NWO District Online Database Overview

Hello Northwestern Ohio District pastors, ministry leaders & spouses. 

We've talked in the past couple years about how to get all pastors and leaders on the district more connected. So late last year, we set up a way to begin doing that through a really cool web-based solution through ChurchTeams.com. This is a major work in progress for 2017, and a different kind of set-up than I'm used to. I hope you enjoy the new tools that can enhance your ministry networking and relationships on our district. Here are instructions and key concepts you need to know to use the new online database. The URL to use is: https://churchteams.com/m/Login.asp?oID=13577. 


General Info and Guidelines:

• Group members should contact the group leader to gain password info, if they don't know it. All pastors will have leader access, even if not a group leader. This grants permissions to edit person's profiles within their group or their own, anytime. So please do not make changes to groups unless you have been properly trained and permitted to do so. Do not give out your password. A separate password can be established for a wider audience when needed.  
• Network and POD groups are searchable at the top left search bar on the Churchteams database. 
• Group names will follow guidelines to easily identify them. Networks will be named by the largest city, for example, Lima Network. PODs (Pastoral learning groups) will be identified with a date, for example, POD Church Unique Spring 2017. 
• Anyone can install this database on their smart phone (like a smart phone homescreen) or save it to a computer favorites/bookmark bar or desktop screen for easy access. 
• Find other pastor's and spouse information and photo. Get to know one another better. Stay in-touch easier. Database members that are emailed a link to update their profile, may edit basic information or photos. Prayer requests can be added to your profile by you or your group leaders. All people's current and previous groups will be listed. 
• Database admin reserves the right to edit,  remove, or request personal information or photos and to edit option settings, as needed. 
• Spouses can have their own profile under the household. Their database status should be "spouse". They can be included in the Network group, but not required. (Any feedback?)

Group Leader Instructions:

• Take care to facilitate group functions or appoint someone in your group by changing their role from group member to another group leader with you. Set up a meeting per the four steps in the next section below. 
• Network or POD leaders can easily communicate to groups via email. In the group, click the blue Communicate button, then Email. Eventually, text messaging the group will work, only to those who have updated their phone carrier on their profile (e.g. Verizon). 
• Please track attendance after each network or pod meeting. You can include notes, prayer requests, logistics, next meeting info. Go to the blue Report button, then Meetings, then Add a Meeting. 
• Reports of your meetings will stay with your group forever and database admins like Geoff Kunselman will be able to keep up with the goings-on as they need or desire to. 

Setting Up a Meeting:

1. Once you have decided the new meeting details, you or I can set up a NEW group named, for example, "Defiance Network Meeting RSVP March 16 2017". Mark yourself as the leader of the group. You will be the only person in the group. You can add people manually who you know will be attending. Go into the registration settings of this group and copy the registration link in the green box at the top of the page. 
2. Then go into your Network/POD group to send out a new communication. Paste the link to that RSVP group to all the members of your original group. This RSVP group will be updated when someone gets your invitation and has joined it. Now you can access it anytime up til the meeting date to see who is coming. You can send out a communication within this RSVP group, to only the people who have committed to come.
3. Once your Network/POD has finished a meeting, go back into your network/pod group to add a record of it. Click on Reports, then Add a Meeting. Everyone in the main group can receive a copy of the meeting report, if you check that box. 
4. You or the database admin can delete the RSVP group after the meeting has happened and the info has been entered as a Group Meeting in the main network/pod group. [OR you can let it still there until your next RSVP group is needed, then change all the group details to suite your next meeting, take everyone out of the group and resend the registration link in a new main group communication.] NOTE: If you are unsure about a setting option, then leave it as is! I will be happy to address your questions and update this webpage. 

There are probably questions or concerns about this. So let me know and we can work out the bugs. I will be updating the weblog or adding comments below, so check back for changes. Feel free to offer suggestions or point out my errors. 

Best regards, 

Nate Stults
Voluntary database admin guy
nstults@findlayfirstnaz.org
419-788-0975 cell/text