Code of Ethics and Conduct

 New Employee Orientation Checklist

Code of Ethics and Conduct – Code-of-ethics and conduct statements are a way to communicate established boundaries and set expectations for ethical employee behaviors.

Employee Goal Document – Employee goals should be written to support organizational or department goals.

Employee Handbook Acknowledgment Form – Ask employees to sign and acknowledge receipt of the employee handbook. This form should be kept in the employee HR file.

Employee Job Description – Creating church staff  job descriptions is one way to help keep employees focused on the most important tasks that support global ministry goals and objectives.

Employee Orientation Checklist – New employees need lots of information to help them get acclimated to the new work environment.  Use a new employee checklist to ensure that all important information is shared.

Employee Satisfaction Survey – There is something church leaders can do to learn about the employee experience and that is to just ask them!

Employment Application – The hiring process should be streamlined with a structured recruitment, application, screening and communication process for job applicants.

Exit Interview Form – When employees leave employment, it is always good to have a conversation with them and try to learn about their employment experience.

Hiring Checklist – There are many steps to hiring an employee.  A checklist ensures all steps are completed.

Interview Questions and Guide – Interviewing candidates requires asking tough questions. This guide will help you know what to ask as well as what not to ask.

Manager Evaluation Form – It is important to evaluate the people who manage and supervise employees and should be evaluated on their ability to lead others.

Medical Certification Form – If you offer a medical leave benefit, this form will help you gather the needed information for approving a paid medical leave.

Merit Increase Score and Raise Percentages – This template will help you allocate raise dollars based on performance scores.

Note Taking Log – Maintaining a history of conversations with employees (or volunteers) is critical to managing performance. This sample log will help you create a process for all important documentation.

Organizational Chart – Every church has a hierarchy. Creating a hierarchy or church organizational chart document helps to keep everyone on the same page.

Paid Time Off Request Form – The advantage of a paid time off policy, is that it provides employees the flexibility to make their own choices in how they use personal time away from the job.

Pay Grade – This example pay grade will provide you with a starting point for formalizing pay grades for your organization.

Pay Grade With Salaries – This template takes pay grades to the next level by adding a column that shows pay ranges within the pay grades.

Performance Appraisal – Effective church management uses the performance appraisal process to help manage employee performance and achievement of ministry goals.

Progressive Discipline Documentation Form – The progressive discipline process requires detailed documentation of employee behaviors. This form provides a tool to document those difficult conversations.

Regret Letter To Job Candidates – It is difficult to communicate to a candidate that they were not hired. A form letter that is customized for each applicant keeps the process consistent with all candidates.

Resume Screening Guide – Screening countless resumes can be laborious. This screening guide can help you sort through promising applicants.

Sabbatical Leave Form – Sabbatical leaves can be a blessing for people in ministry. This form provides the needed information for confirming and approving the leave.

Self Appraisal Form – Employee self appraisals can serve as a very powerful tool for managers.  If done correctly, this tool can reveal employee perceptions of the workplace, how it is managed and things that could be done to improve the worker experience.

Service Standards – Providing a great church experience for visitors and members is critical to church credibility and growth. Taking the time to conduct service training for church employees and volunteers prepares them to provide that great church experience.

Temp Employment Agreement – There can be busy seasons for a church when it may be practical to hire someone on a temporary basis.  This is when a temporary agreement form might be used.  Be sure to consult your attorney for specific legal language for your organization.

Training Evaluation Form – An effective training evaluation form will identify strengths in the class, weaknesses in the content and sometimes weaknesses in the training method or presentation. Understanding the weaknesses can help provide the opportunity to improve the class.

Tuition Reimbursement Request – Managing a church often requires higher education.  For this reason many churches offer tuition reimbursement as a church employee benefit.

Baptism – Baptism volunteers help to assist members as they prepare for Baptism.

Bookstore – Bookstore volunteers help to assist customers and keep the store neat and orderly.

Children’s Ministry – Children’s ministry volunteers help to care for the children, keep the kids safe and their activities organized.

Church Office – Many churches rely on volunteers to help bridge the administrative help gap of the church office.

Communion Assistant – Preparing the elements for communion requires many hands of committed volunteers.

Facility – Churches rely on the help of facility volunteers to make sure the church is neat, clean and maintained.

Greeter – Greeters help to welcome members, guests and visitors to a church service.

Musician – Musicians are an important part of a church service and most churches rely heavily on volunteers to lead the church in worship.

Offering Counter – Counting the weekly offering is an important job that is often done by a church volunteer.

Parking Assist – Churches often use volunteers to help members and guests with parking and crowd control.

Usher – Ushers are an important part of the church services as they help greet and seat members and guests.

Welcome Center – Volunteers help to answer questions and assist members and guests.

