These days, everyone seems to have a cell phone. Most Churches have their own telephone systems, typically land lines through ma bell. But would it make sense to switch the Church over to a VoIP system instead? Or maybe just give every staff member a cell phone (i.e. if they don’t already have one?) Would the cost savings make this worthwhile? What has been your Church’s experience?

VoIP is a telephone system that uses the Internet to carry the communication traffic. It requires that you have an Internet connection and a phone with a network jack. However, the handset looks and operates like a regular telephone. So it is at once familiar – i.e. you just pick up the phone and dial the party you want to talk to – and easy to use. However, sometimes network congestion comes into play, so the quality of the call is not as high as a true dedicated line. But the expense is negligible, since you more than likely already have the Internet connection available. This just adds a little bit more traffic, optimizing the service.

Churches have a lot of information about religion available. But how much technical knowledge do they have? Those with Technical Ministry departments depend upon IT professionals to manage things, but what happens when they move on? Churches need a knowledge base from which they can draw when they have technical issues to solve. This could be a section on their website, or it could be a data warehouse on their Intranet.

The idea would be to capture the knowledge of all of those volunteers and staff who work with the technology every week. This could record tips and know-how about the equipment, which could then be shared with those who follow. Otherwise, new volunteers have to relearn the same things as they deal with issues. For example, where do you have a complete wiring diagram of the A/V room? Suppose one of the scan converters starts displaying an error message. How would you diagnose it? With a knowledge base, you could simply look it up. Chances are that it has happened before, and someone figured it out.

Capturing knowledge is a community effort. Everyone should contribute, so that everyone benefits. It will then go a long way towards ensuring that the technology continues to serve the Church, rather than becoming a stumbling block.

For the staff of the Church, what are the Digital Rights that are needed for them to be effective. A lot of Churches don’t have formal IT departments. Maybe they have a part time IT staff person, or maybe they have a 3rd party that provides IT services. That 3rd party is often connected via a member of the Church, so it is a discounted service provided. Thus, it may not always be possible to get a change in Administrative rights for a particular machine accomplished immediately. Should staff members then have Administrator rights over their machines? Some would say “Of course” and others would say “Never.” Where does your Church fall in that spectrum?

How do you measure a congregation? Some would say that you don’t need statistics, just the Word. But any large organization needs to measure itself, to determine what progress it is making in reaching its goals. Whether it be in terms of attendance, or giving, or even parking lot performance, the measurements depend upon data and metrics. And you need to utilize communication channels to keep the entire congregation aware of what information you are gaining by the measurements. Is it time for that new sanctuary because attendance has exploded over the last year? Do we need to reroute traffic to avoid a traffic jam in between services? These are the kinds of information that you need to plan for the future needs of the congregation.

Just as we have One Word – i.e. the Bible as our spiritual source, so the technical ministry needs one source for technology. What makes the most sense to me is a web site that all of the Tech Team can share. Perhaps a blog, or a facebook&tm; page, or an extension to the Church’s existing web site. Either way, it should have the following features:

o Calendar, showing who is working when
o Resources – i.e. technical manuals on equipment used
o Discussions about technical issues – i.e. and how they are resolved

Rather than having one person responsible for the content of this site, let everyone on the Tech Team contribute. Give them all editorial rights to write articles and post them. If someone gets out of line, then step in as administrator and revoke their rights. But be dynamic, and let the website manage itself. Your Tech Team has many creative people on it, and they have great ideas. Let them express those ideas and the whole Church will benefit.

How accurate is the video projected image in your sanctuary? When setting up a projector, there are a number of factors that affect the accuracy. Focal length of the lens; size of the screen; distance to the screen; video resolution of the system feeding the projector. All are important, and have an effect on the resulting image quality. If the image looks like a trapezoid, then you can adjust the “keystoning” to compensate. But be sure your projector remembers this setting – i.e. even when the power is off. Otherwise, you’ll have to do it every week for worship.

