Retaining Staff Over the Long-Haul

By: Rod Whitlock

 

A strategy for retaining staff, highlighting data, research, and action steps.

 

 

1. Create a Healthy Staff Culture

 

• Data: According to a 2022 Barna report, a positive workplace culture is the #1 factor influencing church staff satisfaction.
• Key Idea: Develop a culture where staff feel valued, appreciated, challenged, and supported.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Regular team-building activities and retreats that focus on spiritual and relational health.
  • Foster open communication and collaboration between departments.
  • Offer time off, occasional weekends away, while a healthy enforcement of Sabbath.

 

2. Provide Clear Role Expectations and Growth Opportunities

 

• Research: Studies show that 94% of employees are more likely to stay with an organization that invests in their professional development (LinkedIn, 2019).
• Key Idea: Ensure every staff member clearly understands expectations, has measurable goals, and sees a clear path for growth.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Regular performance reviews paired with personal coaching and growth plans.
  • Offer opportunities for further education, leadership training, and certifications.
  • Promote internally when possible to show staff they can grow within the church.

 

 

3. Prioritize Emotional and Spiritual Health

 

• Experience: In ministry, staff often give emotionally and spiritually without being poured into themselves. Lack of appreciation and feeling devalued are the top reasons staff leave.
• Key Idea: Prioritize the health of your team’s soul and emotional well-being.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Implement mandatory sabbaticals for long-term staff (every 5-7 years).
  • Provide access to coaching, counseling services, or spiritual mentors.
  • Implement regular check-ins with senior leadership to gauge stress and give support.

 

 

4. Offer Competitive Compensation and Benefits

 

• Data: A 2023 survey by Vanderbloemen found that 60% of church staff leave due to financial challenges.
• Key Idea: Offer competitive salaries and benefits that reflect the cost of living and recognize the value of the ministry work they will perform.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Conduct regular salary reviews using benchmarks from organizations like Vanderbloemen or ChurchSalary.com.
  • Provide retirement plans, financial planning assistance, health insurance, childcare, moving expenses, and allowances for ministry-related expenses, such as conferences, growth resources, meals, etc.
  • Offer practical perks such as a family leave policy, flexible work hours, gym membership, healthy snacks for the office, etc.

 

 

5. Build Strong Leadership and Trust

 

• Research: Gallup reports that their direct leader influences 70% of employee engagement.
• Key Idea: Staff will stay longer when they feel trusted, empowered, and supported by leadership.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Equip senior leadership with training in leadership and emotional intelligence.
  • Allow staff autonomy in decision-making within their areas of responsibility.
  • Recognize and celebrate staff achievements publicly to build morale.

 

 

6. Foster a Strong Sense of Mission and Calling

 

• Experience: Ministry staff often endure challenges because they feel deeply connected to the church’s mission. When that connection fades, so does their desire to stay.
• Key Idea: Keep the mission front and center and ensure staff feel their contributions make a difference.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Regularly share stories of life transformation happening in the church to remind staff why their work matters.
  • Allow staff to spend time in areas outside their roles (e.g., worship pastors joining outreach events) to refresh their passion.
  • Create opportunities for staff to grow spiritually as a team (prayer retreats, staff prayer and devotions, etc.).

 

 

7. Conduct Exit Interviews and Learn from Departures

 

• Data: 70% of organizations do not have formal processes to understand why employees leave (SHRM, 2021).
• Key Idea: Understand why staff leave and use that feedback to improve retention strategies.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Conduct structured, confidential exit interviews to identify trends in staff turnover.
  • Make adjustments based on patterns (e.g., if multiple staff cite workload, evaluate job descriptions).
  • Keep relationships positive with departing staff; they may return in the future or recommend others.

 

 

8. Invest in Relational Leadership

 

• Experience: Staff are likelier to stay when they feel relationally connected to their lead pastor and leadership team.
• Key Idea: Retention starts with relationships—invest in your team, and they’ll invest in your mission.
• Actionable Steps:
  • Schedule regular one-on-one meetings between staff and senior leaders.
  • Celebrate milestones like birthdays, work anniversaries, and personal achievements.
  • Create informal opportunities for staff and leaders to connect, such as shared meals or family events.

 

 

Churches can create an environment where staff feel valued, supported, and motivated to stay for the long haul by focusing on culture, clarity, compensation, spiritual health, and leadership. When pastors invest in their teams relationally, spiritually, and practically, the result is not just staff retention but a thriving ministry that fulfills its mission more effectively.