I love the fact that Dave is using a sporting illustration here in his writing. Thank you, Dave Harvey, for this useful paper and we look forward to reading your book!
I love the fact that Dave is using a sporting illustration here in his writing. Thank you, Dave Harvey, for this useful paper and we look forward to reading your book!
The Role: Staff
The Responsibilities: Management
Let’s look at the distinction between governance and management. Governance is the proper application of power and policies for mission ends. Management, on the other hand, is the administration of delegated power for mission means. Governance is about identifying and protecting the ends (why and what -- why do we exist and what should we do in response?). Management is about effectively executing the means (How & when -day-to-day operations).
“While the board protects the ministry with excellence and the pastor orchestrates the ministry with excellence, the primary function of staff is excellence in execution".[1]
Staff includes anyone outside of the elders (full-time, part-time,or volunteer) who leads or manages a department or team. The staff exists to convert vision to action. They are called to steward the mobilized church towards doing the work of ministry (Eph. 4:11-13). In a robust model, the staff answers to the Senior Leader or Executive Pastor, not to the Elder Board. Where the lanes of responsibility and accountability are clearly defined, security blossoms and the ecosystem for collaboration is more easily catalyzed.
In an era where leadership is often prescribed as the answer to every church deficiency, a wise Senior Leader recognizes the irreplaceable role of ministry-multiplying managers who can love people while they create and sustain the systems necessary for operational excellence.
While no diagram captures the complexity and overlap of church roles and responsibilities, this chart is offered as a visual portrayal of what we discussed above. It borrows from a sports model hoping that the metaphor will enhance the clarity.
Definitions and Rules
The RACI tool is a simple tool for mapping power and responsibility by thinking through specific tasks and assigning who is responsible (R),accountable (A), and who should be consulted (C) and informed (I).
Rules for using the RACI Matrix
▪ Only One Responsible and Accountable Person: It is essential that only one person be assigned the R/A roles. Having more than one person responsible for the same task increases ambiguity and the chances of the work not being performed. It could also lead to duplication of work or waste of effort.
▪ Responsible-Accountable is Mandatory: The consult or inform roles are not mandatory for every activity. It is possible that some activities may not require them at all. But the responsible accountable roles must be assigned. Even if the system is performing the tasks automatically, someone must be made accountable to see that it does get done.
▪ Communication with the Consultant: There must be a two-way channel of communication with the consultant. The person who must be consulted before a decision or action is taken. This may be stakeholders, or possibly subject-matter experts consulted to cross-examine or improve a decision. Hence one has to ensure that adequate follow-up is done and there is minimum time lag to complete the communication and consider any feedback.
▪ Informing the required parties This is a one-way channel of communication that informs stakeholders (or others) that a decision or action is immanent or has been taken.
▪ “Accountable” for the eldership means action for others. Where the elder board is accountable, the Board Chair and the Senior Leader are vitally involved in supplying information, stewarding processes and shepherding tasks to ensure the elders can make informed decisions.
▪ Staff Size – Staff size may make a difference on who is responsible.
[1] Kaiser, John, Winning on Purpose (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2006), 119
