Four Essentials for a Staff Person’s Success
There are four essential elements for a staff person’s success:

• A clearly defined role (job description)
• Regular feedback (annual review)
• Missional clarity (what the individual or team is to be about)
• Executive empowerment (delegated authority to fulfill one’s role)

Have you received all four of these?

Let’s look at just one area, the job description.

What’s in a Job Description?
A job description provides a very clear set of expectations.

So many global workers I engage have ill defined roles. Further, those roles are usually multiple. In the end the person is frustrated (as well as exhausted) as none of the roles are fulfilled well.

Ministry misfit is too common a dynamic in cross-cultural work. This reality is but one cause of attrition.

A clearly defined role and responsibility is an essential element for healthy workers and effective work. To not take the time to develop accurate roles can lead to loss of personnel at worst and ineffective work in the least. This is avoidable attrition.

Potential Impact of Ill-Defined Roles
Directionless.  We all need clear direction. Identifying expectations can be clearer direction.  A job description is the first step toward addressing these areas.

Misfit. Too many workers are placed in  roles that they are not gifted or skilled for. A wiser course is to explore their gifts, skills, personality, and sense of dreams and calling with them. The solution could be as easy as a merely a lateral move to a better fit for them. It is better to not fill a role and have a worker placed in an area of effectiveness than cram that person in the wrong role. Otherwise, the job might not be done well and you could lose the worker in the long haul.

Overload. Way too many of us carry multiple roles that present an unrealistic level of work. Exhaustion and ineffectiveness can be the result. We want to make sure the expectations are realistic. Overreach is not effectiveness.

What Can You Do?
If you are interacting with a worker who expresses lack of direction, feeling misfit for the role, or otherwise overwhelmed with the sheer amount of work before them, you can ask them about a clearly defined job description. If this is not a common practice in their role, help them write on out to be submitted to a supervisor.

How about you, shepherd?
What is your job description? Is it clearly defined? Are you given permission to focus in your areas of gifting and skill sets? Who can help you write a clear, concise, well thought out job description?

Anyone seen  brilliant member care job description they would be willing to share? We all need good models. Thanks!