Ministry Team Office of the Associate General Minister
Reports To General Minister and President and CEO
FLSA Status Exempt
Salary Grade 13
Full-Time/Part-Time Full-Time
Category National and Global Ministries, Cleveland, Ohio
Starting Salary $178,000- $187,000
Description GENERAL PURPOSE OF POSITION: The Associate General Minister will articulate a prophetic voice for a Just World, and as directed by the General Minister and President and CEO (GMP and CEO). The Associate General Minister will guide and lead the activities of the Love of Church unit which shall be carried out in accordance with the Purpose, Mission, and Vision of the United Church of Christ under the leadership of the GMP and CEO. The Associate General Minister will contribute to the functions of the National Ministries, as part of the senior leadership, including visioning and planning, communications, development and management of budgets, development and leadership of staff, and implementation of policies adopted by the General Synod and the United Church of Christ Board, as directed by the GMP and CEO. The Associate General Minister is accountable to the General Synod and the United Church of Christ Board through the GMP and CEO. The specific duties of the Associate General Minister are delegated and directed by the GMP and CEO in consultation with the United Church of Christ Board.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Is responsible for overseeing the Love of Church unit as directed by the GMP and CEO.
- Testifies to the history, theological identity, and witness of the United Church of Christ as an Elected Officer of the United Church of Christ.
- Bears responsibility for honoring the history and legacy of the predecessor bodies of the ministries, enabling the ministries to build upon the strengths of those traditions.
- Fosters the unity of our Local Churches through worship and discipleship resources, administration and oversight systems.
- Works to build trust with the Conferences and their leadership, fostering unity while maintaining sound covenant partnerships.
- Monitors the social, political and moral actions of society and sounds the alarm both locally, nationally, and globally wherever injustice is found.
- Supports on-going congregational work and provides opportunities for new initiatives designed to reach marginalized groups.
- Through programmatic ministry teams, provides comprehensive educational resources and trainings human justice issues.
- Participates as a principal member of the Senior Leadership Team along with other members of the General Minister and President Advisory Cabinet. Ensuring to develop comprehensive strategies for the UCC including Marketing and Communications, Philanthropy, and other functions as they pertain to the Love of Church unit.
- Serves as an appointed member of the United Church of Christ Board and accordingly as a member of the Board of Directors.
- Is responsible directly for leadership to and supervision of the following staff positions and teams:
- Executive Assistant
- Minister and Team Leader, Ministerial Excellence, Support and Authorization (MESA)
- Minister and Team Leader, Faith INFO (Faith Education, Innovation and Formation)
- Minister and Team Leader, Education and Faithful Action Ministries
- Minister and Team Leader, and Publisher, Faith-Forming Publications
- Director, Center for Analytics, Research, Development and Data (CARDD)
COMMITMENTS AND PERSPECTIVES: - Is grounded in a personal faith in Jesus Christ.
- Has a working knowledge of the history, polity, practice, and biblical/theological traditions of the United Church of Christ.
- Can articulate clearly the purpose, mission, and vision of the United Church of Christ and can articulate their own vision for how the work of the Love of Church unit fosters those.
- Demonstrates a knowledge of and openness to the new faith traditions and experiences which are part of the church life of the United Church of Christ.
- Demonstrates a knowledge of and commitment to the United Church of Christ's vision of being a multiracial, multicultural, open and affirming, accessible to all, just peace church in a multifaith world, inclusive of all peoples.
- Demonstrates an ecumenical and global faith perspective.
- Exhibits theological integrity, critical thinking, respect for persons, and love of the church in all of its diversity and witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
- Embraces and is committed to the ethos embodied in the present structure.
ADMINISTRATIVE:
- Demonstrated experience in oversight and management; strategic planning; ability to work with others to establish and implement short- and long-term goals to meet future directions of the United Church of Christ.
- Ability to both collaborate and foster collaboration between the Love of Church unit and others in the National Setting; ability to design goals, and to lead the staff in annual goal setting that is consistent with the Purpose, Mission, and Vision of the denomination as determined by the GMP and CEO.
- Ability to make decisions, render judgments, take action and/or commit oneself, with proper thought, consultation, deliberation, and prayer.
- Ability to understand, analyze, and plan in areas of budget development and administration for the financial oversight of the unit, and exercise good stewardship of existing and future resources.
- Skills in performance management; ability to provide fair and honest feedback and to coordinate activities of staff and allocate proper resources; is willing to initiate action to improve skills and performance of staff; demonstrated commitment to equal opportunity employment.
- Ability to ensure that team leaders of the Love of Church unit can and do hold their teams accountable to individual, team, and organizational goals.
- Exhibits a commitment to increasing the effectiveness of staff and self, including the ability to identify development needs and sources of learning.
