A SEMINAR PRESENTATION ON PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS OF PASTOR’S IN UYO
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INTRODUCTION
Performance appraisal is the right time to achieve new goals and objectives for the employees. Strength and weakness are identified so that the employee knows areas to improve upon. Employee appraisal systems helps managers evaluate employee’s job performance and develop a fair system of pay increases and promotions. Appraisal in turn can help staff members improve performance, and assist companies in devising or reorganizing job functions to better fit the position of the employee. Effective employee appraisal system incorporate goals to help improve the employers as well as the employee, through the application of appropriate and timely feedback and training.
In its most simple definition, an appraisal is an opinion rendered by an unbiased individual of the current market value for a particular piece of real estate. Certified and professional appraisal analyze the property and take into consideration a multitude of factors that help develop an opinion of the cash consideration buyers might be expected to pay, or sellers may be expected to receive, for a certain property (Barna 3).Church appraisals are performed for a wide variety of reasons, which include, but are not limited to refinancing, acquisition, expansion or sale of a church property. Church appraisals also take into consideration various factors such as local building and labor costs, and comparisons with other similar facilities which have sold. Appraisal analyze the neighborhood, access, zoning, land pricing, and trends of other types of property available in the locality (Rima 14).
A church real estate appraisal addresses the specific characteristics of the site, as well as the amenities and physical condition of the building and site improvements. Data taken into consideration will include square footage, seating capacity, configuration of recreation/fellowship halls, classroom space, kitchen facilities and recreational areas, as well as the functionality and design and quality of materials used in the construction. Real estate appraisals involve an on-site observation of the property in order to determine its condition, quality and assess the layout. Inspectors of real estate appraisal will photograph the church property, review building plans, measure for square footage, and look for features (or issues) that impact the overall value of the property.
This is applicable to pastor’s performance appraisal in United Evangelical Church in which there is high level of interest in the growth of the church, the implementation of pastoral performance appraisal is in line with the direction that the community must move towards and its influence to the growth of the church is unquestionable.
The Pastors’ performance appraisal is based on the foundation of our Lord. As Christian, we begin to realize that the pastor performance appraisal is based on the Bible.
As seen in one of the parables told by Jesus in Luke 19:11-27 about the parable of the ten pounds in which we see the servants/labourers given different resources or works to be done after which an appraisal was carried out by their masters. We understand that right from on set there have been biblical support to seasonal appraisal of workers to ensure consistency, effectiveness, efficiency and improvement.
Hence the pastor as a spiritual leader must therefore not be left to assume supremacy; as this would lead to abuse of power and negligent to duty. The pastor through this appraisal is compelled to be responsible and accountable, which usually boost their senses of administration and management.
According to Ezekiel in an oral interview, he said that performance appraisal helps the church administration to be better and stronger than that of secular management. He explains that as a Pastor who is empowered, he should teach sound principles and through it enlighten his followers and instruct them to be devoted to our Lord (50).
The pastor as a leader commissioned by our Lord should not rely too much in the worldly methods, but depends mostly on the ways of our Lord … These days, in organization, the results and the performance appraisals are closely connected. In reality, depending on the performance appraisal of the directors and manager, the outcome of the organization can change drastically. It can be clearly stated that the astonishing growth of the United Evangelical church can be related to its Pastor performance and also the growth challenge in some congregation of United Evangelical Church can be linked to the pastor performance.
Since 1887, Untied Evangelical Church (Founded as Qua Iboe Church) opened the door of the Gospel, it is obvious that they have accomplished revival and growth both in qualitative and quantitative in the different church congregations. United Evangelical church Uyo Superintendency is growing at breath taking rate. According to Rev. Umoren Uyo superintendency was started with eight local churches with Rev. Umana Ossoh as the secretary and Rev. F. W. Umoren as superintendency Pastor but now, Uyo superintendency has increased to 30 Local churches. At the back of this tremendous growth, there were dedicated and committed pastors.