What’s the difference between a CMS and a ChMS? A CMS is a Content Management System. A ChMS is a Church Management System. Most Content Management Systems are designed with the following features:

• Make it easy to manage the content of the web site
• Allow multiple people to contribute to the site without being developers
• Improve overall communication with the community
• Enable specific roles for various types of contributors
• Generate reports on content and how it is being used

In contrast, a ChMS or Church Management System needs to do more than simply manage the content of the web site. That is not to say that it could not also include CMS software, just that it is also designed to provide management. I would suggest that a Church Management System needs the following features:

• Membership Management
• Financial Accounting
• Worship Planning
• Calendar Tracking
• Newsletter Support
• Web site Content Management
• Sermon Repository
• Bible Study Resources
• Small Group Support

What does your Church need? Are you still using multiple software packages for multiple tasks – sometimes with little coordination between them? If so, feel free to comment on your wish list for a Church Management System below.

How about adding a web page where volunteers could sign up for the specific service that they would like to give. It would list the current needs, and be filterable by area – e.g. children’s ministry. It would show each task and give some details about what is involved – e.g. VBS volunteer for 5 days meeting 8:00 AM to 12:00 noon each day, working with 8 year old kids. It would then allow people to signup – e.g. commit to being a VBS volunteer this year. They would give their contact information so the Church could followup – i.e. an email address for planning and announcements about VBS. This would help get everyone signed up and build the emailing list all in one step. Does your Church use your web page for this purpose? If so, then how is it working?

How can we use the internet for evangelism? Putting up a Church website is certainly a start, but how do you make the web site an effective witness? You can and should add social networking, where people can both witness and minister to others. Sharing a witness in a very public arena like the internet can be a little daunting. You will want to make sure that you do the following:

• Focus on Jesus Christ, not personal glory
• Limit personally identifiable information, such as addresses and phone numbers
• Identify scripture passages used and which translation – e.g. NIV

By bearing witness to the saving grace of Jesus Christ, you extend the power of evangelism to the web. That doesn’t mean we have to pursue God.tv, but it does mean we use the communication channels available to spread the Gospel.

How does your Church process contributions? A bunch of men may do it in a back room. Or a staff person may be charged with the task on Monday morning. Either way, the process needs to be accurate and financially accountable. But how efficient is it?

One approach would be to automate the processing cycle. Checks could be entered into a system that knows your congregation, recognizing the frequent givers. Records could then be automatically posted to their accounts. Thank yous would be generated for new givers. And the deposit slip would be printed up, ready to take to the bank. This can be done, and it is more efficient. But you always need checks and balances when it comes to handling money. Good stewardship needs to be recognized and supported with financial integrity and certainty. If someone adds a memo line to a check for the youth summer event, then that money needs to go to the youth department for supporting that event. There is always a chance of making mistakes, but you need to find ways to catch those mistakes before the processing is done. What is your experience?

With personal cell phones so ubiquitous, you might think the land lines at the Church are on their way out. However, you still need telephone numbers to the Church office, family life center, and youth programs. What are some options to consider that will enhance features, provide flexible service, and save money?

VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) is a popular option, given the advertising of Vantage, Skype, etc. But can you run a PBX over the Internet? Turns out that you can, with products such as Trixbox. You add a computer to your internal network, program it as a PBX (Private Branch eXchange), and replace all of your phones with VoIP models that connect to the network. Overall, your costs go down, and you can add new features like voicemail to eMail that help your staff manage communications better.

Traditional PBX systems are still around, and many Churches have long term contracts. But eventually these contracts come up for renewal, and consideration can then be given to other telephone service options. Have you made the switch to VoIP? Share your experience with others in a comment.

How do you keep track of equipment that has been loaned out? It can be a challenge to remember who has what and for how long. Technical Ministry requires lots of Audio, Video, and Computer equipment. And various groups in the Church will from time to time need to borrow that equipment. Ideally, it all finds its way back home. But sometimes a piece of equipment gets misplaced before it gets back to the storage area. That can be a problem when some event comes up that requires that piece of equipment. How many times have you heard, “I know it’s here somewhere?”

Informal arrangements can be effective, as long as everyone follows the rules. There are also Asset Management Systems that can be applied. The idea is that a particular piece of equipment would be checked out to the person that has a need. When they are done, the equipment is checked back in. If something gets misplaced, or a critical need comes up, then the Asset Management System identifies where the equipment is and who has it. Instead of frantically searching everywhere, you go straight to the person that has it.

