What’s the best way to handle the management of volunteers in a congregation? Is it better for each program area to do its own recruiting and screening (like it’s always been done), or to move to a more centralized approach for the whole church? This question has been posed to Church Volunteer Central frequently, so we decided to help you see the pros and cons so you can decide what’s best for your church.

Decentralized System

This is the traditional system. It worked fairly well when most churches were small and rural, and people rarely moved. When help was needed, the pastor “drafted” someone to fill the slot. This has emerged into moderate-sized churches with more turnover, in which each program area scrambles to fill its own needs with little or no systematic churchwide planning or recruitment. It’s an every-program-on-its-own mentality.

Pros:

• How it’s traditionally been done, so you don’t have to change your system.
• Has worked fairly well in some smaller churches where everyone knows one another.
• Informal; congregational needs and resources are kept in the hands of the pastor and leaders.

What are the cons to this approach, and what is the alternative? Read more