Youth Ministry – Volunteers help to supervise youth and plan and organize youth services and events.

Background Check – Every volunteer should go through a thorough background screening as part of their volunteer application process and rechecked every couple of years.

Event Organizational Chart – I am a visual person so I like to work with organizational charts when planning events because they clearly show who has responsibility for what and what the pecking order is.  Chain-of-command is less about who is on the top of the rung as it is who can make decisions and help facilitate a smooth process.

Volunteer Application – The volunteer application process is significant because it speaks to the credibility of the organization.  An efficient process helps volunteers feel confident with getting involved and helps to keep the application information organized.

Volunteer Approval Letter – Once volunteers have gone through the application and approval process, send them a letter to notify them and get them started!

Volunteer File Check Sheet – Managing volunteers requires organization. A tool to help keep you organized through the recruitment, application and placement process is a volunteer check sheet.

Volunteer Job Description – Volunteers should be placed in the job that best fits their personality and skill-set.  All volunteer roles should have a detailed role description to ensure the volunteer has a good understanding of their job and what is expected of them.

Volunteer Satisfaction Survey – Volunteers give of their time because they care about the organization and have a passion for its mission. Volunteers who are engaged with the organization often maintain a long term relationship. One way to engage them is to create a system that facilitates two-way communication between the organization and its volunteers.

Volunteer Satisfaction Improvement Plan – Feedback is only as effective as your ability to process that information and make necessary changes to improve how things are done.

Volunteer Satisfaction Survey Graphs – When you solicit feedback from volunteers, it is helpful when you track volunteer responses.  This template can help you tack responses and create a graph to share with leadership.

Volunteer Orientation PowerPoint Template (PowerPoint software is required to use this template) – Use this training template to give you a kickstart on your volunteer orientation.

Benevolence Application – Most churches deal with requests for benevolence assistance at one time or another. Create benevolence guidelines in place so everyone understands the steps to take when a request comes in.

Board Retreat Agenda – This is an agenda for a church board meeting to create a mission, vision and values statement. The mission answers the question why the organization exists, the vision points to where it is headed and the values are the guiding principles for prioritization, behaviors and decision making.

Business Meeting Agenda – Effective meetings have a specific agenda and time allotments for each agenda item. Use a basic church business meeting agenda format and modify it based on the goal of the meeting.

Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Form – Create reporting forms that are easy to understand and that provide instructions for completion and who to deliver the forms to.

Church Goal Document – Organizations that establish priorities, write and achieve goals get things done! Churches need to develop a strategy and write goals that support strategic objectives. 

Church Member Survey – Soliciting feedback is one way to determine the perception of how well the church is meeting member needs. These 13 questions to ask church members can help you learn about their experience.

Code of Conduct – Many organizations create code-of-ethics and conduct statements as a way to communicate established boundaries and set expectations for ethical behaviors. This document also serves as a tool to help guide decision making and actions that demonstrate self regulation.

Cleaning and Maintenance Schedule – Create a schedule for weekly, monthly and annual routine maintenance and detail cleaning like dusting blinds, cleaning air ducts, cleaning light fixtures, wiping down cabinets, etc.

First Time Visitor Survey – Understanding the visitor experience can provide valuable information that can be used to create a first time experience that makes visitors want to come back.

Incident Report – Keeping records is crucial to good church management. Documenting incidents of fire, theft, injury or any other potential risk is part of that management process.

New Membership Class Meeting Agenda – Membership classes can help congregants understand the church’s history, why it exists and what it hopes to achieve and the member’s role in helping fulfill its mission.

Restroom Cleaning Checklist – Provide consistent cleaning of campus restrooms by creating a cleaning checklist to remind custodians and/or volunteers of all cleaning surfaces, use of chemicals and cleaning process.

Visitor Information Card – Use visitor cards to gather information about visitors and encourage them to return for a second visit.

Visitor Thank You Letter – Follow up with visitor with a thanks for visiting letter.

Cash Handling Policy – Cash handling policies and procedures are critical to ensure the safeguarding of church funds.

Child Abuse and Neglect Policy – Churches care for the children in its care and recognizes that child abuse and neglect of minor children under the age of 18 can have a long term impact on a child’s development. Every state has a reporting mandate and employees and volunteers who care for children should be aware of reporting requirements and the procedures for handling the reporting of child abuse and neglect.

Confidentiality Policy – People who work (free or paid) for a church are often exposed to confidential information. These employees and volunteers are responsible for maintaining confidentiality of this sensitive information.

Sabbatical Leave Policy – A sabbatical program should be facilitated by the church board and be directed by a leave policy that provides clear expectations, application process and logistical information to help the applicant.

Sick Leave Policy – This document helps employees understand what portion of their salary will be compensated, how long they can be away from the job and what criteria needs to be met to qualify for the benefit.