Connections Director​/Pastor

Wooddale Church is a multigenerational, Bible-teaching church in Minnesota with campuses in Eden Prairie, Edina and the University of Minnesota. With a mission to honor God by making more disciples for Jesus Christ, Wooddale has a rich history and a future of sharing the gospel locally and globally by planting churches, supporting global partners and serving its local community.

Wooddale Church is looking for a Pastor/Director of Connections who will provide strategic leadership for creating an exceptional guest and engagement experience across Wooddale Church ministries. From a guest’s first moment on our campus to their next step of engagement, this leader ensures every interaction is marked by warmth, excellence, intentionality, and genuine hospitality. This individual sets the vision and strategy for creating the premier guest experience in our community, ensuring Wooddale Church is known for extraordinary hospitality, intentional follow‑up, and meaningful engagement.

This role champions a culture that anticipates needs before they arise, helps every person feel seen, known, and valued, and removes barriers that prevent people from taking their next step in their faith and here  Pastor/Director of Connections develops systems, environments, and volunteer teams that create seamless pathways into worship, community, serving, baptism and membership. This role collaborates across ministries to deliver a unified, excellent weekend experience.

• Establish Wooddale Church as the premier church in our community for hospitality, guest engagement and intentional first impressions.
• Provide vision and strategic leadership for the complete guest experience across all campuses and church wide events.
• Own the transition from First Time Guest to discipleship environment, ensuring each guest is strategically invited to a next step and is transferred to a grow environment.
• Champion an environment where every guest is welcomed with warmth, excellence, intentionality and care.
• Implements strategy and systems and owns the responsibility of identifying guests, capturing information, prompt and intentional follow‑up to connect guests with the best Next Step here at Wooddale.
• Oversee the Baptism process and celebration in our services including invitations, interviews, and execution.
• Provide primary leadership and vision to Get to Know Wooddale, strategically inviting our guests to take a next step in getting involved at Wooddale.
• Recruit, develop, train, coach and empower volunteer leaders serving throughout the Connections ministry.
• Build healthy volunteer leadership pipelines that equip volunteers to lead with ownership, confidence and excellent hospitality.
• Works with the data team to understand data trends related to attendance, guests, and follow‑up.
• Develops scalable systems and measurable processes that improve guest engagement, volunteer effectiveness and ministry outcomes.

• Active and growing faith in Jesus. Demonstrated character and calling to vocational ministry.
• Subscribe to and affirm the Statement of Faith and Covenant of Wooddale Church.
• Be a regular participant in public worship at Wooddale Church.
• Become or remain a member in good standing of Wooddale Church.
• Demonstrated character and calling to vocational ministry.
• Gifted in organizational leadership and management of projects and teams.
• Proven ability to recruit, train, empower and sustain volunteer teams and structures.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to speak with confidence in large group settings.
• Highly relational systems leader with proven ability to cast vision and sustain ministry.
• Motivated to see people become connected to the local church through creating intentional, memorable first impressions.
• Champions multi‑generational and diverse teams and gatherings.
• Bachelor’s degree required;
  Master’s in ministry preferred.

• Reports to:
  
  Executive Pastor of Weekend Experience
• Serves as a member of:
  Weekend Experience Team
• Supervises volunteer leaders involved in Connections Ministries
• Partners collaboratively with ministry leaders to ensure a unified weekend experience for all congregants.