Category: Governance

Balancing Din and Chesed on Yom Kippur

We are taught that Hashem wanted to initially create the world with Din (judgment). When He saw that man would not survive such exacting judgment, He created the world with Din and Chesed. Hashem is constantly balancing these two forces for our benefit.

Shuls also have to balance Din and Chesed.

We need to collect outstanding balances for financial stability, while at the same time we need to be sensitive to the financial situations of our members.

We need to get volunteers to keep things running. At the same time we need to understand that not everybody will be able (or willing) to give of their time for Shul activities.

We need a proper davening, that starts, proceeds and ends at the scheduled times. On the other hand, we can be kind to the Baalei Tefilah and not drive them to distraction with an exactitude attitude.

My experience over the years is that in thought and conversation, Shuls lean a little heavy on the Din pedal. In deed however, the Chesed side usually comes through.

Just like we would like Hashem to go lighter on the Din pedal on Yom Kippur, perhaps it’s also a time that we can recalibrate a little more to the Chesed side in thought and conversation.

Let’s lead with Chesed. I think our Shuls will be better for it.

Confessions of a Shul Covid Politician

Most people cringe at the thought of politics and politicians, but if you wikipedia the word, you will find that politics is the process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The Covid crisis has tested the capabilities of Shul Politicians the world over. So I just wanted to share some challenges we are currently facing. Our particular Shul is a membership organization, with active Officers, a Board of Directors, and a Rabbi who leads and guides us.

Shul politicians want the approval of their members. At the core, that’s our raison d’etre – making our members happy. With regard to Covid, we need to develop constantly changing policies and procedures in response to the changing environment. The process involves trying to arrive at a consensus after discussing the issues with the members, officers, board and Rabbi. In the case of Covid, it’s often hard to reach a complete consensus, but with much input and discussion, it’s possible to develop policies that are safe, in the spirit of the law, and provide members with the services they need and expect.

After the policies are formulated and communicated, Shul Politicians are looking for the cooperation of the members. Cooperation sometimes morphs into compliance, and people sometimes need to be told to cover their nose, keep 6 feet distanced, and to attend a non preferred minyan location. It’s natural for people to focus on their own interests, and the Shul Politician must remember that it’s their job to nudge people into cooperation and compliance when necessary.

The payoff of these efforts for the Shul Politician is that every minyan, especially on Shabbos, is a mini-victory. In our Shul, our members are cooperative and appreciative, and that sweetens the efforts even more. May Hashem give us the continued strength to deal with this situation and bring us quickly to the days of yore, when seating, talking and funding were our primary concerns.

The Three Aspects of Shabbos Shul Security

Our Shul has been working on improving our security for over 5 years and I wanted to share some of what we’ve learned. There are three aspects to Shabbos Shul Security: physical plant enhancement, restricting entry and active shooter response planning.

The first step is to keep intruders out of the building by strengthening your physical plant. This includes enhancing your outer doors, inner doors, locks, windows, cameras, gates and walls. There are a lot of things you can do here, but you should consider investing in better locks as your first purchase.

The second step is preventing entry to your Shul when services are in session. Keeping your shul doors locked with a push button lock is a good idea. You should also make every effory to hire an armed guard, which will cost you about $200 for 4 hours every Shabbos morning in the NY area. In addition to an armed guard, Shul members will need to assist in identifying who will be permitted to enter.

The third step is to have a plan in place if an active shooter makes his way into your building. The government recommended plan is composed of running, hiding or fighting as an absolute last resort. Each shul needs to map out a plan primarily based on your physical layout.

Funding for this endeavor will be provided by the funders of the Shul, the members or the government. Government grants are available and our Shul and others in our neighborhood have received grants of $50,000 and $100,000. The newest grants can be spent on plant improvements, armed guards and training. You will probably need to spend $1,000 to $1,500 to hire someone to help you procure the grant. You will also need to spend $1,000 to $1,500 on a Security Risk Assessment.

