If your ministry is like most, your calling is great but your staff and budget are small. And when it comes to marketing or communications, you likely have a team wearing multiple hats, working part time, or consisting of faithful volunteers.

To steward your resources well and continue moving your mission forward, you want to be sure you have the right people with the right skills in the right roles.

Based on our experience doing this for our ministry clients, we suggest you:

1. Gather Data

2. Assess the Team

3. Invest in the Environment

Let’s take a look at each of these steps.

There are so many ways to gather insight into your team. I’m going to advocate for two qualitative and one quantitative.

Filter Through a Framework. We use these three “Cs” for hiring and evaluating current team members:

• Culture: Do they align with our vision, mission, and values

• Competence: Do they have the experience and skills to do the job?

• Chemistry: Do they make a healthy contribution to team dynamics?

Invite Self Assessment. This part can be really fun—as well as eye opening. Meet with your marketing team over coffee (or Zoom!) and ask them about their work. The answers you get will help zero in on passions and pain points you can encourage and address.

• What do you like about your role? What’s challenging?

• What are some things you’d like to change? What should stay the same?

• Where do you need help?

• What are your ideas for moving us forward?

Find Your Objective Tool. There are a number of great tools you can use to uncover individual strengths and opportunities, as well as communication and work styles, thinking patterns, behaviors, and more. The caution is trying to use too many. We focus on the first two here: StrengthsFinder, Myers Briggs Type Indicator, DiSC, Enneagram.

At this point, you are ready to make an assessment—for individuals and the team as a whole.

We think about two circles for each individual:

1. What does the organization need? This is best defined by clear job descriptions.

2. Where does the individual come alive? This comes from the data set you just collected.

The intersection of these two is where each team member will flourish.

Once you’re sure you have the right people “on the bus,” it’s then important to step back and look at the team as a whole. List out the skills your team has and the skills you need to meet your organizational goals and metrics. Pair that information with their strengths and personalities. What’s missing? Would someone be a better fit in a different position? Where do you need to bring in additional talent?

And remember, you may have gaps that go beyond a specific skill or strength. You also need to consider racial and gender diversity. A variety of backgrounds and experiences will only bring more depth to how and what you communicate.

Don’t hesitate to pull in a fellow ministry leader for a fresh perspective. He or she may see challenges and opportunities you don’t.

You may not need to hire to address your needs. Training could be an option instead. Perhaps someone in your network has a professional graphic designer who can spend time with the designer on your team to walk through some key principles. Or your agency friend may know a freelance writer who can jump in on a short-term project while also sketching out messaging guidelines for your team.

This section deserves a lot more space, but at the highest level we need to ask ourselves at this point, OK, I’ve got the right team. How do I keep them and allow them to bring themselves to this work?

We recommend thinking through a system of constant improvement: performance reviews, accountability, and professional development. Instituting these best practices now will pay dividends in a team growing professionally and even more committed to moving your mission forward.

We love helping ministries build their capacity
and invest in their teams.

Reach out with any questions or needs you have and I’ll be happy to provide resources or explore with you if Kumveka can help in this area.

Learn More

• Case Study: ACSI See what it looks like to invest in your marketing and marketing team.

• How an Intentionally Designed Team Fosters Flourishing. Your values influence your culture.

• Why Should You Use an Agency? Insight into why bringing in an outside perspective can make you better.