Director of Engagement in Chicago, Illinois at FOURTH PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

Director of Engagement

Classification: Exempt

Status: Regular, Full Time

Reports to: Senior Associate Pastor

Location: Chicago (Hybrid, in office 3 days a week)

Position Summary

The Director of Engagement provides strategic leadership to help people move from initial connection with Fourth Presbyterian Church into meaningful participation, relationships, service, spiritual growth, and leadership. This role designs and oversees an integrated engagement pathway that welcomes newcomers, strengthens connection among members and regular participants, expands volunteer involvement, and equips people to contribute their gifts to the life and mission of the congregation.

Reporting to the Senior Associate Pastor, the Director of Engagement works across ministry areas to create clear, hospitable, and sustainable systems for connection. The position supervises the Director of Volunteer Ministry and collaborates closely with pastoral staff, program staff, communications staff, Chicago Lights staff, and congregational leaders.

The Director of Engagement combines strategic planning, organizational leadership, data-informed decision-making, theological reflection, and a warm personal presence. The successful candidate will convey that engagement is not merely attendance or recruitment but the cultivation of a diverse Christian community in which people are known, growing, serving, and participating in God’s work in Chicago and beyond.

Newcomer and Membership Engagement

• Oversee systems that ensure visitors and prospective members receive timely, personal, and appropriate follow-up.
• Strengthen processes for welcoming, orienting, and integrating newcomers into the worshiping and serving community.
• Partner with pastors and ministry leaders to plan and evaluate membership exploration, new-member welcome, and opportunities for relationship-building after membership.
• Create opportunities for newcomers and newer members to meet staff, lay leaders, peers, and ministry representatives in settings that encourage genuine connection.

Relationship Building and Congregational Belonging

• Oversee a Sunday morning community time (coffee hour) in which worshipers and program participants are actively welcomed and invited into meaningful connection.
• Develop practices that foster connection among online participants in worship and ministry programs.
• Support engagement initiatives that are attentive to the realities of church membership, including varied schedules, commuting patterns, online participation, and changing patterns of religious affiliation.
• Encourage accessible and inclusive participation for people of different ages, abilities, family configurations, cultural backgrounds, socioeconomic circumstances, and levels of familiarity with church life.

Systems, Data, and Communication

• Establish reliable systems for tracking engagement activity, follow-up, volunteer involvement, attendance or participation patterns, and movement through key pathways.
• Establish reliable systems for tracking engagement activity, follow-up, volunteer involvement, attendance or participation patterns, and movement through key pathways.
• Develop dashboards, reports, and regular review practices that give staff and lay leaders an understandable picture of engagement health and emerging needs.
• Partner with Communications to ensure that invitations, registration pages, emails, digital content, and printed materials provide clear next steps and reflect the church’s hospitality.

Staff and Congregational Leadership Development

• Build and equip teams of congregational leaders who can welcome, connect, mentor, host, recruit, and accompany others into deeper participation.
• Provide consultation, resources, and training to ministry staff and volunteer leaders on hospitality, invitation, follow-up, volunteer care, and engagement practices.
• Foster a collaborative staff culture that treats engagement as a shared congregational responsibility rather than the work of a single department.

Supervisory Responsibilities

The Director of Engagement directly supervises the Director of Volunteer Ministry. Supervisory responsibilities include:

• Establishing annual goals, work plans, and measurable priorities.
• Conducting regular one-on-one supervision and annual performance reviews.
• Providing coaching, encouragement, accountability, and professional-development support.
• Clarifying decision-making authority and ensuring effective coordination with ministry staff.
• Supporting the Director of Volunteer Ministry in responding constructively to challenges in recruitment, placement, retention, training, and volunteer care.
• Ensuring that volunteer-ministry systems advance the larger congregational engagement strategy.

Required Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree I theology, divinity, nonprofit management, organizational leadership, social work, or a related field. Or equivalent combination of education, training, and relevant professional experience.
• At least five years of progressively responsible leadership experience in congregational life, nonprofit engagement, membership development, volunteer management, community organizing, hospitality, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience developing systems that move people from initial interest to sustained participation and leadership.
• Experience supervising staff, setting measurable goals, conducting performance conversations, and fostering a healthy team culture.
• Demonstrated success recruiting, training, supporting, and retaining volunteers.
• Strong relationship-building skills with the ability to engage people across generations, cultures, theological perspectives, and levels of prior church experience.
• Excellent written, verbal, facilitation, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Strong organizational and project-management abilities, including the ability to manage multiple programs, stakeholders, and deadlines.
• Comfort using databases, registration systems, spreadsheets, and collaboration tools to support planning and evaluate outcomes.
• Commitment to the mission, values, and inclusive Christian witness of Fourth Presbyterian Church.

Preferred Qualifications

• A master’s degree in theology, divinity, nonprofit management, organizational leadership, social work, or a related field.
• Experience in a large multi-staff congregation or comparably complex nonprofit organization.
• Familiarity with Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) polity, Reformed theology, and congregational life.
• Experience with Planning Center, Microsoft 365, or comparable constituent-engagement systems.
• Experience developing hybrid, digital, or online engagement practices.
• Training or demonstrated skill in change management, organizational development, volunteer administration, or community-building.

Physical Requirements & Work Environment

The physical demands and work environment described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with different abilities to perform essential functions.

