Hiring Part-Time or Full-Time, That Is The Question.
If you could hire a new employee, would you bring on a full-time or part-time staff member?
Until recently, I would have laughed at that question: Full-Time! Who in their right mind would prefer hiring part-time staff if full-time was an option?
– Full-time staff members provide full-time attention.
– Full-time staff members work until the job is done, not until their hours are up.
– Full-time staff members are available when you are available.
While all that is true, when I began evaluating staff options against FTEs (Full-Time Equivalents), I began to see staffing through a new lens. At Watermarke, we hire to attendance ratios and revenue allocations. I’m ultimately not as concerned with total staff members as I am with FTEs. That creates a different perspective, which provides for some new considerations.
For me and our church, organizationally speaking, our primary staff needs revolve around executing Sunday programming. It goes without saying the more bodies on Sunday the better. But, there is a lot of work that happens throughout the week, and more bodies doesn’t necessarily equate to more progress.
So how do you decide between hiring part-time and full-time staff? Here are 5 clarifying questions I use to help our church decide:
1. Do we need more people or more focus?
This might be the most critical question (Although you should read the others, too! Especially number 5). If you need more bodies, hiring two part-time employees over one full-time employee is the best solution. We have done this in many departments at Watermarke to help cover Sunday responsibilities.
