Home Grown Talent

For a number of years, the growing trend in large churches is to hire from within whenever possible. This is true for a wide variety of positions, from administrative assistants to executive pastors and everything in between. In fact, I was one of those internal hires when I began my 11-year journey on a church staff. There are many benefits to home grown talent. The most significant is that the person already knows the culture. While they may not fully appreciate the internal staff culture, they love the church, have a high level of respect for its leaders, and agree with its priorities. Otherwise, why would they even apply for the position? Another benefit is that the potential staff member is already known. Unless the person has been uninvolved in the life of the church (which should be a red flag), someone on staff will have a perspective on important issues such as character and fit. For all these benefits, however, churches frequently make mistakes when hiring from within. Here are the top three:

• Taking the easy road. Conducting a thorough process for an outside hire is time-consuming. If the primary reason for hiring internally is to save time, the church will tend to settle for someone who is adequate (at best). They may also cut corners such as not doing a thorough evaluation or not developing a clear job description. A weak hiring process often leads to a weak team member.
• Confusing “like” with “fit.” Directly related to the “easy road” is a hiring decision that is based on how much we “like” someone or the fact that they are a “good person.” While this may be true, the person may not fit the role. In addition, some candidates think that their shortcomings or lack of fit should be overlooked because they are well liked and “this is my church.”
• Overestimating what we (and they) know. You can know someone as a church member (even as a faithful volunteer) and not know if they have the skills for the job. You may also assume that they understand the job requirements. Unfortunately, both kinds of “knowing” create a false security that can lead to great disappointment.

These three threads are often woven together when hiring home grown talent. When this happens, the resulting fabric will inevitably fray. The bottom line is that your church needs the best person for the job. If that’s someone from within, then by all means hire them. Just make sure that you’re not settling for something less. It’s easy to receive my blogs by email. Just sign-up on Feedburner by clicking here.]]>