Interviews

North Point and Buckhead Interviews

I've spent the last two days interviewing several staff members from North Point Community Church and Buckhead Church for a new DVD set we will have available at Catalyst in October, based on Andy Stanley's talk on Systems. The interviews will serve as discussion material and bonus footage to give practical insight into how the North Point system operates- all giving greater context to Andy's talk. Yesterday was at Buckhead Church interviewing Carlos Whittaker and Jeff Henderson, and today interviewed Jenny Boyett and Andy. Hearing them each describe the environment, culture, and incredible focus on developing leaders within North Point Ministries was incredibly encouraging and inspiring. One of the things that stood out was the intense system for hiring new staff. Jeff, Carlos, Jenny and Andy all talked about the process of hiring new staff- most new hires have somewhere between 12 and 18 interviews and talk to staff across all departments within the North Point culture. But such a strong focus on hiring means that once someone is on the team, trust is very high and allows them to run with freedom and flexibility. Many times we just hire someone because we have to fill a role, and time becomes the priority instead of absolutely making sure someone is the right fit.

Rick Warren and Ed Stetzer unplugged

Check out the video interviews at Scott Hodge's blog with Rick Warren and Ed Stetzer in the green room at Exponential. You'll also see my ugly mug in the interview with Ed. As I mentioned yesterday, the plan was for me to do a short interview with Scott and Todd, but there were lots of distractions in the green room, and plus I didn't have much to offer compared to the other speakers who were there, and when Ed walked in the room, I just simply moved over and allowed him to sit in the interview chair. Good move for sure. Ed has a lot more to say than I do. Fact.  Ed shares more insights into the recently released research from Lifeway on the attendance decline in the SBC. And Rick shares all kinds of thoughts. Tons of good stuff. And comedic moments as well.