Case Studies
| Joan Husdon
St. Mark's United Methodist "MSP encourages a culture where people feel part of a team and cover for each other. It's all about enlisting people and building teams... It's been a huge paradigm shift for us." |
| United Methodist |
| Lincoln, NE |
| 386 |
| Ushers, Greeters, Welcome Center Hosts, Tour Guides, Communion Servers, Set Up Teams and Coffee Servers, Leadership Teams |
| www.stmarks.org |
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Note: This is an condensed version of the case study. A longer version is also available.
| Max: |
How was the scheduling done before you found MSP?
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| Joan: |
Emails were sent out and phone calls were made. Our volunteers saw participating in ministry more as a convenience than as a commitment. Multiple callers would get on the phone and contact people – often two or three days before a given weekend.
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| Max: |
What prompted you to seek out a scheduling program?
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| Joan: |
I have a background working in the spa and cruise industry so experience has taught me that you need to structure and create commitment and be very proactive in how you get people where they need to be. I wanted to find something to help me pass the baton to our volunteers and get away from making hundreds of phone calls.
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| Max: |
How often do you use MSP and for what purpose do you use it most often?
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| Joan: |
I use it 24/7. [Laughter.] No, I'm serious. The online portion [where volunteers can see when they're scheduled and request substitutes] is constantly being used.
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| Max: |
What would you say are the three greatest benefits of MSP?
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| Joan: |
The number 1 benefit is that MSP encourages a culture where people feel part of a team and cover for each other. Number 2 is it requires a much higher level of commitment. In order to set the program up, you've got to ask people "Are you on board for the next 16 weeks? Yes or no?" The third benefit is that the program saves me hundreds of hours in getting assignments out, and then passes the baton to them. They can say, "Yes I can be there." or "No I cannot". It's all about enlisting people, building teams and helping each member understand it's a collaborative effort to provide a total guest experience. MSP is also sophisticated enough to carry large churches and numerous programs. We are building a new sanctuary and anticipate the need to double the number of people this fall. This has been a huge paradigm shift for us.
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| Max: |
For someone new starting with MSP, what tips would you give them?
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| Joan: |
Well, the first thing I would do is tell them to go back and take a look at your demo. It's important to clearly understand how the program will benefit everyone and conceptualize how it works. Then I did a flow chart and built a plan for my pastors and my Leadership Team and said "Guys, this is how we are going to initiate this tool to help us grow. Here is how MSP will benefit us and how it works." Your video demo about how people can go online for assignments and request subs was very well received.
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| Max: |
Do you use the MSP Emailer?
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| Joan: |
A lot — yes. I use it every Monday to send out reminders and when I want to send out a special message to one particular team. We use it constantly.
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| Max: |
What has been your volunteers' reaction to receiving those personalized emails?
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| Joan: |
The majority say "Joan, we are so glad you are getting this organized, we needed to do this." I get a lot of "thank you's".
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| Max: |
How did you get the volunteers accustomed to going online to view and update their schedule?
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| Joan: |
I had to send out emails initially to introduce it, and then persevere and persevere. A great help was putting a link to the MSP Web Terminal on our Web site and including the MSP Web Terminal link in every email correspondence.
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| Max: |
What feedback have you received from your volunteers regarding the Web Terminal?
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| Joan: |
They like it a lot because they can go online 24/7. It enables them to be able to view their commitments. The initial hurdle was "Oh gosh, I don't think I can do this. I'm not good with computers." But once they master it, they're on it all the time. We are also having other ministries outside of hospitality, prayer, etc, asking if they can go online.
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| Max: |
Looking at the big picture, what do you think is the biggest obstacle stopping people from participating in ministry?
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| Joan: |
That's a really good question, I wish I knew that answer. People need to feel like they're valued. If they feel used, or if the amount of hoops they have to go through is too cumbersome, they're not going to get involved. If people feel like they're part of a community with a greater cause that will make difference they will participate. We are already witnessing changes. We're a big church – we have 250 ministries and about 3000 people. One of the things we have to keep focused on is making things so simple that any one walking through our doors knows where to go to get help. If people come in and it takes them six weeks to find out how to sign up, they going to leave. You've got to make it simple.
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Note: A longer version of this case study is also available.
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