The pastors in United Evangelical church, Uyo Superintendency reform, grow and even challenge society, taking one step forward. God chose pastors according to Usoro, and led them spiritually to lead the churches and society for the time of difficulties and suffering.
The performance appraisals of pastor’s in Uyo Superintendency is from yet another new prospective as the church evangelism passes the centennial mark and approaches its second century. Moreover starting from a small denomination, the present is the better future in relationship with the pastor’s performance.
In the new generation, pastor’s performance appraisal is necessary to ascertain the contribution of the pastor in the exposure growth of the church. “The theology of church growth”. According to Harne Conn, he interprets the growth of the church from the point of our Lord’s providence and plan. Some of the first reference in the growth of the church can be found in our Lord’s provision of clothing and duties to Adam (Gen. 2:3; 27-49). “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky, and over everything that moves on the earth.” (Gen. 1-28). In this passage, the reference is not only in the biological growth of the church but the inference is much more (145).
Pastor’s performance appraisal assists in understanding the important elements of Uyo Superintendency. In addition, the rapid growth of Uyo Superintendency is an unprecedented event in the accomplishment and growth of the church and the various elements related to its development including pastor’s performance must be understood closely. Especially, after overcoming the spiritual obstacles; those who have exhibited outstanding performance have given new life to individual and to the church. This has enabled further acceleration of the church and can surely be considered a merit. It is now hoped that with the new environment and with the new generation, the Uyo superintendency United Evangelical church can now sincerely turn back and reflect on the tremendous growth since the establishment of the church. It’s growth, and its spiritual influences are exhibited in its surrounding and the expansion of God’s Kingdom is made possible by mainly the guidance of our Lord but one cannot just overlook what is happening in the field where the pastor’s performance is being shown. Our Lord uses the person who is prepared by him and achieves his goals through him.
DEFINITION OF TERMS
Performance appraisal: According to Pratt& Stenning, This deals with how organizations evaluate and measures their employees achievements and behaviors. It is an employee review by his manager where his work performance is evaluated, strengths and weaknesses are identified so that the employee knows his improvement areas. Performance appraisal is the right time to set new goals and objectives for the employees. Performance appraisal system allows the management categorize employees into performers and non-performers. It is primarily done to estimate the employees’ worth (26).
However, we must understand from the explanation of Pratt and Stenning, that performance appraisal is a system used by the management to assess the success and failures of their staff aimed at achieving the organization goal. For the purpose of this paper, performance appraisal shall be approached as that process or strategy adopted to ascertain the performance level of the church pastors in Uyo Superintendency, to understand how well or bad they are doing. Through this system there shall be a comprehension of a better possible ways of doing things, as well better working conditions to be provided for these Pastors to work better and more efficiently.
Church Growth: Is a movement within Evangelical Christianity which aims to grow churches based on research, sociology, analysis as well as making efforts to improve the population strength of the church. One prominent example is the “seeker-sensitive” approach, which aims to make churches more accessible and sensitive to the needs of spiritual seekers (McKee 14).
From Mckee’s point of view, we understand that church growth looks at growing of churches through research and further analysis.
However, we shall consider church growth in this research as the process of expanding churches, raising of new stations, establishment of new congregations. Church growth here refers to the process of finding, nurturing and building of new congregations. It also permeates to the numerical increase in the population strength. Therefore when we speak of church growth, we make mean of that process of working to increase numerical strength of members, as well as establishing a new stations and congregations.
Superintendency: Evans described it as the charge, guidance, headship, stewardship as prominent in the office, post or jurisdiction of a superintendent (102). This implies that Evans sees superintendency as the office or post being headed by a person called superintendent.
For more clarity in this research, we shall define superintendency as a tier level of the United Evangelical Church which is the third tier in administrative hierarchy of the church. This means that at the superintendency level, there is usually a Reverend Minister, also known as superintendency Pastor who is the administrative and spiritual head of that level of the church superintendency.
Also this tier of the church is answerable to the second tier of the church called the area conference. It account to the Area Conference and is controlled by the Area Conference.