November 3, 2006

connecting the Community of Christ staff community

Meeting Reminder

Two meetings on November 8 will take place in the Temple continents room. See full details in the October 20 NewsPEACE.

• International Headquarters Staff
  1:30–3:00 p.m. CST—Communication Expectations for International Headquarters

• Field and International Headquarters Staff (those eligible for benefits in the United States)
  3:30–4:30 p.m. CST—Open Enrollment Presentation

Exegesis on Ephesians 2:11–22

At the September Leaders Meetings, Don Compier gave a presentation about Ephesians 2:11–22 in relation to sharing the peace of Jesus Christ. As requested, this is now available in English, French, and Spanish at http://www.CofChrist.org/leaders/default.asp.

Space Allocation Final Report

Click here to see the final list of staff and office assignments. Also included is an overview of the next steps in the space allocation process.

Executive Brief

A new template to help teams and team members with making decisions has been created and is available to everyone. An executive brief is a short (typically one page, no more than two pages) neutral summary of what is known about a particular issue or problem. It is used to communicate general background quickly so that decisions can be made by a group of people that may know little or nothing about the subject matter. The brief distills a large amount of complex details, so that the reader can easily understand the heart of the matter. It is also the preferred communication tool when presenting a decision or recommendation to the WMCT.

This template can be found at TeamCentral::CofChrist.

• Point your browser to http://CofChrist.netcipia.net/
• Click on “Team Templates”
• Download or view by clicking on “Executive Brief.doc”
• Usage instructions can be found by clicking on “Instructions on Using the Executive Brief Template.doc”

The most important part of an executive briefing is articulating what decision needs to be made before the team or committee. If you cannot describe the decision in a sentence or two, then you might be trying to bite off more than you can chew. The more simply stated the question, the better the results in the decision-making process.

There are a number of uses for the briefing document. Some teams may use the template to document key decisions made by the team. The template could also be used to facilitate a discussion between two team members.

International Peace Award

If you missed the 2006 Community of Christ International Peace Award presentation to Howard Zehr, you can view an archive version of the webcast at www.CofChrist.org/peaceaward/honorroll.asp. Zehr received the award for his pioneering work in the field of restorative justice. His keynote address is also available for viewing.

Coming Soon

• Information about incumbent and new position description review timelines. Everyone is encouraged to begin reviewing their position descriptions to consider what changes they would recommend.
• Timelines for the completion of staff development assessments and reviews
• Staff appreciation on Wednesday, December 13, at 3:00 p.m.

Click here to submit news and announcements for consideration in NewsPEACE.