The three groups to help you are private security firms, the police and community advisory groups. The private security firms provide the best and most comprehensive guidance, but they cost money. The police will give you free advice, seminars, and walk throughs, but their availability is limited. The community advisory groups are most focused on active shooter planning and their availability is limited. Each group has a specific perspective from which they view security and you should keep that in mind when you listen to them.

We must do our hishtadlus, but we should not forget to pray and put our ultimate trust in Hashem.

The Puck Stops Here

Our Shul is in Presidential transition mode awaiting the upcoming membership meeting where we’ll vote and then witness the changing of the guard. In the years where we don’t have a vice presidential succession plan, it’s sometimes a difficult task finding the right person to accept the job. I blame Harry Truman and Hockey. Let me explain.

Harry Truman kept a sign on his desk that said ‘The Buck Stops Here’. It’s a play off the phrase ‘Passing the Buck’ which was originally a poker term, but has come to mean – not taking responsibility. By keeping the sign on his desk Truman was acknowledging that the President has to make the decisions and he was accepting the ultimate responsibility for those decisions. It seems that the sign was last sighted on the Presidential Desk during the Carter Administration.

I think some people reject the Shul Presidential position, not because of the amount of work involved, but rather because they don’t want to shoulder the responsibility for all that goes on in the Shul. In fact, that’s a better stance than accepting the position and then passing the buck.

Let’s segue to hockey. Except for a few notable exceptions the goalie is not a glamour position in hockey. After every goal scored, the goalie’s head is lowered because he ultimately is the one who let it go by. Yes, the defenceman should have done his job, but the goalie’s responsibility is ‘The Puck Stops Here’.

It’s the same with the Shul President. Even if your budget is in the black, with a great Rav, and solid people in key roles behind you, there will be some shots on goal that you’ll have to handle. They can’t be anticipated, and there’s sometimes a significant difference between a save and a flub. The truth is most of the flubs are not season enders, but it takes strength and commitment to be in the net night and day for two years.

I tip my hat to both the outgoing and incoming president for accepting the responsibility of the position. The upside is that although it looks like a long season, I don’t know of any president who regretted it after their term of service ended. It’s pretty clear that along with the responsibility comes tremendous satisfaction and merit for the tens of thousands of minutes of davening, learning and chesed that takes place in the Shul each year under your reign. Yasher Koach!

Reposted in honor of the outgoing EH and the incoming YK.

Shuls, Shavuos and Spiritual Reality

I was learning with a newcomer to Torah Judaism recently and I used the term “spiritual reality”. He said that was an oxymoron because reality is tangible and spirituality is not, and the two terms should not really be used together. He had a good point, because by definition (according to the Ramchal in Derech Hashem), spirituality is not measurable. However the Torah teaches that there exists a G-d, who created a spiritual reality which is the cause of all physical reality that we experience.

The Ramchal says that we could deduce the existence of Hashem and spiritual reality (although not its details), through observation of the physical world and logic. However, he bases his discussion in Derech Hashem on what we know from our Masorah (cross generational teachings). Shavuos is the day on which we collectively experienced the existence of Hashem and received many of the foundations of our Torah and Masorah. The Torah describes spiritual reality and prescribes how we are to live and relate to that reality.

I had a conversation with a fellow Shul member recently which highlights the difference between physical and spiritual reality. We were discussing how we might close gaps in the services the Shul provides and make existing services more effective and efficient. These are aspects of physical reality that any organization would address. In the course of our conversation we agreed on two principles of spiritual reality: minimizing machlokes (distance-creating disagreements) and having extreme sensitivity to the feelings of people currently involved in Shul operations. Although abiding to these principles might sometimes result in less effectiveness and efficiency, they were spiritual Torah priorities and therefore they took precedence.

As we prepare to receive the Torah on Shavuos, it’s great to be reminded how fortunate we are to be connected to, and governed by, the spiritual reality of the Torah.

The Darkness Reveals the Light

It was a typical Friday morning. I stopped by Wassermans supermarket at about 8:30 am to pick up a few things for Shabbos. I didn’t paying enough attention to the Con Ed truck and the police cars parked at a nearby Shul.

