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You Approved Their Vacation. Then You Took It Back. · The Healthy Church Staff Podcast

• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: Your children's director requested the paper six months ago, and you'll prove that they booked their trip, they arranged their coverage at the church, and spent the next several months answering their kids' favorite question.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: How many were days until we leave?
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: And then halfway through the trip, something happens at the church.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: A staff member gets sick, a significant need comes up, the coverage you arranged, or that she arranged, fell through.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: And reluctantly you pick up the phone and you call them and you say, Hey, I hate to ask this, but is there any way you can come back a little bit?
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: And they say yes, and you're relieved.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_00: But before you move on to solving the problem, consider what that yes may have just cost them.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: Today we're going to talk about that, about protecting vacation time after you've already approved it.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: We're going to talk about that here on the Healthy Church Staff Podcast.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: Hi, thanks for joining me.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: My name's Todd Rhodes, one of the co-founders over chemistrystaffing.com.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: Approval gives someone a reasonable basis for making plans.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: And the illustration I gave with your children's director is one illustration where you ask somebody to come back maybe a little bit early from vacation because of something that happens.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: Another way to do this, though, is they've asked for their PTO, their vacation time, and you've approved it.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_00: And then you figure out, oh, we've got somebody else out on that day, or we want to schedule a special picnic or something on that day.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: So email them back and say, hey, those days aren't going to work after all.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: They could have already spent their money.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: Their spouse could have already requested time away from work.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: Family members have already coordinated schedules, and their family, their kids, are just looking forward to getting away and going on vacation.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe they're going to Disney World or something.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: When you ask them to change those plans, you're asking several people to absorb the consequences of a problem at church.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: And sometimes the situation is serious.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's an illness or a death or an unexpected emergency.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: And that's exactly how churches need to think about coverage before somebody leaves, not while they're gone.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: And you say, Todd, this doesn't happen.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: It does.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: It does.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: You know it does.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe not in your church, but you've heard of churches where this happens.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah, I've got some stories personally, but I'll keep those for another podcast.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: I'll write that in my notes.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: Probably not.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: Anyway.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: But that's exactly why churches need to think about what's going to happen when someone is gone before they actually go for the week or two weeks.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: Start by asking a really difficult question.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: When a problem comes up, how quickly do we reach for the person who's away?
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: Is calling them the last option after we've explored all the alternatives, or is it the easiest options because we know that they're probably going to help and they're just they're on vacation.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: They're just taking it easy anyway.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: There's a difference between needing that specific person and preferring that person because they already know what to do.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe another pastor could provide care.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe a trusted volunteer could lead.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe somebody could step up in a pinch.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe an event needs to be simplified or postponed because you know that your main person isn't going to be there or one of your key people.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: Those options may require more effort than from the people who are still working.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_00: They deserve consideration before you interrupt somebody's family trip.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: And remember the relationship behind the request.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: You may believe that you're simply asking for a favor, or your staff member may hear a request from the person who supervises them or evaluates their work and influences their future.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not simply a favor.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: Give them room to discuss it with their family rather than expecting some kind of an immediate answer.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_00: And be prepared to respect the answer.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: Second issue is what happens when somebody does interrupt their vacation.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: A sincere thank you matters, but you also need to address what they lost.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: How much time did they spend working?
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: Did they miss part of their trip?
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: Were there additional travel costs or reservations that they couldn't use because their plans changed because of you and the church?
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: Discuss how the church will restore the time and address reasonable expenses caused by the change.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: Make those arrangements concrete.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: Put replacement time on the calendar, arrange coverage, and follow through.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: Take some extra time when things settle down.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_00: Leaves a staff member kind of responsible for finding the solution.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_00: And that's not really their responsibility in church work.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: Things have a remarkable ability to remain unsettled.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: You know that.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: Also, recognize that replacement days may not recreate what was missed.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_00: A Tuesday off in November doesn't necessarily replace the afternoon everybody spent together at the beach.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: You can acknowledge that without becoming defensive.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, say something like this.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, I appreciate that you helped.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: Also realize we disrupted something really important for your family.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: And then make some changes that reduce that chance of ever happening again.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_00: That brings us to the coverage plan, okay?
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: Before somebody leaves, clarify who handles routine questions, who can make decisions in their absence, and where people should take urgent concerns while they're gone.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_00: Make sure those people have information and the authority that they need.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe a name on a spreadsheet won't help much if the backup person still needs to call the vacationing staff member for a decision, so make sure that they have all the information, all the authority that they need.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_00: And talk about what actually warrants contact.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_00: An unanswered question can often wait.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_00: Schedule change may belong to the person providing coverage.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Your team needs shared expectations so the person on vacation isn't making that judgment in a hotel room.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: And you might need to do this for yourself.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you're the one that keeps getting interrupted on your vacation.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_00: Set up those guidelines before you leave.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_00: When they can contact you, when you're gonna answer.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_00: Those kind of things are really important, not just for your staff and what you're saying to them, but also for how your staff approaches you or doesn't approach you when you're on vacation.
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_00: So here's a practical step you can take this week.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: Look at the approved vacations coming up in the next 90 days.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_00: And for each one, just get with the person and confirm the coverage with the person before they leave who's gonna step in, who's gonna handle all of those things while they're gone, and review any vacation that you've already interrupted.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_00: If you've promised replacement time or reimbursement, make sure that it happened.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_00: Your staff should be able to make plans with confidence in the approval that you gave them, and you need to protect that confidence by preparing for their absence and carrying the responsibility while they're away.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: I hope that's been helpful for you here today on the Healthy Church Staff Podcast.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Todd Rhodes, and I'll be right back here tomorrow.