--- title: Have an Opening on Your Staff? Whatever You Do... DON'T do THIS. description: Any church can hire someone. But many churches make a key mistake that will cost them finding a really good fit for their church. We'll show you how to avoid making the biggest mistake a church can make when hiring a staff member... image: https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hubfs/joey-banks-380271-unsplash.jpg --- [Skip to content](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/have-an-opening-on-your-staff-dont-do-this#main-content) [![cropped-chemistry_logo_homepage-342x95](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hs-fs/hubfs/cropped-chemistry_logo_homepage-342x95.webp?width=342&height=95&name=cropped-chemistry_logo_homepage-342x95.webp "cropped-chemistry_logo_homepage-342x95")](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/) - [How We Help](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/what-we-do/) - [How We Help Candidates](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/candidate/) - [How We Help Churches](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/church/) - [Our Team](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/team/) - [Our Mission & Strategy](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/what-we-do/) - [Churches](https://chemistrystaffing.com/church) - [Hire New Staff](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/2021-churches-new-staff-hiring/) - [Free 30-Minute Church Consult](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/lets-talk/) - [Chemistry Solutions – You Don’t Have to Do Ministry Alone](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/solutions/) - [Final Fit Assessment](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/final-fit-assessment/) - [Senior Pastor Succession](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/succession/) - [Job Seekers](https://chemistrystaffing.com/candidate) - [Add My Resume / Profile](https://chemistry.fyi/kwq) - [Current Openings](https://chemistrystaffing.com/jobs) - [Free Resume Assessment](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/free-resume-self-assessment/) - [Step-by-Step Job Search](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/cjb) - [How Chemistry Can Help](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/candidate/) - [Resources](http://www.chemistrystaffing.com/candidate/) - [Free Playbooks & Downloads](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/resources/) - [Chemistry Blog](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/) - [2024 Youth Pastor Compensation Survey](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/resources/2024-yp-compensation-survey/) - [Contact Us](http://www.chemistrystaffing.com/lets-talk/) - [Candidates](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/candidate-contact-page/) - [Churches](http://www.chemistrystaffing.com/lets-talk/) - [Find a Job](https://chemistrystaffing.com/jobs) - [My Church is Hiring](https://www.chemistrystaffing.com/lets-talk/) [Staff Search](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/tag/staff-search) # Have an Opening on Your Staff? Whatever You Do... DON'T do THIS. Any church can hire someone. But many churches make a key mistake that will cost them finding a really good fit for their church. We'll show you how to avoid making the biggest mistake a church can make when hiring a staff member... ![joey-banks-380271-unsplash](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hubfs/joey-banks-380271-unsplash.jpg) # The biggest mistake that churches make when hiring... Way back when, I spent eight years serving as a youth pastor. During that time I found myself becoming way too knowledgeable about the love lives of my students, and the drama that went with it. There were times where it felt like I couldn’t go ten minutes without hearing the story of a fresh breakup and how someone’s life was ruined. The conversation typically followed a similar pattern, where they told me how terrible things were and I let them know that the pain would go away eventually. I let them know that we all have gone through this at some point and that it gets better. I also would encourage them to take some time to mourn and heal before jumping into another relationship. In our time working with churches, helping them find great staff members, we’ve heard all sorts of stories about hires gone wrong. We’ve heard stories of deception, misunderstanding, and a lack of understanding of what the position was. As we have heard these stories and helped the church lean into its next season of ministry, we’ve seen a recurring theme surrounding why a staff member doesn’t work out. In our experience, the biggest mistake that a church can make when hiring is hiring too soon. Just like the students in my youth ministry, churches are tempted to jump back out into the mix and fill a gap on their staff before they have had the time to mourn, heal, and think through what they truly need in their next team member. We’ve found that the healthiest churches will take the time that they need to understand why a staff member left, or why they needed to be let go. They need the time to conduct exit interviews, do a full assessment of the ministry (here’s a helpful tool to start that process), to determine what the goals for the new teammate will be, and to develop an accurate profile of the church so that candidates are clear about what they are getting themselves into. When a staff member decides to leave, here is what we suggest you do: - **Stop and Breathe.