When it comes to developing a Compensation Program for your church, the Job Description is “the glue” that holds the program together. (See Writing Job Descriptions.)
Much of what needs to happen in a formal compensation program requires the comparison of one position to another. Whether it be internal equity or market comparison, it’s critical to have the position well documented. This is done via the job description. There are a number of job descriptions available for download in the Resources area of this site.
The important thing relative to your compensation program is consistency. Be sure to establish a template for your job descriptions upfront in order to ensure they are consistent with one another over time. Not only should they have the same sections, but the requirements documented in each section must also be comparable. For example, leadership positions that are all in the same “salary grade” should require similar “years of experience.”
When it comes to market comparison the specifics of the position, such as title and essential job functions, are critical. And, of course, these details are documented via the job description. In fact, if you are able to consult your market comparison resource (MinisryPay.Com) when writing a job description, you should. Using the resource you can be sure to document the position using similar specifics as to the position(s) in the market to which it will be compared.
Basically, I’m talking about “standardization” applied to the compensation program. One of the major advantages of standardization is the ability to compare one thing to another based on a common “standard.”