Running Head: CORPORATE RESEARCH REPORT

Corporate Research Project

Morgan Hannah
University of Kansas

CORPORATE RESEARCH REPORT

Corporate Research Report

Profession: Worship Director
For this assignment I decided to interview Susan Mercer, who is the Worship Director at
First United Methodist Church in Lawrence. Her official title is Director of West Campus
Worship. A Worship Director is the person who picks and then leads the music for worship
services. Their main goal is to assist the congregation in worshipping God at church on Sunday
mornings. Worship Director is only one of three possible worship positions though. According to
a website called AllAboutWorship.com there are three titles that someone who works in church
worship may hold: worship leader, worship director, or worship pastor. The most basic, Worship
Leader, describes a person who works roughly 10-12 hours a week selecting songs, conducting
rehearsals, and leading service on Sunday mornings. A person with this title usually makes about
$300 a week, which adds to about a $15,000 a year salary before taxes. The next level up is a
Worship Director, which is someone who does all of the above tasks plus recruits and trains
musicians and oversees thousands of dollars worth of sound equipment. This person generally
works 20+ hours and receives about $500 per week, or $26,000 a year. This is the position that
my interviewee holds. The last position is a Worship Pastor, which is a full time position that
generally draws a salary of $55,000 a year. This person responsible for everything listed above
and is also serves as a pastor who is involved in leadership of the church and generally serves on
the executive staff. (Kim, 2013)
Each of the above positions have the same basic qualifications: candidates must have
advanced musical knowledge, be committed to God, and be able to create and lead a band.
(Hancock, 2013) There is no specific career path, however, a degree in music or religion, or

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equivalent experience, is often preferred. A potential career path could include an undergraduate
degree in music then finding work as a worship leader and later advancing to Worship Director.
Progression is reliant on both experience and musical ability. Another important thing to note is
that all of the above really depends on the size of the church in question. Obviously smaller
churches will pay less than larger churches. In addition, people with more experience are more
likely to get higher level positions. Thus, a new graduate entering this field would probably end
up with a worship leader position making about $300 a week.
Background: Susan Mercer
I interviewed Susan at her office Wednesday November 2nd at 10:15am. First church has
two locations: the downtown campus, located at 946 Vermont Street, was founded over 150 years
ago but the location Susan is the worship director for, West Campus: located at 867 U.S. 40, was
founded only 10 years ago. Though hundreds attend services between the two location, their
website says that they have only 16 employees. (FUMC Staff, 2016) The church is a non-profit
organization that relies on grants and donations from the congregation. In 2016, the church has
received $621, 203, however, their expenses are listed as $692,088. (First Edition, 2016) Thus,
they still need to collect over $70,000 this year in order to break even, which they will hopefully
receive through donations, the conference, or grants.
There are many different careers paths one can take in order to end up with a Worship
Director position. Susan took a very non-traditional route. She studied music at Culver-Stockton
College in Canton, Missouri and afterwards she pursued an MBA at William Woods University
in Fulton, Missouri. After completing her MBA, she designed and built a program from the
ground up as a program director at a medical college thats purpose was to recruit high school
students to medical careers. She then accepted a grant writing position at KU for the Institute of

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Policy and Social Research and through that she advanced from business manager to Associate
Director. Though she enjoyed her jobs, she missed music and supplemented it by volunteering in
the First Church worship band. Then, when New Church Lawrence opened in 2014, she began to
serve as a volunteer worship leader there. Finally, in January of this year, she found out that First
Church was looking for a Worship Director so she applied and received the position. She took
this job because it was something she could do while working at the University that would fulfill
her need for music. Her professional history indicates that there isnt one set career path that one
should follow to become a worship director. When asked about the ideal career path she said
that an undergraduate degree in music or religion followed by graduate studies of seminary
would be good but she followed that with, I dont think all of those things have to be present for
someone to be a good worship leader. (Mercer, 2016)
Though there isnt a specific career path, there are a few required qualifications. First of
all, you need musical knowledge and background. This includes how to arrange music for a
worship setting, an understanding of contemporary worship music and the ability to coach both
instrumentalists and vocalists. You also must know how to build and lead teams, how to design a
worship experience and have a theological understanding of the United Methodist Church and
Christianity. (Mercer, 2016) This job isnt like many traditional professional jobs. Its very
important that the worship director is able to lead people not only musically but also spiritually
which is why some churches include qualifications such as A clear testimony of faith in Jesus
Christ and a vital, growing personal relationship with Him. (Effective Church Group, 2013)
While music knowledge is obviously important, a strong faith in God is the most important
qualification. Leading worship on a Sunday morning is not a performance, it is worship of God
through music.

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However, even though the position of Worship Director is very spiritually based, most of
the work that Susan does on a day to day basis is administrative. As stated in the previous
section, the position of Worship Director is the second level of worship leaders and therefore
requires a quite a few responsibilities. On Monday she begins preparing for the following
Sunday by researching the theme, previewing and selecting songs, and meeting with the worship
team, which is comprised of the Pastor at West Campus and the Childrens Director. At this
meeting they determine the order of worship and ensure that they are all communicating the
same message throughout the service. She also meets with the Worship Pastor and the Lead
Pastor in order to coordinate both campuses and talk about long term plans and goals. On
Thursday, she conducts rehearsal with the band and prepares for Sunday. Finally, on Sunday
morning she sets up the band equipment, conducts sound checks, and then finally leads worship.
Types of Communication
Even though this isnt a typical professional job, the different communication types are
just as important and applicable. Just like in any other job they need to be able to articulate their
ideas in a manner that people can understand. The most obvious type of communication that a
worship director uses is audience communication as they perform in front of the congregation
every Sunday. However, when I asked Susan which type she uses the most she said interpersonal.
A big part of her job is talking one on one with musicians whether it be to invite them to join the
band or coaching them during rehearsals. She also uses group communication when leading
rehearsals and written on occasion when composing emails to the band or coworkers.

Conclusion

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Through this interview I have learned a lot of valuable information about worship
directors. Both this interview and the research I have done about this position have confirmed
that this is what I would like to do after I graduate. What Susan does for the church is exactly
what I would like to be doing and I hope that I will be able to find a job in this field once I
complete my undergraduate degree.

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References
2016 Financials. (2016, November 1). First Edition, 16, 9.
Kim, M. (2016, October 28). 3 Levels of Worship Leader Salaries. Retrieved November 08,
2016, from http://www.allaboutworship.com/blog/3-levels-of-worship-leader-salaries
Boley, C. (2016). Our Staff. Retrieved from http://fumclawrence.umcchurches.org/#team

Hancock, B. (2013, August 30). From Music Minister to Worship Pastor: The Qualifications of a
Worship Leader. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
Worship Leaders Job Description. (2013, June 13). Retrieved November 08, 2016, from
http://effectivechurch.com/worship-leaders-job-description/
Mercer, Susan. Personal Interview. 2 November 2016.