One of these things is not like the other…That was one of my favorite segments from Sesame Street. Not to brag, but I never lost a round. I nailed the difference every time.

In a somewhat crowded field of evangelical recruiting firms, Baptist Search Partners stands out. I don’t mean that the competition is wrongly motivated, poorly led, or missing the mark. In fact, I have relationships with leaders in several of the other firms. I think they are filled with godly people who love the church, live for encouraging pastors, and are skilled at sourcing and interviewing candidates. They’ve served thousands of churches and Christian organizations across our country well. We all have a few things in common.

Virtually every firm out there shares some foundational characteristics.

• A desire to serve the church and expand the kingdom.
• A system for identifying and understanding church culture and candidate requirements.
• A marketing process to advertise the position widely.
• A network to contact individually.
• An interview process and pipeline to move candidates through.

So what’s the BSP difference?

• We only serve the SBC. This is crucial. SBC churches are unique. We really aren’t a denomination but a cooperation of churches. “Getting” one SBC church doesn’t mean you “get” all the others. But the differences are on a fairly narrow spectrum. A spectrum representing theological, methodological, and practical differences. We get that spectrum.
• Our bread and butter is networking and relationships. We can get to corners of SBC life that others can’t. We know seminary professors and leaders. We are on Baptist entity boards. We talk regularly to state convention leaders. We are one of you.
• Our Search Consultants represent the states in which they reside. Sure, they can perform searches outside of their state, but they contribute to BSP’s overall network by fostering relationships with SBC organizations, churches, and pastors within their state. Our Search Consultants make BSP more effective. This staffing model aligns perfectly with SBC structures and is unlike any other firm.
• A Candidate Requirements Scorecard. We’ve developed a rubric of sorts that goes beyond a job description to clarify the ideal candidate. This tool creates crystal clarity and remains a discussion point throughout the search. We’d love to show it to you, but it’s sort of top secret. Work with us to see what all the hype is about!
• A church-centric pricing structure. We help churches steward their resources through a contingent model. You can learn more here, but we don’t ask for half of the fee until a candidate starts on day one. We bear half of the financial risk with the church. Why? We are your partner.

How can I speak like an insider, you say? How can I know that these are differences? Over the past fifteen years, I worked with four different firms for about a dozen searches. I gained a perspective of what would be best for SBC churches and organizations and that perspective led to the formation of Baptist Search Partners. Are we perfect? Nope. Do we offer a partnership for the SBC that is heads and shoulders above the rest? Absolutely. Take a look at what we do and give us a shout!