** Realize that God is still on his throne and is not surprised by this. Know that God is still for you and is guiding you through this season. - **Schedule an exit interview.** These are great tools to help understand what is going on at your church, and begin to plan for the future. True, they can be awkward, but they are incredibly helpful for moving into your next ministry season in a healthy way. This is also something that we do for churches all the time. [Click here to learn more about Chemistry Staffing's Exit Interviews](https://info.chemistrystaffing.com/exit-interviews). - **Develop a ministry sustainability plan.** Plan on the position being vacant for 6-8 months and develop a plan that will allow the ministry to survive that season. Who will be overseeing the day to day operations of the ministry? What defines ministry success now that there is not a full-time leader of this ministry? What components of the ministry will be maintained and what will be cut for the season ahead? - **Develop a church and candidate profile.** Once the ministry is sustainable and you have taken the time to conduct an exit interview, take the time to develop a clear understanding of who your church is, what it currently needs, and where it is going. With this in mind, begin to develop a profile of who will be the best fit. It is surprising how often this profile differs from a position’s job description. Often, our first instinct is to post a job opening on churchstaffing.com in order to fill a gap and move on. This is understandable, but also significantly decreases the chances of making a healthy, long-term hire. I’d love to help you think through what this looks like in your church.[Click here to schedule a free 30 minute consultation](https://meetings.hubspot.com/matt-steen).   ![matt](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hs-fs/hubfs/matt.png?width=124&name=matt.png)   [![Searching for a new staff member? We can help...](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/5045578/763be5be-c079-486e-aab5-462a55c7b00e.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/5045578/763be5be-c079-486e-aab5-462a55c7b00e) ### [![Matt Steen](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hubfs/IMG_4588.jpg) Matt Steen](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/author/matt-steen) Matt has served the local church for over two decades as a youth pastor, church planter, and executive pastor. Originally from Baltimore, Matt currently lives in Orlando, with his wife Theresa, and has a B.S. in Youth Ministry from Nyack College and an M.Div. and MBA from Baylor University. Certified as an Urban Church Planter Coach by Redeemer City to City and as a StratOp facilitator by the Paterson Center, Matt has made a career of helping churches thrive through intentionality, clarity, and creating healthy cultures. He is convinced that a healthy church is led by a healthy team with great chemistry, and loves partnering with Chemistry’s churches to do great things for the Kingdom. [![Facebook Author](https://f.hubspotusercontent10.net/hubfs/8768169/Elements/Theme/icons/social/facebook.svg)](https://www.facebook.com/snoop4jc) [![Twitter Author](https://f.hubspotusercontent10.net/hubfs/8768169/Elements/Theme/icons/social/twitter.svg)](https://twitter.com/matt_steen) [![Linkedin Author](https://f.hubspotusercontent10.net/hubfs/8768169/Elements/Theme/icons/social/linkedin.svg)](https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewsteen/) ## Latest Resources Browse Articles ![What's Actually Killing Your Church? The Surprising 250-Year Diagnosis](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hubfs/blog-images/featured/featured_158.png) #### What's Actually Killing Your Church? The Surprising 250-Year Diagnosis Church decline isn't what you think. Discover what's really threatening the church today vs. 1776 and the 1900s—and why low numbers aren't ... ![What's Actually Killing Your Church? The Surprising 250-Year Diagnosis](https://app.hubspot.com/settings/avatar/883a0d42581424e9bbe7c77dccfeed6b) ###### Todd Rhoades July 07, 2026 ![Stop Apologizing for Small Groups: Why Your ](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hubfs/blog-images/featured/featured_126.png) #### Stop Apologizing for Small Groups: Why Your "Failed" Bible Study is Actually a Discipleship Goldmine When attendance drops in your small group discipleship ministry, don't panic. Discover why smaller groups create deeper disciples and stron... ![Stop Apologizing for Small Groups: Why Your ](https://app.hubspot.com/settings/avatar/883a0d42581424e9bbe7c77dccfeed6b) ###### Todd Rhoades July 06, 2026 ![Stop Screening Out Your Best Candidates: Why Competency Matters More Than Seminary Degrees](https://blog.chemistrystaffing.com/hubfs/blog-images/featured/featured_142.png) #### Stop Screening Out Your Best Candidates: Why Competency Matters More Than Seminary Degrees Church hiring practices may be filtering out incredible candidates. Learn why competency should trump credentials in your ministry staff se... ![Stop Screening Out Your Best Candidates: Why Competency Matters More Than Seminary Degrees](https://app.hubspot.com/settings/avatar/883a0d42581424e9bbe7c77dccfeed6b) ###### Todd Rhoades July 06, 2026 [![Elements Logo](https://f.hubspotusercontent10.net/hubfs/8768169/Elements/Theme/logos/logo.svg "Elements Logo")](http://chemistrystaffing.com) Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consecteturor adipiscing elit. Tincidunt donec vulputate ipsum erat urna auctor. 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