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What to Do When Volunteers Quit in Your Children’s Ministry

When Volunteers Flake Out

We’ve all been at this meeting; your team reconvenes for progress reports for a major ministry event. When it’s Sally’s turn to report (every church has a Sally or Sal), she offers a lengthy monologue filled with excuses as to why she failed to reserve the inflatable games. Or she might even say that she wasn’t aware the team expected her to do so. Worse yet, she might’ve “just noticed” that her family vacation is scheduled the same week as the ministry event. If disorganization were an Olympic event, Sally would be a gold medal decathlete.

As she rambles on, you mentally block out evenings you’ll need to work on the project to make up for her inactivity.

How do you deal with a Sally?

Privately.

Just as with the quitting volunteer, find out whether she’s unwilling or unable to fulfill her commitment. If you discover she’s hopelessly unfit to complete the task or overwhelmed by personal issues, offer her the opportunity to graciously step down. Or find a partner to help guide her.

Chances are, though, you can prevent project management disasters by using the following preventative steps.

  • Only choose volunteers with a proven track record of excellence and faithfulness to join a planning team. Have a volunteer who you think has potential? Sign that person on as an apprentice.
  • Test for fit. Does your Sally excel at starting new ministries but is awful at staying with one task for extended periods of time? Your Sally isn’t flaky; she’s got entrepreneurial leadership gifts. Use her when you need someone to be a visionary catalyst for fledgling ministries. Have your team take a class such as S.H.A.P.E. or Network to help them discover their spiritual gifts. Flakiness is often a symptom of volunteers being shoehorned into the wrong positions.
  • Delegate, don’t dump. Check in with your volunteers to see how they’re progressing with assignments. Ask what challenges they’re facing and if they need any extra support.
  • Use action plans. Don’t hope your team members know what you expect of them. List every task to be accomplished, who’s responsible for the task, and when the task is due. Send every team member home with a copy of the action plan. Clear expectations reduce the likelihood of nasty surprises down the road.

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