• Must be able to participate in online virtual communications including email, video conferencing, and other online tools used to facilitate virtual office culture and work sharing.
• Smoke and drug (illegal or recreational) free environment.
• Fourth Church/Chicago Lights aims for accessibility in any off-site location in its control, but some of them may not be fully accessible.
• This role requires prolonged periods of sitting and computer work.
• Lifting requirements of up to 25 pounds.

Schedule

This is a full-time position based on a 40-hour work week with a supported hybrid framework (minimum of three days onsite per week; remote days negotiable with the supervisor). This position requires regular Sunday participation, occasional evening and weekend responsibilities, and availability for major congregational events, seasonal programs, leadership meetings, and volunteer trainings.

Compensation & Benefits

This is a full-time salaried position with an annual salary range of $82,000 - $91,500 commensurate with experience and qualifications. Fourth Church and Chicago Lights offer a robust benefits package including:

• Medical insurance (church pays 85% of employee monthly premium and 75% for eligible dependents).
• Optional dental and vision plans.
• Generous PTO: 17 days plus 11 paid holidays.
• 403(b) retirement plan with employer contributions after one year of service.
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) for medical and dependent care.
• Transit and commuter parking benefits.
• Life and short-term disability insurance; optional long-term disability and life insurance.

EEO Statement

Fourth Presbyterian Church and Chicago Lights are committed to equal employment opportunity for all qualified persons, without regard to race, color, citizenship status, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, age, creed, physical or mental disability, marital status or familial status, veteran status, military status, source of income, political affiliation, or any other factor protected by law. Fourth Church and Chicago Lights seek to build and retain a diverse staff and is committed to fostering an equitable and inclusive workplace where everyone is treated as a respected and valued member of the team.

Fourth Church and Chicago Lights are committed to elevating the voices of individuals of all backgrounds, including but not limited to women and people of color, Native people, immigrants and refugees, low-income people, LGBTQ+, and transgender, gender non-conforming, and non-binary people, people with disabilities, and accordingly encourage qualified individuals from all communities to apply.

Essential Responsibilities

Engagement Strategy and Leadership

• Develop and lead a comprehensive congregational engagement strategy that guides people from first contact to active participation, membership, small-group or formation involvement, service, leadership, and ongoing connection.
• Establish a clear and shared definition of engagement for Fourth Presbyterian Church, including meaningful measures of connection, belonging and participation.
• Assess existing pathways for visitors, prospective members, members, volunteers, and ministry participants to identify gaps, duplication, barriers, and opportunities for greater clarity and hospitality.
• Design practical next-step pathways for people at differing stages of relationship with the church, including first-time worshipers, online participants, new residents, families, long-time members, and people returning after a period of absence.

Newcomer and Membership Engagement

• Oversee systems that ensure visitors and prospective members receive timely, personal, and appropriate follow-up.
• Strengthen processes for welcoming, orienting, and integrating newcomers into the worshiping and serving community.
• Partner with pastors and ministry leaders to plan and evaluate membership exploration, new-member welcome, and opportunities for relationship-building after membership.
• Create opportunities for newcomers and newer members to meet staff, lay leaders, peers, and ministry representatives in settings that encourage genuine connection.

Relationship Building and Congregational Belonging

• Oversee a Sunday morning community time (coffee hour) in which worshipers and program participants are actively welcomed and invited into meaningful connection.
• Develop practices that foster connection among online participants in worship and ministry programs.
• Support engagement initiatives that are attentive to the realities of church membership, including varied schedules, commuting patterns, online participation, and changing patterns of religious affiliation.
• Encourage accessible and inclusive participation for people of different ages, abilities, family configurations, cultural backgrounds, socioeconomic circumstances, and levels of familiarity with church life.

Systems, Data, and Communication

• Establish reliable systems for tracking engagement activity, follow-up, volunteer involvement, attendance or participation patterns, and movement through key pathways.
• Work with relevant staff to use Planning Center, VOMO, Microsoft 365, and other approved tools effectively and responsibly.
• Develop dashboards, reports, and regular review practices that give staff and lay leaders an understandable picture of engagement health and emerging needs.
• Partner with Communications to ensure that invitations, registration pages, emails, digital content, and printed materials provide clear next steps and reflect the church’s hospitality.

Staff and Congregational Leadership Development

• Build and equip teams of congregational leaders who can welcome, connect, mentor, host, recruit, and accompany others into deeper participation.
• Provide consultation, resources, and training to ministry staff and volunteer leaders on hospitality, invitation, follow-up, volunteer care, and engagement practices.
• Foster a collaborative staff culture that treats engagement as a shared congregational responsibility rather than the work of a single department.

Supervisory Responsibilities

The Director of Engagement directly supervises the Director of Volunteer Ministry. Supervisory responsibilities include:

• Establishing annual goals, work plans, and measurable priorities.
• Conducting regular one-on-one supervision and annual performance reviews.
• Providing coaching, encouragement, accountability, and professional-development support.
• Clarifying decision-making authority and ensuring effective coordination with ministry staff.
• Supporting the Director of Volunteer Ministry in responding constructively to challenges in recruitment, placement, retention, training, and volunteer care.
• Ensuring that volunteer-ministry systems advance the larger congregational engagement strategy.