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Coaching
Team Policy
Mission/Purpose:
The coaching team's primary purpose is to encourage personal, spiritual
and professional growth of the professional staff members. Through honest
feedback and:a supportive environment, each team enables its staff member
to reflect on their performance and growth as a member of the Prospect
Presbyterian Church staff and as a Christian.
This page contains information and concerns about employment, education
and tax matters specifically for those who work or volunteer as musicians
in the PC(USA). You will find articles relating to Session Personnel Committees,
Worship/Music Committees, Creating Positon Descriptions, Educational Requirements,
Performance Reviews, Contracts, Salary Guidelines, Continuing Education
Requirements, Pension and Medical Benefits, Dispute Resolution, Reconcilliation,
and Professionals in Adversity.
Accountability:
The coaching teams are accountable to the Session through the Personnel
Committee. The teams shall provide written reports to the Personnel Committee
following each team meeting. At least ?once per year, one or more representatives
of each coaching team will meet in person with the Personnel Committee,
with no staff members present, to provide an opportunity for feedback
and discussion of the performance evaluation, evaluation of the coaching
team process for the year, and any other matters of interest to the coaching
team and/or the committee.
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Constitution
of Coaching teams:
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team shall consist of five to seven people, as follows: |
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Two
to four members of Prospect Church who work with the staff member
on a regular basis. |
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One
peer from another congregation who works in the same or a related
field. |
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A
coach/counselor - which will be the pastor, or in the case of the
pastor's team, an appropriate member filling the coach/counselor role. |
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The
staff person. |
Qualifications
of team members
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Each
team member should have a love for the staff member and a passion
for his or her ministry. They should be able to offer honest feedback
that helps the staff member to grow. |
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Congregation
members shall be persons who are active in the church and who work
with the staff person frequently. |
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The
Coach/counselor should
be someone, who has skills to draw out the, thoughts and reflections
of the other team members. |
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The
peer should be someone who brings the perspective of someone outside
Prospect Church who works in the field. He/she should be known and
trusted by the staff member. |
Team
Selection and Terms of Service
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Normally
the coaching team members are selected by the staff member and confirmed
by Personnel Committee. Staff members are encouraged to seek and consider
suggestions from the Personnel Committee regarding the selection of
the members of their teams. |
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Members
shall usually serve at least a three year term, but annual reaffirmation
of desire to serve is encouraged. There is no term limitation. |
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The
Personnel Committee will annually review and, as appropriate, reconfirm
or recommend changes to the team membership. |
Team
Meeting Frequency and Objectives
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team shall meet at least quarterly, but may meet more frequently if
matters arise that require greater attention. The objectives for the
quarterly meetings are: |
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First
quarter: Review goals developed by the staff person and develop supporting
objectives: Normally, the goals shall be divided into two areas of
growth and performance with no more than four in each area. Under
each goal, measurable objectives will be listed to support the achievement
of the goal. |
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Second
quarter: Provide feedback on competencies to the staff member: Using
the notebook provided from Del Poling, the staff member selects competencies
for feedback and the team may suggest other competencies. The discussion
at this meeting will focus on the feedback and ways to grow and improve. |
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Third
quarter: Review progress on goals with an eye toward the evaluation
that will be sent to the personnel committee. One member of the coaching
team will prepare a report to the personnel committee that will constitute
the annual evaluation. |
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Fourth
quarter: A final review of goals and a discussion of possible goals
for the coming year: As part of this process, the staff member reflects
on personal strengths and weaknesses in light of the job description
and year's experiences. On the basis of this meeting, the staff member
will develop goals and objectives for the next year. |
Evaluation
Process
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Evaluations
will include a review of current goals and objectives as well as the
job description for the position. |
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The
Personnel Committee will collect feedback from key leaders in the
congregation and provide it to the Coaching Team for input to the
process. (see attachment) |
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The
staff person will take the initiative in the evaluation process during
the team meeting, but a member of the team other than the staff person
will prepare the report. |
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Reports
will be submitted to the Personnel Committee in writing. |
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Reports
will include a list of the goals and objectives including progress
to date on those goals. |
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Particular
strengths of the staff person may be highlighted along with suggestions
for growth. |
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Reports
will be due by the April meeting of the Personnel Committee.
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Handling Conflicts
or Concerns
Ideally, the coaching
team process is one that should diminish conflict through a regular time
of coaching and feedback. However, conflicts may develop in spite of our
best efforts. During times of conflict in the congregation or staff, the
team shall provide a safe place to explore the ways in which the staff
person manages conflict by serving as a mirror to examine how the staff
person's work and personality contribute to or diminish conflict and providing
a place to help the staff person strategize appropriate and healthy response
to conflict.
In the event of
conflict or other situation of concern, the coaching team should be able
to bring feedback from the Personnel Committee and communicate appropriate
information back to the Personnel Committee. Concerns from the committee
should be communicated in writing to the coach of the staff person's team
with a copy to the staff person. When the Coaching Team or Personnel Committee
deem it important, a member of the Personnel Committee may be invited
to a coaching team meeting or a representative of the coaching team may
be invited to a Personnel Committee meeting to clarify concerns. Individual
coaching team members may also raise concerns directly with the Personnel
Committee by contacting the committee chairperson.
Attachment: Personnel Committee Role in Program Staff
Evaluation Process
Despite the significant
role of the Coaching Team, the overall responsibility for the evaluation
of the program staff resides with the Personnel Committee. In addition
to ensuring that the process is followed, the Personnel Committee is specifically
responsible for:
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Collecting
feedback from key church leaders and providing that feedback to the
coaching team prior to their third quarter evaluation meeting. (This
should be initiated in January or early February in order to meet
the timetable.) |
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Receiving
the evaluation report and ensuring that any required clarification
is obtained. |
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Providing
feedback to the Coaching Team regarding the evaluation process, as
well as any other aspects of the Coaching Team process to assist the
team in making it as effective as possible. |
The Personnel Committee
will determine which persons they will request to provide performance
feedback for each program staff member. These will typically include the
committee chair and/or other significant lay leader(s) in the committee(s)
staffed by the staff member as well as other members of the congregation
or staff if appropriate. The request for feedback should provide some
structure (via leading questions and/or a survey form) to facilitate the
responses provided. This structure should incorporate the current year
goals and objectives and job description dimensions for the staff member.
It should also request feedback specific to the area(s) in which the responder
works closely with the staff member.
A possible sample
letter requesting personnel feedback follows. Alternatively, a form similar
to those used for the hourly staff could be employed.
(sample based upon
materials in the Gerry Tyer article "Evaluation of Pastors and Program
Staff Members" dated February 4, 2000 and adapted for consistency
with Prospect Church procedures and organization.)
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