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Overview Reference Guide
Step 1: Get Ready (page 5) Review church constitution and bylaws and other documents. Elect Pastor Search Committee leadership. Review biblical qualifications for a pastor. Develop pastor/congregation Covenant. See Appendix 2 (pages 28–29). Review financial and personnel information with the appropriate committees. Meet with existing staff on protocol and expectations. Conduct a congregational survey and develop an initial pastor profile. Create or review pastor’s job description. Assemble information for a church and community packet. Develop an initial list of questions for the questionnaire and interview steps. Develop a plan for how you will receive resumes.
Step 2: Receive and Review Resumes (page 10) Actively pursue names/resumes. Begin reviewing and “grading” resumes according to the pastor profile.
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Step 3: Prioritize Resumes (page 12) Narrow the pool to 10–15 top candidates. Make initial contact with each candidate to confirm their willingness to be considered. Send a copy of the questionnaire to all candidates in this pool and review responses. Listen to a sermon and review information from each candidate’s current church. Examine all publicly available information—church website, social media, blogs, etc. Determine the top group of candidates (probably four or five) that you want to interview. Contact all candidates to inform them of their status and confirm their desire to move forward.
Step 4: Focus on the #1 Candidate (page 16) Conduct an initial interview with the top group of candidates. Ask permission to contact references. Listen to additional sermons and request any other needed information from candidate. Conduct a follow-up interview if additional clarification is desired or questions arise. Identify and proceed with the top candidate. Conduct a more formal, thorough interview. Invite the candidate to visit the church campus and community. Identify and contact additional references. Conduct a criminal background and credit check. Discuss any unaddressed information: financial, personnel, relocation, etc. Visit the candidate’s current place of ministry. Invite the candidate to come “in view of a call” and finalize schedule.
Step 5: Present the Candidate to the Church(page 20) Plan and communicate the “view of a call” weekend. Host the candidate for the weekend with planned activities. Vote on the candidate.
Step 6: Help the New Pastor Get Started(page 22) Plan installation service. Help the pastor get connected to the community. Maintain contact with new pastor.