To make these systems work, you will need to conduct an inventory. Every item has to be counted and labeled. A bar code should be assigned that is unique and fully identifies who the equipment belongs to. That way, if it is lost, then it can be found and returned. A bar code reader is required at the check out station to enable the process. Yes, it takes time to check out and in, but a lot less time is spent searching everywhere for something that has gotten misplaced. What kind of Asset Management System does your Church use? Is it formal or informal? And is it effective? Your comments are welcome.

How do you measure attendance? Can you do it automatically? Some Churches have a check in/out procedure for the children’s ministry. It works great for getting the kids in and out, with automated kiosks to streamline the process. A by product is that the children’s attendance is automatically recorded. Computer databases are great at keeping track of such details. From the data recorded, reports can easily be generated.

Adult and Youth worship are a different matter. Traditional Churches used “pew attendance pads” to record attendance. This generates a stack of paperwork for the attendance secretary. But the data can be entered into the database and reports generated. (The forms were also designed to spot visitors so that their information can be passed on to other staff for followup.) All of this is voluntary, but most folks do fill them out.

What if we gave everyone in the Church a witness card? This card would have an RFID chip embedded which would register their attendance when they walked in any door of the sanctuary. All they would have to do is wave the card at a recording station. Would this go over? It would certainly provide automatic attendance recordkeeping – with the computers doing all of the work. However, people might resent the cards. And the youth might lose them frequently.

What do you think would work?

Many Churches use a Wireless LAN for their staff. This allows the staff to roam with their laptops. If the physical plant is large, then this may require multiple transmitters and/or repeaters. The staff sign in via their laptop and have full access to the Internet, Network Printers, online files, etc. In many ways, this is a typical arrangement for IT installations.

What about Sunday mornings? Should the WiFi be enabled at all? There is at least one Church who is inviting their worshipers to use WiFi networking during the service. They provide worship enhancements that people can access on their laptops and/or cell phones. The idea is to add to the worship experience, not take away from it. What do you think?

Most Churches have policies and procedures written down so everyone can read them. They may be published in a book that is distributed to all, or they may even be documented online. Everyone has access, so they become the standard operating guide for how to run the Church. However, there are also disadvantages to this exacting practice:

1. Organization of the Book, and that Book is not the Bible.
After a while, the policies and procedures manual begins to look like a legal document. It no longer gets used just as a guide, but rather becomes a stick to hit people over the head with to make them comply. Remember that the policies were put in place to facilitate our common service, not to be a source of harassment.

2. Rigid Policies Generate Conflict
When policies are carried out unequally, people resent it. This becomes a source of conflict within the congregation. Yes, exceptions do occur, but they should be few and far between, not the norm for one particular individual. There should be documentation that supports making the exception which any reasonable person would conclude warrants it. Otherwise, the policies are seen as ineffective and capricious.

3. Legal Situations Do Arise
Churches, like all organizations, can be sued in civil court. Written policy and procedure statements then become legal documents. Under the eyes of the law, these manuals become legal contracts between the Church and its employees. The Church can find itself having to defend a particular policy in legal action using legal terms. It might not be a bad idea to have the Church’s lawyer review the policies and procedures manual from time to time. Just don’t let them rewrite it in legalese that no one else really understands. Although it may then stand up better in court, it will also cease to be useful to the average person.

4. Out of date policies contribute to Inefficiency.
If you expect the policies to be set in stone, then they will eventually get out of date. Others will then perceive them as unnecessary, since you’ll be constantly making exceptions. At this point, the procedures no longer apply, so why keep trying?

The best practice is to never let the policies be set in stone. Keep them supple and flexible. Review them every year, and ask yourself these questions:

• Does the situation that demanded this policy still confront us?
• If not, then what has changed?
• How should we change this policy to be more efficient?
• Is it too rigid for the average person to apply?
• Is the policy well stated, or confusing and ambiguous?

Part of the reason why you write down policies and procedures is to capture Institutional Memory about how things work best. Keep modifying those documents to ensure that they still work the best way possible. Look for ways to improve them. And in so doing, you’ll make the best use of the resources that the Church has been blessed with – both people and technology.