LEADERSHIP: - Ability to apply appropriate interpersonal and collegial approaches to guide individuals and diverse groups toward faithful task and goal achievement; to foster a variety of models of decision-making.
- Skill in understanding the verbal communication of others. This includes the ability to remember, to be sensitive and discerning, and to apply information received verbally.
- Ability to express oneself effectively in individual and/or group situations, including the effective expression of ideas and tasks in verbal or written form.
- Ability to conceptualize future situations; to see the whole, as well as the particular, picture, including people's roles within it; and to assess its impacts on other individuals or groups. Has a vision for the United Church of Christ and is able to hear and integrate the vision of others.
- Ability to perceive the impact of one's decisions and actions on the various parts of the structure and to be aware and sensitive to the needs and goals of other settings, seeking collaborative solutions wherever possible.
- Ability to recognize and support unique and creative ideas, and to support changes with personal action and resources, while maintaining tolerance for the risks involved.
- Ability to apply appropriate problem-solving and negotiation methods in situations involving differences between individuals and/or groups.
PERSONAL QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTIC S:
- Lives out of a disciplined rhythm of worship, prayer, and spiritual growth.
- Maintains religious, social, and ethical standards in all work-related, social, and personal situations; acts, and is perceived by others, as behaving morally and ethically.
- Demonstrates strong self-esteem and self-image; takes time for self-reflection and personal growth; makes decisions and takes actions where one's own convictions, and not simply the opinions of others, are a strong influence.
- Respects and is sensitive to others who are different in experience or opinion; perceived by others as being humble.
- Believes that group initiatives and plans are enhanced by dialogue.
- Values and is committed to the many forms and experiences of diversity which are present in the life of the United Church of Christ.
- Is proactive in maintaining a healthy, energetic lifestyle; is effective in balancing personal and work dimensions of life; and possesses a sense of humor.
STRATEGIC AND VISIONARY: - Has the ability to interpret the strategic, visionary direction for the future work of the Love of Church unit in alignment with the Purpose, Mission, and Vision of the United Church of Christ as determined by the GMP and CEO.
- Has the ability to translate the strategic vision to the staff and invite them into collaborative thinking about how to set goals consistent with deployment of the strategy and the vision.
- Has the ability to exercise critical management around the strategic use of resources allocated in support of the vision.
Position Requirements MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills and/or abilities required to perform successfully in this position.
- Master's degree in a related field required and experience in leadership settings of the United Church of Christ, including significant experience in the Local Church.
- May be a lay person, an authorized minister, or a person with ordained ministerial partner standing.
- Is a member of a Local Church of the United Church of Christ.
- Exhibits the ability to see and act out of a whole-church perspective.
- Has experience and the capacity to work in diverse settings and among diverse people in collegial, constructive, caring, and covenantal ways.
- Has experience and proven ability in a multiple-agenda setting.
- Has demonstrated experiences with the global dimensions of the Church.
- Has experience working in cross-cultural and international settings, including, but not limited to living, studying, or extensive traveling outside the United States.
- Preferably has written and verbal knowledge of a language other than English.
- Is able to articulate a vision of the United Church of Christ's engagement with and responsibility to society.
- Experienced and comfortable with prophetic witness.
OTHER: - This position requires domestic travel.
- Relocation is necessary as this position is based in Cleveland, Ohio.
This job description is not intended to be a complete list of all duties and responsibilities required for the position and is subject to review and change at any time in accordance with the needs of the ministry. Since no job description can detail all duties and responsibilities that may be required from time to time in the performance of a position, duties and responsibilities that may be inherent in a position shall also be considered part of the position holder's responsibility.
It is expected that the person who holds this position will conduct themselves in a manner consistent with the policies of the UCC and in a manner that will reflect positively on the organization. All employees are encouraged to nurture safety within the work performed on behalf of the UCC by being attentive to self-care, education, maintaining appropriate boundaries, and the importance of referring those in need to supportive and helpful resources.
Comprehensive Benefits Package Employer paid health, dental, pension, life insurance benefits
Application Deadline September 30, 2025
About the Organization The United Church of Christ
Our faith is 2000 years old. Our thinking is not.
We believe in God's Continuing Testament.
We believe in Extravagant Welcome
We believe the church's mission is to Change Lives
EOE Statement The United Church of Christ National Setting celebrates diversity and an inclusive environment for all employees. We are committed to a workforce that is representative, at all job levels, of the broad spectrum of our diverse society. We endeavor to recruit employees from backgrounds that vary by race, color, national origin, ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, genetic information, past, present or future service in the uniformed services, religion, or any other legally protected characteristic under applicable federal, state or local law. We are proud to be a multicultural, multiracial, open and affirming, accessible to all, equal opportunity employer.
This position is currently accepting applications.
