Negotiating Terms of Call in 3-D

For many years I served my Presbytery by chairing our Committee on Ministry. We were mainly responsible for the caring and feeding of pastors. One of the more fun areas involved working with churches in the process of calling a new pastor. I learned a lot by watching how pastor nominating committees discerned who they felt God was calling to lead them. I learned even more by watching the negotiations that took place after a church decided to extend a call.

What should it look like for pastors and nominating committees to negotiate on terms of call? Or, in plain language- what should it look like for pastors and churches to talk about money?

In nearly every interaction I recall the leaders involved were obviously uncomfortable. On the one hand the church is a business, and staff needs to be compensated fairly, whatever that means. But on the other hand it’s not like the church is a business quite like any other, either. People competent in their own fields of expertise, business, teaching, medicine, and law, suddenly find themselves in a very strange space, unsure of the norms and what’s appropriate. Similarly, pastors…well, I’ll just say it…pastors are often weird about money. Pastors don’t take a vow of poverty, and yet, no one likes a pastor who appears overly concerned with the cash.

The good news is call committees genuinely care about the person they are calling to be their pastor. They want to help them. However, depending on their previous history, they also might rightly be leery about offering a high starting salary. Not only do they not know this person’s work ethic yet, but a high starting point leaves less room to increase after trust has been established.

Pastors, on the other hand, need and want to be respected and valued, and compensation plays a significant role in this. In one instance a prominent female pastor was offered a significantly smaller amount than her predecessor who barely made it a year. She wisely told them it wouldn’t be healthy for her or them to agree to anything less than what her predecessor was making. They agreed to her terms, and they’ve had a great relationship since that time. But pastors are also at a distinct disadvantage at the negotiation table: by arguing over money many are rightly concerned that they may spoil a good relationship before it even has the chance to start.

So, what to do?

Using the language of 3-D negotiation, David Lax and James Sebenius, give us a helpful framework for how to think through negotiating pastoral compensation in ways that are fair and preserve the good relationship so crucial in ministry. 3-D negotiation refers to three dimensions of negotiating: 1) style and tactics, 2) creative value creation, and 3) the work that takes place away from the table. Unfortunately, most people only think about style and tactics when they think about negotiation. Although important, adopting the right style and tactics are rarely enough when it comes to salary negotiations.

In these situations I have found the second dimension the most helpful. In the second dimension negotiators are thinking about one another’s positions creatively. They are empathetic, trying to understand the interests underlying each position. And then, they are using their creativity to come up with possibilities not obvious at first that all parties might like.

For instance there’s the temptation with salary negotiations to get overly fixated on money. And while money is important, it’s only a part of the whole. If we focus only on money, it’s easy to become stuck in a zero-sum trap, where at least one of the sides, and possibly both, walk away not feeling so hot. So finding other areas to negotiate are crucial.

In the PC(USA) world, for instance, our standard insurance does not include a dental plan. Anytime I bring this up to a congregation, people tend to be shocked. They just assume that their pastors have a dental plan. The same is true of death benefits. While our basic insurance does provide some death benefit coverage, it’s not nearly enough for most families. So, one of the easiest ways to create value is for pastors to ask for benefits. Churches feel like they’re taking better care of their pastors, and pastors really do need to take care of their teeth.

Another area I’ve found wide agreement is over retirement. While Presby pastors do have a fully funded pension, our Board of Pensions is encouraging pastors to save for retirement using a 403B plan, basically the 401K for the not for profits. Many people serving on pastor nominating committees work for companies that provide some of retirement savings matching. Committees who can’t or won’t budge on giving more cash are often more than happy to match a percentage of retirement savings.

The last area pastors can sometimes find surprising agreement is in more time away. While, I don’t recommend this as much for pastors negotiating a brand new call, for a pastor with a longer relationship with a congregation, if the church financially can’t give more money, they might be very willing to allow their leader more time for study or vacation.

So, with a little bit of creativity, sometimes frustrated pastors and committees can suddenly increase the pie, creating a lot more value for them to negotiate. I’d love to hear some of the creative ways you’ve negotiated your terms of call.