Did you hear about the Leaning Tower of Pisa finally falling down? Or how about the Space Shuttle landing in San Diego? Or how about the Cell Phone ban in New Zealand? All of these were hoaxes played on April Fools day; and they attracted a lot of attention. Perhaps you’ve got a staff member who likes to play pranks and sends out eMails like those to everyone on the staff. It can be good for a staff to find time to laugh a little, but it is also easy to go overboard. Anyone can send an eMail to everyone on the staff with just a few clicks. Maybe that isn’t such a good thing.

The trouble is volume. As your staff grows, so does the natural volume of eMail. At some point, the time spent reading all of the internally generated eMails becomes a concern. How much time should your staff really spend reading eMail, Twits, and/or Facebook walls? Who should really be able to send out a message to everyone? Here are some ideas to consider:

• The Senior Pastor – High Priority issue comes up
• Human Resource person – Something affecting everyone’s paycheck
• Security Personnel – Emergency situations that affect everyone’s safety
• Operations Personnel – Alerts about a System Malfunction

Obviously, the importance of the message needs to be a part of the criteria to consider. Ask yourself the question, “Does this really need to be sent to everyone?” Or should it be more focused on the few who are directly affected? This is a judgment call, and your staff are expected to use good judgment. In a small organization, where everyone knows everyone, this should not be a problem.

We have Geoffrey Chaucer to thank for April Fools day – i.e. from his reference to the 32nd of March (April 1st). Perhaps appropriately, this is mentioned in the story about the fox and the rooster in the Nun’s Priest’s Tale. So let’s all find time to laugh today; just don’t overdo it.

With the rise of Social Networking (Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare), Churches naturally want to establish a presence. But how do you avoid running into ethical and legal issues when you use social media? You can (and probably should) write a Social Media Policy, but you should also train your staff on how to avoid these issues. Here are some tips to consider:

• Always use good etiquette online, which will avoid a lot of issues
• Do not use the Church´s logo on your personal website, unless you get permission
• When you write your own opinion, but you´re a member of the staff, include a disclaimer
• Avoid legal entanglements – i.e. libel – by always speaking the truth

A disclaimer can be a simple postscript like “the views expressed are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Church.” This validates your free speech, while noting the fact that you are not speaking for the Church in this context. Free speech issues in social networking settings are starting to appear before the courts.

Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.

Electronic mail has many advantages for a Church. You can publish a monthly newsletter via eMail without spending a lot on postage. You can also target emails to specific groups – e.g. just the people interested in missions. And you can get the information out quickly – within an hour. These advantages make eMail communication a great communications tool when you want to get the Word out to people.

So why not blast away with every eMail message you can think of? In short, because of SPAM. SPAM is unsolicited bulk messaging sent to people indiscriminately. Everyone with an eMail account has had to deal with this deluge of useless information. This year, projections show that there will be at least 7 trillion SPAM messages generated. Unfortunately, that means 80% of the eMails that land in your inbox are likely to be SPAM. How does the Church’s important message about the change in the meeting time get through all of that chaff? And to make matters worse, people use eMail filters that can mislabel an eMail message as SPAM and throw it away. Here are some tips for getting your eMail Blasts past the filters:

• Ensure that your eMails have original, useful content
• Avoid trigger words in your subject line, e.g. free, trial, money, quote
• Avoid using ALL CAPS – i.e. SHOUTING FOR ATTENTION
• Do use a subject line that matches the eMail – e.g. March Monthly Newsletter
• Avoid the excessive use of punctuation – i.e. “! ! !”

SPAM is a tough problem to deal with. And some people have given up and don’t use eMail as a result. Or they may use Social Network Messaging instead. You should encourage people to let you know if they aren’t getting your eMails. Perhaps you should still print a few paper newsletters and send them through snail mail (USPS). That way, you cover the spectrum and ensure that the Word gets through.

How do you do ministry through your website? Is that even possible? Yes, your Church’s website can and should be doing ministry. There are many approaches to this, but the first step should be an assessment:

• What is the purpose of your website?
• Who are you trying to minister to?
• What are the resources that you need?
• What resources do you have available?

