Except for the decision of which minister to hire, the selection of your Search Committee Chair is THE MOST important decision that the Elders will make during the hiring process.
The Committee Chair sets the pace, drives the process and becomes the “face” of the Committee both internally and externally. Candidates will often develop their first impressions of your congregation based off of their interactions with the Chair. So the Chair can have a great deal of impact on which ministers ultimately become or remain Candidates for your position.
The selection of a Committee Chair should be an intentional decision on the part of the Elders. One that is made after careful consideration and prayer. It is not a popularity contest or something that someone should accept reluctantly. You are looking for the best qualified man to lead the process. So what qualities, skills and attributes should your elders be looking for in a Chair? Here are some of the most important facets to consider…
Relational
You need someone that has the trust and respect of the congregation. They should have roots in the congregation but that doesn’t mean that they have to be a “lifer” who was born and raised there. They just need to know your members and likewise be known by them. Their views should be doctrinally sound and consistent with those of the majority of your congregation.
Collaborative
You are looking for someone who works well in a collaborative environment and helps to promote consensus. They should be both an encourager and an accountability partner who will coach the Committee through the ups and downs of a long search process and keep everyone focused on the next step in the process.
Servant Leader
Closely related to that, we are also looking for someone who practices the same humble, servant / leader model that we see patterned in the life of Christ. Beware of the person who “campaigns” to be Search Committee Chair. Their intentions may be pure, but there often is a lack of humility hidden in there somewhere that can cause friction in a collaborative process. In many cases, the “right” Chair often has to be convinced that they are in fact the “right” person for the job.
Communicative
You need someone who is an effective communicator both orally and in written form. They should be able to stand before the congregation or the elders and deliver a report from the Committee. Their writing style should be professional and grammatically sound as they send letters, e-mails and other correspondence to candidates and their references.
Administrative
Last, they should be highly organized and an effective planner. In committee meetings, they should be capable of setting an agenda and keep everyone on time and on point. They should also be proficient with modern-day technologies such as e-mail, the world wide web and online file storage platforms (i.e. Dropbox). They need not have experience in past minister searches, but ideally they would at least have some experience with the hiring and supervision of people in some other capacity.
Now, having described “Mr. Perfect,” there is no such thing as a perfect Search Committee Chair because there is no such thing as a perfect person. What I have described here is the “ideal” candidate. What you are looking for is the person in your congregation that best typifies the attributes that I have described here.
If you are in the midst of planning your search for a new minister and would like to discuss the selection of our Search Committee Chair or some other aspect of the process, I would be happy to speak with you by phone at any time. Just call our offices at (931) 881-3930 or e-mail me at don(at)ministermatch.com if I can ever be of assistance.