My Office Life!

PART ONE
“Lauren... what do you do when you're NOT on trips?'
This is a question that I get all the time. =) And today I am going to begin to answer that for you. I have asked for prayer regarding wisdom for some time now, because I wear 'many hats' at my job. My official titles (hats!) are Director of Human Resources and Director of Trips. Also when I’m not out on trips, I run Leadership Training Weekends with youth groups at various churches around the country. But this week, let me begin by talking about my role as the Director of Human Resources.

PC AT WORK... MAC AT HOME... GOTTA DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO!

When you think of this title... you think people, right? Right! I am in charge of recruiting and hiring our summer staff (interns) and full time staff positions as needed. That means that I travel to colleges, set up booths and answer lot of questions about LeaderTreks – who we are... and what we do. (And of course about the Cubs and the Sox and the Bears... the usual.) I really enjoy being able to share my heart about what I love to do with so many people. Then after the recruitment trips, I set up and go through the interview process with 18 summer interns AND at least 6 full time staff. (Well... that reflects our goal for each year, and of course it requires MANY more interviews to end up at those numbers.) At the same time, I have to make sure that the summer intern program fulfills all that I am promising. And if I find it doesn’t... I need to make the necessary changes. We constantly ask ourselves at LeaderTreks is, 'Is there a better way?', and often the answer is 'Yes!' For example... right now, I am in the process of rewriting our intern training manual to improve it. And this past fall we produced two recruiting DVDs, reworked an intern fundraising packet, and revised the journals interns use throughout their summer. We've also started an online forum where interns can ask me questions directly about their internship... as well as get to know other interns and staff. Ahhh... technology! =)

I also take care of interns and staff who have been hired but haven't yet started. I bring them in to the office and we do fundraising training (in fact, this weekend I am bringing a girl who is in town for fundraising training with me to church at VCOB in Bartlett... my home church!). It's my job to handle all the details of their paperwork and communicate weekly with them so they begin to feel like a part of the LeaderTreks team – even before they officially 'get here'.

Yeah... like every job... there's a thing or two about mine that 'feels like work'... =) And while I DO love being out on trips, the great thing about working at LeaderTreks is that when I return from the 'mission field... somewhere out there'... I know my mission continues right here in the office! Hiring the right staff is crucial to making sure we are fulfilling our mission... wherever that mission finds us. That gives me a sense of purpose each day. I love 'this thing' that God has called me to do... =) and am excited to be able to share it with you. In a couple of weeks, I will go into more detail about my role as Director of Trips. But for now... this coming Sunday evening, I'm on my way to southern California for a little R&R with a couple of girls from the office! =) And for those of you who know Chet & Gail Komos... I'll say 'Hi!'... we're staying with them. Stay tuned for a report from the beach!