How accurate are your employees’ job descriptions?

Most places I’ve worked might present a job description during the application process, but by the time the employee is one year in, their responsibilities have morphed so many times that their job description is unrecognizable.

I’ve also seen organizations take the opposite approach, making a description so general it will never go out of style: Do your job or Other duties as assigned, it reads with the assumption that everyone clearly understands what that looks like. Yet neither approach really helps foster realistic or clear expectations on either side.

Job descriptions are the anchor for each and every position and help avoid unclear expectations and miscommunications that can lead to all sorts of problems. A good job description sets your employee up for success. Specific descriptions may vary from role to role and organization to organization. However, we work with a lot of churches and ministries, and have come up with the three non-negotiable points of a solid job description that often get overlooked.

1. At-Will Statement

Basically, this means that the employer or employee may end the employment relationship at any time and for any reason—as long as it’s not discriminatory, of course.

Most states are at-will. Be sure to check your specific state’s laws to make sure your policy is in compliance with both state and federal regulations, then include a statement in the job description to ensure both employee and employer are in agreement.

2. Spiritual Requirements or Lifestyle Agreement Acknowledgement

Every church should have a Staff Lifestyle Agreement which outlines expectations of conduct from their staff and employees. Be sure to reference the Staff Lifestyle Agreement and any other spiritual requirements in each job description. This might include adherence to the church’s Statement of Faith.

Clearly outline all spiritual requirements to ensure employees understand them and agree to abide by them. It serves your staff well to clearly communicate what is expected of them. If ever there is a disciplinary issue in regards to conduct, referring back to their job description will be helpful.

3. Signature of Acknowledgement

As a final measure, create a place for your employees to sign and date their job description. This confirms they have not only received it, but reviewed and agreed to all its contents. We also recommend their direct supervisor sign and date it during the time when they review it with the employee and have it saved in the employee’s personnel file. These signatures may prove crucial if there is ever any question regarding expectations or essential job duties. It clearly shows that your employee was presented with and understood their role and responsibilities.

But what if the job description keeps changing?

That’s ok. Job descriptions are living documents and will expand and change as positions change. While you do not need to redo and resign everytime you make a little tweak to a job description, major additions or subtractions should be documented.

So What Should You Do Now?

Take some time to go back and reevaluate all your staff’s job descriptions and make sure you’ve included the three things listed above. Job Descriptions at churches and ministries change more than any other industry so job descriptions really need to be reviewed or updated at least annually. Also update them any time there are significant changes to an employee’s responsibilities.

As overwhelming as all this might sound, think of the time and money you will save. This simple document will set you and your employees up for success and could help protect you from potential lawsuits in the future. Laying a clear foundation builds a solid working relationship and long term, healthy employees.
So now, take a deep breath and don’t stress!

Special from HRMinistry Solutions

HRMinistry Solutions is a non-profit friend of XPastor. We normally don’t include promo deals in our articles, but for this non-profit we will …

HRMinistry Solutions has created a simple solution to help you with your job descriptions in our Job Description DIY Bundle. This all-inclusive solution walks you through everything you need to know about creating and implementing compliant and healthy job descriptions!

You’ll receive clear how-to guides that take you from formation to implementation along with bite-sized videos that help explain the whole process in even more detail. Plus, you can customize and personalize more than ten sample job descriptions, emails as well as utilize numerous tools and templates that make this project go from scary to simple.

For the remainder of 2022, HRMinistry Solutions is offering a special discount to our friends at XPastor. Use promo code XP50 for $50 off our Job Description DIY Bundle.