Executive Search
"Probably the most helpful piece in the process is that it forced us to get very clear on the position and the kind of person we were looking for. More than if we had tried to do this on our own."
Eddie Kirkland, The Parish Rector
As the Rector of a young Anglican church plant with a full time staff of exactly one person, Eddie Kirkland carries many different responsibilities. After leading the church from its planting to a now flourishing congregation of 150, the time came for him to hire his first staff member.
"We knew we needed expertise from someone who knew how to do this well," said Eddie. "This was my first time hiring someone on staff and we wanted help in that arena."
With the help of a recommendation of a fellow church planter, Eddie decided to engage Vanderbloemen to help him find The Parish's first Executive Pastor for a few reasons.
"There was a big time factor involved in the decision," he recalled. "I just didn't have the ability to put the time in that Vanderbloemen was able to. The HR piece of it all was really helpful, as well as having someone I could bounce questions off of."
The Parish has a unique culture and DNA that is contemporary with a high priority on liturgical elements. Finding someone to not only fill the role of an Executive Pastor but would also fit the DNA components of the church was not necessarily going to be simple.
With an onsite visit to the church, The Parish's Vanderbloemen consultant was able to meet Eddie, several congregants, and capture the essence of who they were. The process from there involved the vetting, interviewing, and filtering of candidates to bring a short list of people that could fit the parameters of what The Parish was looking for. However, the process wasn't strictly administrative.
"At first our hesitancy in going with a search firm was whether or not there would be room for prayerful discernment, but the spiritual piece to the process definitely came out as we went through it."
Nine months after The Parish's Vanderbloemen consultant came out to meet them the first time, Eddie extended an offer to his first staff hire and the church's first Executive Pastor.
"Probably the most helpful piece in the whole process was that it forced us to be very clear on the position and the kind of person we were looking for. More so than if we had tried to do this on our own. I cannot speak more highly of our consultant and the job he did and the sensitivity he had with our situation. We handed him a really difficult task and he took it on with joy and enthusiasm."
