Improve upon the Quality of Service that is offered by the Parish Office

Parish Office Quality of Service

Stewardship AdvocatesTM

“I am among you as one who serves.” Luke 22:27

© Stewardship Advocates 2

Quality Training Results in Quality Service

• It may be a mistake to assume that a person intuitively understands professional courtesy and professional service

• Exemplary professional service requires the conscious application of both service-oriented management (SOM) and service-oriented application (SOA)

Stewardship Advocates 3

Service-Oriented Management

• SOM begins with leaders effectively demonstrating a professional service-orientation – this sets the tone for office staff and office volunteers

• SOM is concerned with training, coaching and caretaking of service-providing personnel

• SOM creates and oversees proper procedures, policies and processes

• Procedures, policies and processes are described in an office operations manual that is regularly reviewed, maintained and up-dated as needed


Sample Content for an Office Operations Manual


1. Instructions for when prospective new members, inquirers, seekers or visitors come into the office

2. Form to gather key information concerning the guest visitor and notations of how the parish can be of service to them

3. Packet of materials for prospective new members

4. Monthly and yearly calendar of key tasks to be completed

5. Written log of phone calls, emails, personal requests from parishioners for later review by the priest

6. Clear job descriptions and duties for employees and volunteers

7. Priest-authored description of policies related to sacraments, hall use, volunteering, etc.

8. How to respond to requests from the poor and the needy

Service-Oriented Application

SOA is concerned with and focused upon how quality service is personally provided to parishioners, guests, vendors, etc.


Who is served?

• Internally – fellow staff, employees and volunteers serve each other

• Externally – parishioners, guests, visitors, inquirers, the indigent, repair personnel, mail person, neighbors, etc.

* People who need assistance or service are not interruptions to office work, they are the very reason that the office exists


Examples of SOA (1) 1. The office environment is warm. Both staff and office volunteers have a welcoming manner and respond positively to questions and requests. The physical environment is pleasant.

2. Staff and office volunteers listen well and understand the request for service.

3. Staff and office volunteers are eager to help and do so as soon as they are able.

4. There are clearly visible and accessible features in the form of signs, ramps, doors, and bathrooms.

5. Posted and announced office hours are maintained (understanding that priests are not always in charge of their schedules due to pastoral emergencies)


Examples of SOA (2) 6. When the office is called during open office hours, the call is answered within four rings.

7. When the office is called during closed office hours, there is an option to leave a message or call a second number if it is a pastoral emergency.

8. Non-urgent left messages on the office answering service are quickly responded to as soon as the office is again open.

9. Mailings from the office concerning upcoming events are accurate and timely.

10. For any issue that is not quickly resolved the staff member or volunteer stays in contact with the parishioner until it is resolved or at least determined that it is an issue that is not resolvable.


Examples of SOA (3)

11. Offerings transmitted by check are quickly deposited and correctly entered into the confidential parish financial application

12. Stewardship payments and/or a capital campaign statements are reported accurately (and ideally, quarterly).

13. Parish council minutes and financial reports are reported and made publicly available in a timely manner.

14. The parish website is easy to use, informative and up-to-date

15. The parish council chairperson and members of the parish council are identified and accessible.


Christian Service


• Christian service is awareness that the person before you is precious in the sight of the Lord and loved unconditionally by Him

• Christian service is treating the person before you exactly how you would like to be treated

• Christian service is accepting that service rendered to another person is service rendered to Christ

• Christian service is taking that extra step to help without being asked.

• Christian service is expressed through loving demeanor and professional skill

Skills for Professional Standards of Service

• Know about the parish

• Learn the technical aspects of the job

• Listen well and communicate well

• Be consistent

• Be organized

• Be patient and charitable

• Know your position in the team and be a team player


Greeting Parishioners and Visitors

• Be attentive, acknowledge a person as soon as they appear, even when busy

• Smile • Establish eye contact • Tell them your name • Ask how you can help • Give the person your full attention • Be polite and courteous


Ascertain What Assistance is Required

• Invitations (May I offer you a seat? Coffee or tea?)

• Questions: “How may I assist you?” then continued questions until clarity achieved

• Encouragement

• Empathetic silence – eye contact, head nodding, posture, etc.

• If you can’t help offer alternatives if possible

• If they have to wait estimate the length of the wait. Offer to mail or email requested information (be sure to follow up!) May I offer a selection of reading materials as you wait?


Tone of Communication Do you • Become loud when angry or upset? • Speak faster when nervous? • Speak slowly when tired or bored? • Have a cheerful voice? • Find it easy or difficult to talk to people you don’t

know? • Indirectly communicate that you don’t wish to be

bothered? • Sound bossy, weak or unsure? • Speak too formally and sound stilted or too casually

and sound unprofessional? Consider monitoring your voice for certain situations


Body Language Questions

• Am I smiling?

• Do I not look up from the computer terminal when speaking to another person?

