Phone Screen Interview Questions for Search Committee
Instructions: Each member of the committee should have a copy of these questions. Carefully choose from the following list the questions that your committee feels are pertinent to your church. Check the questions that you would like to ask. The list is not intended to be exhaustive, or to be used in its entirety, or in a particular order, although it could be. Take notes during the interview and rate the candidate on a scale of 1 to 5 for each category. Once the interview is over, transfer your scores to the Interview Summary.
Name of Candidate: _________________________________ Date: ________________
Overview
- Goal is to establish common goals, values and expectations with candidates.
- Tactics: Using questions such as those identified below, invite personal stories (e.g., don’t ask “what would you do if…” but ask “what have you done when…”)
Questions to consider for Candidates during Search Committee interviews
- Introductory Questions (Break the ice and get some general information.)
- Describe your current church, your responsibilities in your current position and results that have been achieved?
What do you know about our church?
Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Why did you choose the schools you attended? How have they shaped your thinking and values?
- Describe your current church, your responsibilities in your current position and results that have been achieved?
- Bible Scholar Questions (Determine how he sees and uses the Bible.)
Probing questions on critical issues: describe interpretation of role of women in church/music/baptism etc. - Intrinsic Motivation Questions (Identify sufficient skills/energy to work toward excellence.)
- When you have been in a leadership role, what have been your biggest disappointments?
- Why did you choose to work in the ministry?
- Which tasks in pulpit ministry bring energy and joy in your life?
- Ministry Philosophy Questions (Identify sufficiency of understanding of demands/functions/roles roles of pulpit minister job.)
- What do you view as the primary (most important) priorities as a minister?
- What issues, concerns and attitudes are dominant in your current church?
- What ways have you given leadership to the church in evangelism and church growth?
- Why do you believe that the context for this church is the right setting for you in and your family to minister?
- Who is your ministry role model?
- Name a few churches that you think follow your philosophy of ministry. Why?
- What does your ideal church look like?
- Tell us about one thing that has happened at your current job that is good example of your philosophy.
- Relationship Questions (Determine how he will interact with others, including minister peers.)
- What advantages and complexities do you see from working with a large ministerial staff like ours?
- Where do you see youth ministry fitting into the total life of our congregation?
- What are your strengths as far as people skills are concerned?
- Tell us about your leadership style.
- Have you ever been in a situation with a strong-willed individual whose ideas were not compatible with your vision? How did you resolve those differences? Would you handle it differently now?
- Job Performance Questions
- What have you learned at your current church that will help you be an even better leader here?
- Why are you leaving your present job?
- What did you like/dislike about your current job?
- What would your current employer say about you?
- Briefly explain the circumstances surrounding your ministry changes in the past.
- What are the main factors for why you are open to a possible ministry change to our church in the future?
- Describe your experience in working with a budget.
- Education Questions
- Have you had any other special training?
- Have you attended any relevant conferences or seminars?
- Cite some of your publications and speaking engagements.
- What was the most valuable aspect of your college education?
- What are a few books related to your field that you have read in the past years.
Any additional notes or comments:
Pulpit Minister Interview Questions
Applicant: ____________________________________ Date: _________________
- Tell us about yourself and your family (not your education or work experience, but about you the person.)
- Briefly discuss your education and work experience, how you came to be employed at each place, what you accomplished, and why you left each place.
- Please tell us about your conversion.
- What are your gifts and how have you used them?
- Discuss your involvement in the community where you presently serve.
- Tell us about your mentors and name some ministers in the church that you highly respect and explain why.
- What are some things you do to ensure you are growing as a person, minister, and leader?
- How would you describe your leadership style?
- What are your specific beliefs regarding:
- Baptism.
- Divorce and remarriage.
- Role of women in the church.
- Give an overview of a sermon series you have preached and what is the most difficult sermon you have preached?
- How would you react if a member came up to you publicly after a sermon and harshly criticized you about its Biblical accuracy or about a life application point you had made?
- When was the last time you were really upset about something that occurred at church?
- Which version of the Bible do you prefer using and why?
- How do you feel about a congregation having a vision and can you share visions of previous congregations?
- What do you recall from having studied the Member Survey? What excites you and concerns you the most about the survey?
- The congregation, in the survey, favors developing deeper spiritual relationships, sharing the gospel with the unsaved, meaningful worship experience, and helping members discover their own gifts for ministry and service. What do you see the preacher/minister role in accomplishing these things?
- What do we, as a congregation, need to do to fulfill our Christian ministry – individually and in a congregational setting?
- In a congregation as large as this one, there are a diversity of beliefs, backgrounds, and thoughts on how we function as a group of Christians. How would your sermons satisfy these wide-based needs?
- What do you think constitutes a meaningful worship service, and what is the preacher’s role in this (or how does the sermon contribute)?
