Church Management Human Resources Management

Introduction
Why do we need to think about HR? You at any stage in your life are an employee, an employer, aspiring to be the either or retired. Alternatively you are the employer who gets to hire, work with and fire people.

Aims
To give an insight into HR management An appreciation of what HR is in the Church Key principles/approaches in HR Management

Most principles in managing HR run parallel in mastering people and relationships in a personal context and managing itself has further personal application.

Outline- the roadmap

HRM & The Church Context What is Management The role of HR Department Aspects of HR Management Key principles in managing your church The Future of HR- the next level

With out people any organization, company or business is just land, buildings and capital. Picture for example a football team you know, the stars you know unlock the value or potential of that team. Alternately people can unlock up-to 70% of companys bottom line revenues. Youve hear about management before but heres a different take Taking responsibility for making sure and organization does its job as planned and in doing so accomplishes what it wants to accomplish Management consists of four functions-Planning, Organizing, Leading & Controlling which is;

- Deciding what you are going to do, and when; putting resources together and implement your plans; directing and steering actions towards fulfilling the plan and Monitoring performance and adjusting Things dont just happen they have to be managed!

HR management
Managing working relationships and any issues arising out of employment relationship towards the goals of the church Celebration Churches History and HR Operating for 26 years Started with 3 employees Currently employs 250 permanent staff and more volunteers Is unique- a welfare organization, spiritual in nature and a business culture A registered organization- can be liable Given the churchs growth over 26 years and its current size management becomes important in making sure the church is coordinated and is moving towards its goal

Drivers of HR in Zimbabwe Government - Its policies and actions are guided by socialist thinking, which is centered on taking care of people, with relevance to HR, the employee. So welfare is a dominant paradigm Legal- the Labour Relations Act (as amended in 2003) is the principle set of rules of the game, it is the bible and varies from country to country. This gives us a framework for dealing with employment issues and regulating employment practices. Any issues relating to employment are guided by the LRA. This is amended from time-to-time to be relevant to the existing environment take note though some provisions may lag behind changes. E.g. retrenchment Economic- inflation last year was our biggest challenge that affected real salary value hence salaries needs constant reviewing. The economy means also has been shrinking meaning formal fewer job opportunities. In administration this has meant higher pricing costs e.g. values changing everyday Social- there continues to be flight to the diaspora meaning lower skills based

The Church as an Organization

Relatively complex Spiritual Nature of the Church and having specific beliefs Not for profit is funded on tithes and offerings Church has many facets, activities and events Culture- shaped by strong values and management style and in some instances reformation clashes with norms Is evolving as an organization. E.g the new church government Has a permanent staff & large volunteer base Perceptions - church or corporate? Did Jesus sign a contract Technology- IT intensive environment

The church then can be summed up as a unique Where does the HR Department fit in? As the church has grown, management of staff becomes an inevitable issues and coordinate of HR activities. The main functions of HR are Run a salaries & admin bureau Recruiting & contracting Train & Develop staff Employee relations- welfare Change management Legal Compliance HR Policy insures a systematic and consistant approach in answering people issues Advisory both employer and employee

Facets of HR Management
HR Planning
HR starts with planning.. Planning is planning to have the right people available at the right time. Every decision has a financial consequence since every time you hire & fire it costs money and time. Planning is essential to make sure you have a correct size of staff who are effective for you requirements. It involves Looking at the purpose of the church, goals and strategic plans for the next few years to come Current staff are any nearing retirement, are skills up to date, is technology bringing change? Future needs what type of skills do you need, more or less? Gaps or surpluses in staff how do you find more employees e.g. look internally (retrain, promote), recruit, or do you need to downsize?

Putting the plan into motion having considered this you should end up having the staff you need when you need them

Failure to plan means you are planning to fail. You could land up with problems like having too many staff, or being under staffed or staff not competent. Retrenchment is a costly process.

The Employment process Recruiting & Selecting

Recruitment is the doorway, the gate that all who wants to be staff. Recruitment in general is one option in the church as often the work can be done by volunteers e.g. the 12 disciples were all in the market place but did the work of the church. The temptation also staff a required at short notice because you have a need so generally you should be slow to recruit. Why? Because you cant turn the wrong person into the right person Definition: The process of filling a vacancy- while ultimately you should recruit for attitude, a systems should be like this Do a job spec & job description (KRAS) this tells us about the job to be done. Person specification details the ideal person to do the job e.g. skills, level of professional qualifications, attributes e.g. good communicator Advertise vacancy bulletins, notice boards, forums and news papers. Pastors Screen CVs a good CV doesnt always mean that the person Invite applicants and conduct interviews best interviews are structured and come with much preparation. Be ware that people rehearse. Shortlist 2nd interview where necessary Check reference & check back ground check out the story, there is room for deception here. Also are they in the church? Are they involved or in a Cell? Use tools to assess if the candidate is the best fit- DISC profile for personality to see if task or people unstructured. Skills tests Select the best and Offer Employment Prepare their for first day Orientation introduce your staff member to the church by giving him literature, conducting tour of your premises, introducing him to colleagues. Else someone may give him an informal orientation Asses performance during and after probation Confirm if satisfactory

