the necessary skills. If you can, then you should. Sometimes, though, you will have to train dedicated individuals. While it might seem counterproductive to stop working to train a staff member, in the long run it’s going to be worth it. Set time aside for training and improving skills so that you can help your staff become the team that they need to be. Special attention should be paid to donor management software, volunteer management software or any other tools that you use. The last thing you want is for only a few people to be qualified to use vital tools.
Volunteers can be a great supplement to your staff and help keep ministry employees happy.Utilize volunteers
While your paid staff is highly important, they can only handle so much. The rest has to be up to your volunteers. Work to pair up voluntary workers with staff members to reduce the staff member’s workload. This will help them get their job done more efficiently and help keep them fresh and happy.
The items listed above are just a few of the ways you can work to keep your staff happy and in your ministry. The main thing you need to do is keep an eye out for anyone who appears to be unhappy. If you notice someone who is, approach them them and try to find a way to help. The more you do to help them, the more likely they are to stick around.