I'm taking a lunch break after a morning conducting interviews for an open position in our office. This is probably the sixth or seventh search committee I've served on and while it can be a lot of work, I've always appreciated the opportunity to be on the "other side" of the interviewing table. I was never great in interviews, and it's a wonder how I even got a job at all. But being on the hiring side, you get a valuable perspective of what managers are looking for in candidates, what annoys them, and what makes one stand out.
It can also be trying to find a needle in a haystack for some positions that require that people wear a lot of "different hats" in the role. Sure, you want someone who is technologically adept and can interpret data and reports...but you also need them to be a people person, willing to travel, be a good team player but also able to work independently, has the right background and experience, etc etc...and willing to work for less than they can make elsewhere.
The parish office administrator (or to use the old-school nomenclature, the "church secretary") is one of those positions. They wear a lot of different hats--they do administrative work, sure, but it's not all bulletins and church envelope mailing. It's fielding calls from a dizzyingly wide array of issues from "What time is Christmas Eve Mass?" to "I need a priest, my father is dying!" to "I'm considering becoming Catholic and don't know where to start." It's being a dependable confidant to the pastor. It's organizing church and social functions, it's accounting, it's bookkeeping...the list goes on and on. And all this for typically a low to modest salary.
The most important aspect of their position, however, is that they are the first point of contact for many people to the parish particularly, and the Church as a whole. As someone who recruits for a living, I'm always cognizant that I am the "face" of the institution I work for. If I come off as condescending, ignorant, uninterested, or fail to return correspondence in a timely manner, I'm not only not doing my job effectively--I'm communicating to that prospective applicant that this is what people at XYZ Organization are like. They have other options, and if I make a bad impression, there is no shortage of other competitors who will give them the royal treatment and welcome them to learn more. First impressions go a long way, for good and for bad.
I told our pastor recently after our parish Trunk or Treat: "Make sure you take care of M___ (our parish administrator); she's a diamond in the rough." And she is. She's warm, welcoming, responsive, empathetic, organized, hard-working, faithful, social, and loyal. She's everything we could ask for, and our pastor knows it. We have been growing as a parish, and I know she plays a part in that.
On the flip side, I remember having a conversation with a woman I supervise one day and we were talking about kids, family, etc. She mentioned that when her kids were younger, she took them to the parish office to have them enrolled in Catholic school. When she encountered the church secretary and inquired, she was curtly told "we don't do enrollments this day. You'll have to come back tomorrow on the day we do them," or something that effect. Understandable. And it was also understandable that my Catholic co-worker immediately exited with her kids, enrolled her kids at the local public school, and never darkened the door of that particular church again.
Like it or not, the parish office administrator/secretary is the GATEKEEPER to your church. She can be a door of welcome, or a complete barrier to keeping the lights on. Getting the person in that position right is probably more crucial than the youth minister, the DRE, the sacristan, the finance council, the parish council, and probably any other employee of that parish.
So, though I am not a pastor and I do not work for the Church, I would offer the following advice for those who are or do to ensure that you don't put up needless barriers to current or potential parishioners when hiring for this position:
Pay them as much as you can
It is a worthwhile investment. We communicate value, for better or worse, through compensation. This doesn't always have to be in W-2 fashion, but even modestly increasing a secretarial salary by an extra $2,000-$3,000/yr can go a long way in retention and attracting the right candidate. If that is not possible for whatever reason, taking her out to lunch, giving a kind of monetary or non-monetary bonus, giving her extra days off--whatever it takes to keep or hire a good administrator will pay dividends for you. Pay her compliments and reward incentive and initiative, provided it is in line with the parish and pastor's mission.
Train them in customer service
We don't usually equate customer service with anything related to the Church; it's corporate lingo. But believe me, it goes a long way, and it doesn't take much. Encouraging little things like greeting people, being friendly, smiling, being flexible and accommodating, returning calls and emails promptly, and going above and beyond is not at odds with the function of an office administrator. If anything, it's the most important thing; again, because they are the "face" of the Church. It sets the tone for who you are as a parish and what you want to become. There is also the second-hand effects of evangelizing those with whom they come into (first) contact with. The church secretary may be the only person from the Church a non-believer encounters in a phone call, and that can set a trajectory for life. It's no small thing!
Encourage them in their prayer life
I think it was St. Catherine who said, "I'd rather have a trained spiritual director than a holy one." The parish secretary should be a practicing Catholic, obviously, but I would venture to say the non-religious aspects of their personality and temperaments related to the job should outweigh their piety. But you also don't want to hire someone who doesn't exude the love of Christ and live in alignment with Church teaching. Again, this can feel like a needle in a haystack, but the more you set the example of holiness and virtue as a pastor (and lead your flock in that way), the more you inspire those who work for you to do the same. Prayer has a way of changing us, increasing virtue and patience, kindness, love, understanding, etc...all the kinds of qualities you want in the front-facing staff member answering the phone and meeting people at the door.
Treat them as part of a team and give them a voice
When we have buy-in in an organization, we tend to believe in the mission and even put in extra work because we feel a part of something, valued, appreciated...that we belong there. This means having a clear vision and mission for your parish, and communicating that to potential applicants so that their own values align with that of the church or organization. That, in turn, will ensure they want to come to work, want to do their best, want to go above and beyond in their position. Treat the custodian, the office administrator, the sacristan not as less-than-important in relation to other members, but as vital to the overall goal of leading people to Christ, giving glory to God in worship, bringing in more revenue...whatever. How you treat those "beneath" you is not only a reflection of good servant-leadership, but how you live your life of faith. As St. Benedict said in his Rule, "Welcome all guests as Christ."
Be willing to let someone go
A parish like any organization should be true to its mission, and the chain is only as strong as its weakest link. If you have a toxic or apathetic office administrator, this may call for taking a hard look at whether it is helping or hurting your parish. It is not uncommon for organizations to "clean house" when a new administration comes in; of course this takes prudence and discernment. But you need to think hard about keeping someone on just because they have been there a long time, or their family member is a donor, or they are a long time member of such-and-such parish. This smacks of corporate coldness, but sometimes you need to think with a different hat and make hard choices. The Church has suffered enough with kick-the-can syndrome, cover ups, ecclesial cronyism, and a business-as-usual mentality.
We are all familiar with the pejorative term "Karen," someone who gets themselves in a tizzy or acts entitled or angry. I don't know of a similar term for an off-putting church secretary, but I've encountered my share of them in real life, and I can say I don't blame people like my co-worker for saying, "Well, thanks anyway." It's one thing to have a Karen-esqe individual in your pews...it's another to have them being the literal gatekeeper of your parish.
If you have a good parish office administrator on your staff, count your blessings and tell them you appreciate them. A little goes a long way. Hold on to them as long as you can, and realize it's a small but dividend-paying investment in your parish. They will probably be there long after you've been reassigned, but your parishioners and your predecessor will thank you. If you are looking to fill this position, do it mindfully and don't underestimate how important this "gatekeeper" role is for the sake of the Good News of Christ, not to mention your financial bottom line. The more attractive you can make the position, and the more clear you can be about the expectations, the more trouble will spare yourself later.
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