Cost of a wrong hire not only includes the recruitment costs and time involved and production lost, but also 3 months notice pay as well. Should you allow a person to compete their probation without assessing their suitability to your company and their performance, it is deemed by the LRA act that they become permanently employed in which case you land yourself in legal problems. Things to look out for LRA prohibits discrimination unless it is an inherent part of the job. Eg. Race, gender, pregnancy, creed or political opinion, HIV status etc. However it is prudent to ask so you are correctly informed in a good way as this may affect you. If its not in writing it doesnt exists e.g. recruitment of domestics Assumptions everyone is honest and upright, check them out. Everyone is competent and operates at the same level as you Some experience has shown that in certain fields its to look for faith, available and trainable people in the church who have the heart of the church.

Managing performance
Performance management is about getting results, getting the best from people. Often culture isnt interested in tracking progress. Often after recruiting a person as long as person quietly gets on with the job thats sufficient. E.g driving a car you want to know where you are how far to go, how much fuel consumed and speed travel. All are parameters and there are instruments to measure an so should we do that same in the church Have regular formal appraisal system, there are many tools (Balanced scorecards to in-house), and talk about work regularly The systems should allow staff to measure themselves so they can measure their own progress Support and empower staff and monitor their progress Recognize good performance with praise or reward and correct the poor Always remind staff about the consequences of their performance and let them know who the customers are Use job descriptions ,kras to communicate expectations Consider motivation of staff, are they motivated or de-motivated?

NB not having a system in place means you are unable to deal with poor performance (e.g. correct or fire), or recognize good performance (promote or transfer).

Training & Development

Training- equipping staff with knowledge, skill for current and future work demands. Managing training must be systematic and involves Identifying training needs finding and diagnosing problems e.g. is it related to poor performance, new technology (computers) or for promotion. Or change in the direction of the Church Planning getting programs, activities, courses to achieve goals identified in assessing needs. One tool can be drawing up a training calendar Managing and coordinating training events/process Evaluation- getting the feedback and answers the question has it been beneficial? Here is some of what the Church does to train and develop its staff. Subsidizing professional studies, Staff seminars, In-house training, On the job training coaching or understudying, External training seminars and Celebration College

Separation
There comes a time when the employment relationship ends, when an employee leaves. This can be either for the following reasons; By resignation By Mutual agreement By disciplinary action

The difference lies in whether this separation is voluntary or by compulsion in the case where an employee commits an offence punishable by dismissal. Discipline-Law The Labour relations act is the rules of the game for employment that gives the framework for dealing with labour issues. The law becomes important because people are aware of them, of their rights and the fact an employer can be sued. Definition- is the process of instructing, correcting and punishing to bring change. This is positive discipline however there is negative discipline that is the big stick approach. Process must be formal Procedural and Substantive fairness Documentation Compliance with LRA, SIs, Code of conduct

The onus is on management to discipline its staff and prove guilt as the staff is innocent until proven guilty. NB Employment is started of with a signature and should be ended of with a signature e.g. marriage

Staff Relations & Welfare

Every organizations needs to look at the welfare of its staff. In doing so it addresses basic needs and working conditions that affect morale and productivity. The church provides for staff welfare in the following areas Staff canteen- subsidized Staff bus Library Assistance Uniforms Devotions & Prayer Staff Functions

Staff relations need to be managed through structures that provide for communication between management and staff. These can be grievance procedures but apart from this other channels may be required to discuss issues that affect them e.g. salaries. While good one-on-one relationship may suffice and the church grows this may not be possible and may mean having to deal with groups of staff. However in some instances the LRA does allow for staff to interact as committees and even as unionized members and this may happen. However this is route may be followed where staff communications break down between management and staff or the perception that management isnt entertaining staffs issues. The best is to have such issues handled and a structure put in place so that there is perception of fairness.

Payroll administration
HR administration in the church covers the following areas Contracts of employment- terms & conditions of employment Staffing movements Managing Salaries and rewards Running payroll processing- earnings & deductions, leave Tax - PAYE CIMAS NSSA Other benefits on offer

Payroll & staff record

Administration- The Process involves facilitating payments by due date, Reconciliation accounts. Also there is keeping of records and statements, reporting and attending to any queries. Admin is guided largely by compliance issues.

Good principles to work by

To be successful in managing people you need to observe the following Start with the end in mind that way you can see how things are supposed to end and manage the problems before they happen Youve got inspect to expect good results come with good management and follow-up Be proactive- take action, its easier to manage a small problem Write things down and you never miss a thing Investigate one question deeper as taking things on face value leads to deception Talk to others in HR- counsel guarantees success Be prepared to walk through issues Check the source of information People are different see the issue beyond the personality

Future of HR in the Church

Here are some of the projects the Church is undertaking to meet the new challenges and build the capacity of the Church in HR. Job grading project Performance Management System Policy documentation/development Evaluation of HR programs

Conclusion
HR is a strategic function and partner in managing the church staffs making sure efforts are focused on the vision, to advance in Building people, Building Dreams.