Hey Fletch … We have some serious problems at the church and are also interviewing a senior pastor candidate. Should we tell the candidate about our big issues before or after he has accepted a job? If I tell him, he may not come.
If I do not tell him, later he will ask why the problems were not shared.
DRF—I would suggest having a frank conversation as soon as possible. Give the candidate a broad perspective of the issues. Let him know the strengths and limitations. You don’t want to scare him away, but you also don’t want to intentionally hold any major issue back.
You may be surprised. A smart candidate should have already been surfacing issues. Your conversation may not raise any new issues! If you wait until after he has accepted the position, he will rightly feel deceived.