- How do you balance your sermons between “first principles” to reach the unsaved and “Christian growth” principles to encourage members with a range of growth stages?
- How do you approach more doctrinal subjects from a “truth standpoint” without it coming across as just “Church of Christ” doctrine or heritage view?
- Do you feel that “small group” meetings in addition to corporate worship and Bible study times have a role in Christian growth? How can they be accomplished without being viewed as dividing the congregation?
- How important do you feel communications are to congregational unity? How does the preacher/minister fill a role in encouraging better communications?
- How important is the conduct of the minister’s daily life as an example to the congregation in addition to the sermons and lessons he would present?
- How much of a role do you feel a preacher should have in “church management” in a congregation the size of this congregation, versus the role as preacher, teacher, evangelizer, and encourager?
- What is your policy/practice regarding doing funerals?
- Describe your current schedule for a typical week and how much of this time do you think is appropriate to spend in the church office?
- How often do you visit hospitals nursing homes, and shut-ins?
- How would describe your working relationship with other ministers and staff members in your previous and current workplaces?
- Have your received regular performance appraisals at your present or past congregations? If so, please summarize those for us. To follow up, what would your current shepherds tell us about your strengths and weaknesses?
- What is the worst thing we could find out about you when doing a detailed background check? Have you ever filed bankruptcy, defaulted on a loan, been taken to court or taken someone else to court?
- If evaluating your own spiritual and personal areas of growth, what would you change about yourself and what could we do to help you?
- What is your understanding of the role of elders?
- Describe what you consider to be an ideal working relationship between the pulpit minister and the elders.
- Please discuss any spiritual understanding you have of a subject which might cause us or our leadership any concern.
- What do you consider some of the major problems facing the church today and which of these problems upset you the most, and what do you do to deal with them effectively?
- Do you perform marriage ceremonies for anyone who asks you?
- What is your philosophy as it relates to counseling?
- Describe some new ideas your congregation has implemented that have made a positive difference and what was your role?
- How have you dealt with the young professional age group, and what are your ideas to encourage and support this involved group at this church?
- Is there a favorite age or gender group you prefer to teach?
- Please share our ideas on helping to develop leadership skills.
- How many Sundays were you out of the pulpit last year, and what are your scheduled engagements for this year?
- How would you describe your congregation’s growth in the past five years?
- How important are Sunday night services and how do you prepare for the service compared to Sunday morning?
- How do you ensure you maintain healthy balance between church and family life, and does this affect you being available to the congregation after hours?
- How involved is your wife and children in church activities?
- What are some of the goals you have set for yourself this year and what do you hope to be doing five (5) and ten (10) years from now?
- What would you be doing if you were not in ministry?
- If you are selected to come to this congregation what can we do to make the transition a smooth and positive experience for your family?
- Why should we hire you to be our next pulpit minister?
- What questions do you have?
- Would you like to make any closing statements?
Interviewer Comments:
Interviewer Signature ____________________________
Pulpit Minister Interview Questions — PDF
Hometown church of Christ
1122 Street
Town, State 00000
January 1, 20xx
[Insert Name] [Insert Address Line 1] [Insert Address Line 2]Re: Hometown church of Christ Pulpit Minister Position
Dear [Insert Name]:
On Behalf of the Search and Interview committee, I want to thank you for your interest in being considered for the Pulpit Minister position at the Hometown church of Christ. We will be reviewing your resume and qualifications to determine if there is a genuine interest in speaking with you further. If so, a member of the Search Committee will be in touch with you via telephone to set up a phone interview. We understand the importance of confidentiality and assure you your resume will remain confidential.
We are excited about the opportunities we have ahead of us at the Hometown church of Christ and we trust that God has great plans for you as well. Thank you again for your interest.
With Highest Regard,
[Signature of Committee Member] [Insert Name of Committee Member]On Behalf of the Search Committee
Hometown church of Christ
1122 Street
Town, State 00000
January 1, 20xx
[Insert Name] [Insert Address Line 1] [Insert Address Line 2]Re: Hometown church of Christ Pulpit Minister Position
Dear [Insert Name]:
On behalf of the Search and Interview committee, I want to thank you for your interest in the Pulpit Minister position at the Hometown church of Christ. Unfortunately after carefully reviewing your qualifications and conducting a phone interview with you we have determined that your resume and qualifications are not compatible with the criteria set forth by our eldership for the pulpit position of the Hometown church of Christ. We understand the importance of confidentiality and assure you your time spent with us will remain confidential.
We are excited about the opportunities we have ahead of us at the Hometown church of Christ and we trust that God has great plans for you as well. Thank you again for your interest.
With Highest Regard,
[Signature of Committee Member] [Insert Name of Committee Member]On Behalf of the Search Committee