Smart Church Management

6 Essential Church Councils

by

Church leaders make decisions every day. These decisions are made about things like people (volunteers, employees, and members), money (budgeting, spending, saving), ministry programs, facilities, and the list goes one.

In Jim Collins’ classic book, Good to Great, he talks about using councils to help guide the organization.

These guiding church councils or committees should be made up of a group of the right people who can discuss, debate, and make decisions about the administration and management of the organization. Read the Full Article →

11 Church Finance Committee Duties And Responsibilities

by

Talking money is simply an unpopular topic for ministries. However, it requires a diligent approach to managing finances to sustain a vibrant church.

Churches elect or assign members to serve on a Finance Committee.

This team of people is responsible for the management and responsible stewardship of church financial resources.

This crucial committee can have a significant influence on the sustained financial health and growth of church assets. Read the Full Article →

10 Practices That Safeguard Your Church Against Embezzlement

by

We know that it requires a lot of resources (people, time, and money) to operate a ministry. Each of these resources is valuable and need to be protected. Particulary, a church needs to safeguard its financial resources against embezzlement.

I was saddened to read about a neighborhood church, where my kids used to attend youth events, being yet another victim of church embezzlement. Read the Full Article →

Church Financial Accountability – 4 Reasons to Pursue ECFA Accreditation

by

Church financial accountability leads to credibility. Churches have many of the same challenges as managing a business and requires a lot of the same business processes to be successful.

Church leaders pursue their call to lead a congregation and may have lots of training in theology and biblical principles.

However, many may not have basic business training that is required when you manage the valuable resources that God provides – people, time and money. Read the Full Article →

Advantages and Disadvantages of Outsourcing

by

Outsourcing is a business strategy that moves some of an organization’s functions, processes, activities and decision responsibility from within an organization to outside providers. Let’s explore some of the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing.

This is done through negotiating contract agreements with a vendor who takes on the responsibility for the production process, people management, quality, customer service and key asset management of the function. Read the Full Article →

3 Common Errors In Managing Church Finances

by

Managing church finances requires having an understanding of tax laws.

Because the laws can be complex, and not always easy to understand, churches occasionally do things inadvertently that can be problematic.

Staying compliant with the tax code is often directly related to how a church manages its finances.

As stated by Dan Busby in an article written by Church Law and Tax, there are three common errors that churches make when managing their finances – fair compensation, pastoral expense reporting and handling of restricted gifts. Read the Full Article →

5 Ways to Demonstrate Church Stewardship

by

God blesses churches with many resources – people, time and money – and He expects us to be good stewards with what He provides.

Members tithe on their income to support the operation of the ministry, making it even more important to be good stewards and manage financial resources responsibly.

So what is the definition of stewardship?  According to dictionary.com, Stewardship is, “the responsible overseeing and protection of something considered worth caring for and preserving“.   Read the Full Article →

6 Church Financial Management Tips

by

The unpredictable economic climate has created budgeting challenges for many organizations. Church financial management is important to maintain fiscal viability.

This creates the need for churches to find help figuring out the best way to manage their sometimes limited resources.

Church leaders are often challenged with ensuring there is continued funding to support current programs and fixed operational costs.

This can be difficult because the financial needs of a church can be significant, and juggling limited resources can be stressful. Read the Full Article →