The sign over Myrna’s desk said, “Do you want to speak to the man in charge or the woman who knows what is going on?” Myrna Carter was the pastor’s secretary at the First Baptist Church in Lake Charles, LA.  She retired recently after nearly 31 years as secretary to the Pastor of this great church.

Myrna’s mom was on the Pastor Search Committee, although I did not know of the relationship.  When I asked if I had the freedom to replace staff members and supervise them without interference, Myrna’s mom was the most vocal in her affirmation.  Myrna was a great secretary and I was blessed to work with her.

To work effectively with church secretaries, you should do a few simple things:

Affirm the ministry role of the church secretary.  Most of these ladies believe that they are called to their positions of service, just as ordained ministers are called.

Clarify who supervises the secretaries. It should be the Pastor or someone he designates.  The personnel committee should give weight to the Pastor’s recommendations about secretaries and their performance.  Personnel committees should realize that if they cannot accept the Pastor’s evaluation of their staff they have disabled the Pastor’s leadership with staff.  No good Pastor will accept this.

Work from a clear, simple job description. It should not be ambiguous and it should delineate the tasks that are assigned to the secretary.  The Pastor and the secretary should agree together on the job description, talking about the requirements of successful performance.

Conduct evaluations twice each year—at the end of the year and mid way through the year.  The evaluations should be based on the job description.  “She does not sound professional on the telephone” is not a valid complaint unless such a standard is in the job description.  Evaluating job performance this way enables you to avoid subjective, unfair evaluations.

Recommend raises to the Personnel Committee based on evaluation; not based on whether there is enough money in the general fund or whether or not you like the person.

Provide training or make assignments to strengthen weak areas. I required Myrna and the other secretaries to read a book on responding to prospects and guests, and then we all discussed it in a staff meeting.  They began to see their tasks differently as a result.

Talk to the secretary with respect.  Cutting her off in mid sentence, ignoring her suggestions, and working around her are actions that are rude and unworthy of a real leader.

Brag on them to your congregation.  Don’t let their hard work and sacrifice go unmentioned.  Their ministry is valuable in the Kingdom, and because of them the entire church works more efficiently.  Remind the congregation of their value.

Betty Holloway was the first church secretary with whom I worked.  She taught me “who was kin to whom” and kept me from making a fool of myself in FBC, Harrisonburg, LA.  She has been the secretary there since the 1970’s.  Sandra Swaim took her work seriously.  And my work was as important to her as her own.  She has served as a great Pastor’s secretary in three churches, with six different pastors; and in the Ashley Association.  Myrna Carter knew how a larger church accomplished its work.  I would not have survived without her.

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