New Staff:
100% Commitment:
Staff need to have at least 100% of their full budget coming into their ministry account (pledges not counted) before they can move to and report to their ministry assignment. In addition to the 100% monthly support coming in, there needs to be a healthy reserve in your account before starting. This reserve is at least $3,000 for singles or $6,000 for couples. This will help mitigate the up and downs sometimes inherent with living on support.
Single gifts cannot count toward the 100% requirement, but committed annual gifts can.
Training and Preparation:
Complete a SRS Bootcamp, along with all the preparation required.
Receive specialized CMM training on support raising, which includes reviewing standard CMM support raising materials and how to explain the entire vision of the CMM, as well as the specific ministry or team you may be joining.
For families, we do not advise quitting your job until you have a springboard fund* that covers at least 3 months of your personal and support raising expenses.
Singles must have at least 200+ contacts / married couples at least 300+ contacts before starting.
Bring a successful CMM veteran support raiser on at least one of your first 5 appointments in order to observe your presentation/ask and give constructive feedback. Preferably this would be your support coach, but if that is not possible, then a CMM veteran support raiser who has had good training and results.
Key Measurables:
In an effort to help you report to your ministry assignment as fast as possible and to call our staff to a standard of excellence, we have put in place some key measurables for you to meet (and hopefully surpass!) while in support raising mode.
Face to Face Asks: The expectation is to have at least 10 face to face asks per week. While cancellations occur, one should be averaging 10 or more per week. This is the most critical weekly measurement, and all the other measurables feed into this.
Phone Calls: Average at least 10+ phone calls/texts per day seeking new appointments. More may be possible if most of those are voicemails.
Adding Contacts: Continue to add at least 10 new contacts per week from referrals or your ongoing name-storming, so that running out of contacts is never an issue.
Timeframe: If you are consistently getting 10+ appointments per week, our and other ministries' experience has shown that 3 to 6 months is a reasonable time frame for support raising. It is a range because we want to take into account your goal, individual circumstances, family status, transition from previous employment and other factors.
The percentage benchmarks below are a way for you and the CMM to evaluate how things are going, what can be improved, and provide a time of reflection to discern if a change in ministry direction should be taken. We don’t want anyone limping along discouraged indefinitely.
Month Expected % Raised Minimum % Raised
1 25% 10%
2 50% 25%
3 75% 40%
4 100% 55%
5 N/A 70%
6 N/A 80%
7 N/A 90%
8 N/A 100%
While the above percentages are benchmarks and goals, we do have an initial mark that needs to be met in order to proceed with the CMM. After completing the SRS Bootcamp and starting support raising as your primary occupation, you need to have at least $600 in monthly support coming in within the first two months.
Every 2 months, the CMM would like for you and your supervisor to reflect over the past effort for a time of thanksgiving, prayer, and evaluation. If the support raiser is not finished after 6 months, a further time of reflection is taken with a CMM Staff Coach. If you and the CMM sense the Lord is still leading the CMM and the staff person in the same direction, then another 2 months can be extended for support raising.
If sufficient progress is not being made in support, we will try to troubleshoot more in-depth with you. If you are still not progressing, we will together (you, coach, supervisor, and member care) prayerfully seek if a change in ministry direction should be taken. Again, we don’t want anyone limping along discouraged indefinitely.
Accountability:
Support Raising Coach: We require each staff raising support to have a coach assigned to them for Encouragement, Accountability, and Troubleshooting (EAT). We also encourage the use of MPDX during your support raising efforts to track much of your activity.
Weekly Report: Send in a completed weekly support raising activity report each week to your Coach. No exceptions. A reminder is sent out Friday morning.
Weekly Coaching: Schedule a weekly meeting or phone call with you coach to review your weekly report, troubleshoot, pray, and encourage.
Veteran Staff:
Commitment to 100% Support:
The CMM's commitment is to keep its staff fully funded and financially healthy. This can best be done through diligent care and cultivation of one's regular supporters, challenging them periodically to increase, and continuing to add new supporters on a regular basis. Veteran staff need to be at 100% of their monthly support goal 100% of the time and maintain $3,000 (for a single) or $6,000 (for a couple) balance in in your account at as a reserve. Pledges and single gifts cannot count towards your monthly goal.
Keeping a Healthy Team:
Communication and Cultivation: Staff should build into their work schedule about 4 hours a week for donor communication, administration, and asking for new support.
Trips to Visit Supporters: If needed, staff may plan up to 10 days a year for visiting out of town donors and supporting churches. This time should be planned, approved, and scheduled during a slow time of your ministry duties. The plan should include the names of donors and potential donors expected to meet with. This is not vacation, but work time, packing your schedule with appointments to maintain or increase your support. If personal or vacation time is taken around these dates, please inform your supervisor.
Rebuilding the Team:
It is difficult for one's family, finances, and ministry to thrive with continuous financial pressure due to lack of support. If you are not at 100% with a full reserve, we want to help. For a specific period of time, we want you to allocate more time each week to help you get back to full funding. We will assign a CMM Support Coach to give you encouragement, accountability, and troubleshooting to help you build back your team. Full support is having enough funds to meet payroll, benefits, and ministry expenses plus a healthy reserve (which we are defining as $3,000 for singles and $6,000 for couples.) If you find yourself at less than full support, then the possible scenarios are:
Underfunded Status
Under $3k/6k Reserve, but Monthly Goals are Met:
Submit a plan to your supervisor to get back to full support
Make room in your schedule to focus on planning and phone calls, taking off time to have appointments, and get back to full support; or plan a time for support raising in the near future
Expectation: Time off should be for support appointments and trips
No Reserve, but Monthly Goals are met OR Monthly Goals are not met, but have a Reserve
Submit a plan to your supervisor to get back to full support
Work with your supervisor to reduce your workload and make support raising a priority or plan a support raising time in the near future (trying to find slower seasons of your normal duties)
Expectation: At least 5+ asks per week (in person, on phone, or increases)
No Reserve, and Not Meeting Monthly Goals
Submit a plan to your supervisor to get back to full support
Transition to working at least 80% of time on support raising
Expectation: At least 10+ asks per week
Accountability:
Underfunded veteran staff should include support raising activity in the regular staff report or use the support raisers weekly report. If sufficient progress is not being made in support, we will troubleshoot more in-depth with you. If you are still not progressing, we will together (you, coach, supervisor, and member care) prayerfully seek if a change in ministry direction should be taken. We don’t want anyone limping along discouraged indefinitely.