When you first put together a web site, you may have just been getting on the bandwagon. After all, other Churches in your area were developing websites, so why shouldn’t yours do the same. That may have been enough of a purpose to convince the board to fund the site. (Sometimes the costs can be quite a hurdle.) But you should ask yourself now, what is our purpose going forward? Is it to invite newcomers to Church? Is it to keep the congregation informed? Or is it to provide a way for shut-ins to stay connected with their Church? Or maybe you really want to share the great teachings of your staff with as many Christians as you can reach. The web opens the door to a community of faith that exceeds your local boundaries. People that would never be able to visit your Church can find inspiration and growth through your website. The Gospel can and does reach the whole world – via cyberspace. Who are you trying to minister to?

Resources include not just the finances but all of the information sources that you depend upon for content. This will certainly include staff members, who may be intent on promoting an upcoming event or small group. It will include Church members who lead committees and want to share information about what the committee is doing or when the next meeting is. It may even include community leaders – e.g. scouting, civic groups, etc – who need a way to promote events. But it can also include denominational leaders – e.g. a Bishop’s message about a state wide event. Your web ministry will certainly include sermons and teachings by your preaching staff. Do you provide the sermon as a video, audio, and/or text file? How about a followup discussion in an online forum about this week’s sermon. And you probably have a Church calendar of events and meetings, so people can look up the time and place. But how about announcements of inclement weather and/or natural disaster responses. The possibilities are incredible. Just be sure to tap into as many information resources as you can, and organize the website so that people can find it easily.

For more information, check out these online resources:

Top 10 Best Practices for Web Ministry
Website Ministry

How does your A/V system work? Who knows the exact configuration? Is it just the TD? That may be well and good, since he is the expert; but what happens if he quits? How will you fix things if you don’t have a clue about the wiring!

Every A/V setup should have a configuration manual. This can be hand drawings, but using a computer will make it a little clearer. It should document the essential connections between major components in audio, lighting, and video. That way, there is something written down that explains it all. Doing this will capture the institutional memory of how things are wired together, so that anyone on the tech team can figure out a problem – even when the TD is away.

Sure, it takes time to document things. But you can do it at a high level – i.e. component by component. You don’t have to label every single wire and document the wiring harness. But you do need to revise the configuration manual periodically as new equipment comes in, so that it stays up to date.

Let’s face it, the Church setting is not known for having a lot of Geeks. And in my experience, most pastoral staff were trained in religion and the arts – i.e. not the sciences and technology. So how do you support a non-technical staff person? First, you can’t expect them to understand technical jargon. Always remember that they simply weren’t trained for it, so the words will be going over (or under) their heads. Restate the technical details in terms that a layman or laywoman can understand. And you can’t expect them to be as enthusiastic about the technology as you are – you won’t hear any gee-wiz statements out of them. Remember that they are more concerned with the message – i.e. the Good News. And that is wholly appropriate. So point out how the technology will help get across the message in new ways.

A favorite analogy of mine is crossing a lake. There are many ways to get to the other side. You can fly the lake over in a helicopter – i.e. provide a quick overview. Or you can take a boat across – i.e. make a presentation. If you have the faith of Peter, then you can walk across – i.e. walk them through a tutorial. Or you can swim across – really getting your feet wet by explaining it all. Finally, you can put on scuba gear and go across along the bottom of the lake – i.e. sharing all of the nitty-gritty details. With each way, your staff member will encounter an increasing amount of technical detail. Some will like the details; others will abhor it. Obviously, you’ll want to pick the way across that is appropriate for the person you are talking to. If they only want to fly across, let them soar. If they really want to get their feet wet, go swimming with them. (Be sure to save the scuba diving for those times when you go to conferences on technology in the Church, or add your comments here.) Non-Technical users will always appreciate it when you don’t overwhelm them with the technology!

Supporting your users involves making the appropriate choice in how you communicate about the technology. You can’t expect everyone in the Church to have the same level of understanding that you do, so adapt to your audience and let the Word go forth!

