The Role of a “Typical” Church Administrator

Published in INSIGHT - Fall 2016
By Tim Cool

If I were a research specialist and were asked to decipher the role of church administrator based on what I heard at the 2016 TCN Conference…here is what the requirements and responsibilities could look like:

 Prerequisites:
1. Have a business degree...preferably an MBA
2. Have 10-20 years of highly successful business experience prior to becoming an administrator
3. Have an accounting degree…preferably with a CPA designation
4. Strong skills with Outlook, Excel, Word, Power Point, Quick Books and at least 20 church management software applications
5. Be fluent with PC’s and Apple products
6. Have a degree in religion

 Role and responsibilities include…but are not limited to the following:
1. Lead and manage the church staff…except for the maverick pastoral staff…they are free to do whatever they want
2. Manage all accounting functions including but not limited to
    •General ledger
    •Banking
    •Online giving
    •Audits
    •Payroll
    •Budgeting
    •Credit card management
    •Petty cash
    •Capital reserves (if they even have one!!!!)
    •Money counting during services
    •Expense reports
3. Manage the food service operations
4. Manage all aspects of the facilities…LORD HAVE MERCY!
    •Facility staff
    •Janitorial duties
    •Grounds maintenance
    •Preventive maintenance
    •Vendor contracts and bidding
    •Work orders
    •Facility usage and scheduling for events
    •The Building HVAC systems, controlling the temperature for each unit
    •Facility emergencies and all complains related to the same
    •Energy efficiency
    •Facility use policies and enforcement
    •All things security
    •Keys, FOBs and Access cards
    •Facility rental or the rental of off campus facilities
    •Toilet repairman
5. Purchasing Agent for anything and everything the church needs
6. Manage all things IT such as 
    •Computers
    •Software upgrades
    •Software purchases and patches
    •Server management
    •IT security
    •Printers
    •Office equipment
    •Mobile app
    •ChMS selection, on-boarding, implementation and training
    •Third party integration •Mobile phones and other devices
    •Child Check-in •Website and digital signage
7. Manage all things insurance
8. Manage all things legal
9. Oversee all things Communications (you would have to ask Mark MacDonald what this entails)
10. Oversee all things HR (This could be a post all by itself)
11. Manage Construction (no joke!!!!)
12. Be involved in the ministry of the church
13. Find a way to also volunteer in your “spare time”
14. Lead a mission trip
15. Coordinate Volunteer management 
16. Become a Certified Church Administrator with The Church Network
Get my point?!?!?

Thank you administrators for ALL you do!

Tim Cool
Chief Solutions Officer and Project Facilitator
704.507.8672
@tlcool
http://about.me/TLCool