• Answer a text on my phone when speaking with another?

• Have I introduced myself (if appropriate) or should I wear a name badge?

• Should I shake hands (if appropriate)?

• Lean forward?

• Am I sensitive to cultural or age-related differences?


• Know how to use the phones • Speak clearly and slowly • Smile (it can be heard in the voice!) • State your name and the name of the parish • Write down the caller’s name and use it • Don’t say rude things while someone’s on hold • Don’t put anyone on hold unnecessarily • If they’re explaining something use words that show you’re

listening (umm, yes, I understand …) • Have pad and pencil ready to take notes or messages

(check spelling and message content) • Repeat back to caller your understanding of their need • Don’t eat or drink while on the phone


Telephone Do’s and Do Not’s

• Write clearly and concisely

• Refer to their letter or call date and query

• Be friendly without being too informal

• Check spelling and grammar

• Make sure you’ve answered their query or request or explained why you can’t

• Be timely or apologize for any delay in replying

• When in doubt check correspondence with another person for tone, syntax, facts, grammar, etc.

Basic Written Communications


Guaranteeing a Pleasant, Useful Exchange

• Leave a positive impression, smile

• Check if parishioners have everything they need or if they can be helped in any other way

• If you’ve said you’ll follow-up, do so – write it down!

• Tell them something that may be useful to them later (change of policy, upcoming event, altered office hours)

• Invite them back – “Don’t hesitate to call, email or to stop by if we can be of any further service”

• Say goodbye

• Consider surveying parishioners via questionnaire or phone, concerning their experience of office service


Parish Office Assessment - Activity

• Recruit 4-5 people to assume the roles of a parishioner, potential new member, vendor, hungry homeless person, curious seeker, etc.

• Step back and take a look at the parish through their eyes – website, signage, access, information, service, etc.

• What do you notice?

• What has the parish done to make you, in the imagined role, to feel welcome? To feel unwelcome?

• What changes could be implemented?

• Compare notes and take appropriate action


What to Avoid

• Saying ‘I don’t know’ without offering an option

• Saying you don’t know where a colleague is or saying they’re at lunch/ toilet/ gone for coffee, etc. Simply state that they are not here right now but inquire how you may assist them

• Leaving people on hold for a long time

• Ignoring people when you’re busy

• Treating people unequally


Factors Affecting the Quality of Service

• Charitable disposition

• Reliability

• Confidence

• Responsiveness

• Efficiency

• Consistency

• Organization

• Acceptance of and adherence to policies and procedures


Improving Quality Parish Service

• Record new procedures

• Update Office Operations Manual

• Observe and report frequent parishioner needs

• Ascertain if a better system could be implemented

• Be proactive in improving service

• Advocate for the parish – “We are here to help you” “May I tell you a bit about our parish?”

• Have processes and procedures for dealing with difficult or emergency situations BEFORE they happen and make sure staff are trained


Dealing with Difficult Behavior

• Label the behavior, not the parishioner

• Listen carefully

• Don’t become defensive

• Don’t take it personally

• Find out what the parishioner wants or needs

• Discuss alternatives

• Take responsibility for what you can do

• Agree on action


The Talkative Parishioner

• Ask closed questions – “What else can I do for you today?” “Is that what you needed?”

• Limit the time available for them to interrupt (don’t have long pauses)

• Provide polite but minimal response

• Smile and be pleasant, but don’t encourage them

• Wind up – thank them for coming, walk them to the door but don’t be rude or dismissive


The Angry Parishioner

• Listen carefully without interrupting in order to understand the problem

• Empathize in a broad way • Stay calm and remain polite • Don’t escalate the problem • Don’t take it personally, be defensive or blame others • Propose an action plan and follow it • Seek support if you are scared or if you can’t agree

on a solution


The ‘know it all’ Parishioner

• Acknowledge what they say

• Compliment them on their research

• Be generous with praise

• Don’t put them in their place (correct them no matter how tempting)

• Don’t try to be smart – you can’t win!

• Ask them questions and use the answers to improve your knowledge!


The Indecisive Parishioner

• Find out what they really want

• Inquire about possible solutions/options

• Reflect back to them what they’ve said

• Assume control gently and point out the best course of action from what they’ve told you they need

• Be logical

• Confirm a plan of action with them

• Maybe even put it in writing


Role Play

1. Two people agree to role play a common scenario

2. One person is the parishioner or visitor and one is the staff member or volunteer

3. Use your own scenario if you have one or select from talkative, angry, know it all or indecisive scenarios

4. Give 5-10 minutes to role play

5. First ask role players to comment on the interaction

6. Then ask for group observations/suggestions

7. Do more than one role play if time allows


St. Paul Advises Service Personnel

“I…beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all humility and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4: 1-3)


Improve upon the Quality of Service that is offered by the Parish Office

Education

office staff

office environment

quality service

office work

office volunteers som

caretaking of service

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