How do people who drive by perceive your Church? Is the Church Sign something that catches their eye? Or is it just another sign along the side of the road. Making a Church Sign both eye-catching and informative is a challenge. What do you really want to say in a glance – which is about all the time a passing motorist has available?

Your Church Sign identifies you to the motoring public. It should thus have at least your name and address. In addition, you probably want to put the times for your worship services, since that will attract visitors. Adding a slogan or some saying may add to the appeal, and let you tell the public something more about your Church. But you have to keep it short and sweet – no long statements of faith or Church doctrines here. Some Churches have added a comment on the latest news. Keeping the Church Sign fresh and inviting is probably the key. What does yours say?

Disaster Recovery involves a whole lot of effort in a short period of time. Planning ahead helps by bringing order to the chaos and helping the recovery go smoothly. You can’t always prevent a disaster from striking. You can support the community of faith by helping them recover. The Church needs to recover, too.

Planning for the recovery of the administration of the Church involves many aspects. The Church can learn from IT Disaster Recovery, but it has some unique needs. People come first; administrative systems come after that. Planning for the recovery of the administration involves all of the following steps:

1. Get church/leadership support
2. Select a disaster recovery team
3. Conduct a Business/Ministry Impact Analysis
4. Build a Technology Recovery Plan
5. Testing and Monitoring
6. Document the plan

For more information, see the following references:
Protecting church data from the unthinkable : information technology (IT) disaster recovery planning by Brian J Shoup.

Given that most megachurches have extensive IT installations, would it make sense to give remote access to volunteers? If you trust these volunteers to come in on Sundays and work with expensive equipment, then why not trust them during the week? Some of these volunteers no doubt work with commercial implementations costing in the millions, so they are used to the equipment. And with the ubiquity of the Internet, they should be able to access any computer equipment from anywhere. What would really be the harm in giving the access? Nothing, since they already have it on Sundays.

However, access has to always be for a purpose. You could well insist that any access granted to a volunteer should have a well defined purpose. And that purpose should determine the level of access granted remotely. For example, suppose you had a volunteer who put together the slides for the song lyrics on Sundays. There is little reason to insist that they come in two hours before the service on Sunday mornings to type this in. That just doesn’t leave much room for proofreading, and you should always proofread anything that you display to the entire congregation – preferably by more than one pair of eyes! It would be better to have them type up the lyrics on Thursday mornings, following Wednesday night choir rehearsal. You could easily grant them access to the computer running the lyrics remotely, and they could type them up. Have someone else check the lyrics on Friday, just to be sure. And then you’re all set for Sunday morning! The volunteer is happier, not having to come in so early. And the staff has more confidence that they did it right; they could be the ones checking it on Fridays. And the service will go more smoothly, with less chance of a glitch.

Remote access for volunteers does make sense. It should have a purpose, and be tightly controlled. It can also be logged by the IT department, to monitor for abuse. However, it will make for a smoother service and happier volunteers serving the Kingdom!

Strategic planning for a technical ministry involves looking ahead at needs for carrying out the mission. It should be driven by a thorough understanding of the ministry and where it is headed in the future. Then you should match that understanding up with a grasp of the technology, and where it is heading too. Here are some steps to take in the process:

• Identify Strengths and Weaknesses
• Assess the spiritual needs of the Community
• Identify opportunities for ministry
• Explore ways to use the technology to meet those needs
• What else do you need in terms of technology?
• Lay out a plan of action

Don’t get caught up in overcoming your weaknesses – i.e. that is wasted effort. Focus on your strengths, and then be ready to utilize them in new ways. And always identify the spiritual needs of your community. Things have probably changed since you last looked here, and new opportunities will exist. You need to identify them, and then explore ways to use technology in meeting those needs. Once you have these goals in mind, then you’re ready to ask what technology you need to obtain or expand – not before! That way, you are aligning the development of the technology with the development of the ministry.

For example, you could have an interest in Social Networking – a hot topic in technology. The popular thing to do would be to get that technology and then figure out a way to reach your congregation with it. But that’s the wrong approach. First, you identify the needs, then the technology. You may decide that a facebook page will help you meet those needs, but you need a plan. That way, you can tell when you’ve succeeded.