I went home at about 9:30 and my son-in-law and grandson knocked on the door and proceeded to tell me about the fire coming out of the manhole right near our Shul. Our Shul also houses the Gan that my grandson attends. My son-in-law explained that a fire travelled from a manhole near the Con Ed truck to our Shul. All the children from the Gan were evacuated in a safe and orderly fashion as the Shul lost all power.

At about 10:15 I got a call requesting that an email go out to our members explaining the situation. We we’re not going to get power back until at least Shabbos. Some building committee members and the Rabbi laid out a plan of action. Here is the email:
—————————————————————-
There is currently a power outage in the Shul due to an Underground Fire. Con Edison is not sure exactly when power will be restored.

– The Gan classes have been dismissed.
– The 12:25 Early Mincha today is cancelled.
– We hope to have emergency lighting in the Men’s section for Mincha/Maariv tonight.
– There will be no Youth Groups tomorrow.
– We are planning on having Shacharis tomorrow, possibly with only natural light.
– We will be sending an update later (I”YH) regarding the scheduled Melava Malka and the MS Learning.

Please say a Kapitel Tehillim (121, 130) for the continued protection of the Shul and its inhabitants.
—————————————————————-

A few trips were made to Home Depot by our call-to-duty members. Shabbos Services under battery operated lights was a nice experience. The Rav’s Friday night Dvar halacha was appropriately about the permissibility to move the battery operated lights and to have a non-jew remove the batteries after services.

Shacharis and Mussaf under natural lights went well and we were even able to have the Hashkama minyan in the basement Social Hall with the assist of some battery operated lights. When we got back for Mincha the lights were restored and we had Shalosh Seudos in the Social Hall and the full Moatzae Shabbos schedule took place in the Shul.

There were many things to be thankful for as a result of this incident:
1) We were able to have Full Shabbos Services without any electricity for most of Shabbos.
2) We have a number of members, and our Rabbi, who are ready and willing to do whatever is necessary to insure the proper functioning of the Shul.
3) The Shul was built with much natural light which was of great avail for Shabbos day services.
4) Con Edison works quite hard in our five boroughs to restore power in emergency situations.

It’s easy to take electricity and the functioning of Shul Service for granted. Sometimes Hashem throws a curve ball so we can appreciate everything that goes into making davening happen day in and day out.

Good Politics and Bad Politics

When I started this site I asked my Rav whether he thought the name “Shul Politics” was too provocative. He said that he liked the word “politics” because it means “the activities associated with the governance of an organization”, and is a healthy and necessary component of a Shul.

Recently I heard the Rav advising someone taking a position out of town, to focus on teaching Torah and to not get involved in the politics, which he clearly viewed as negative. My experience is that most people view the word “politics” as negative. So what gives? Is politics good or bad?

Good politics is when a group makes governance decisions properly. In a Shul where the financial responsibility rests upon the membership, some decisions are made by the Rabbi, the officers, and committees, while significant decisions are decided upon by the Board. In some Shuls and in most Chabads, the Rabbi bears the financial burden, so he makes many of the decisions. When the process is understood and decisions are made fairly according to that process, we call that Good Politics.

Bad Politics is when a person or group of people dominate the decision making process in a way that is contrary to how people think decisions should be made. In some places, the decision process may be dominated by a small vocal and powerful minority and that would be an example of Bad Politics. Bad Politics is best avoided, because success in out-decisioning the powerful minority is difficult to come by. The better method is to do what is right and win the support of a significant number of people. A larger group has a better chance of creating a Good Politics environment.

Many shuls have a mixture of Good Politics and Bad Politics. When there is a fair process, the decision making is Good Politics, if the normal process if side-stepped, the decision would fall under Bad Politics. Sometimes those involved in Bad Politics are truly doing it for the sake of the Shul, but by side-stepping the process, Bad Politics results, and damage is done.

Politics is more than a necessary evil, it creates close bonds between members when a Shul is governed by Good Politics. No Shul is perfect and it is inevitable that a Bad Politics event will occur, however if the Shul is governed by Good Politics at its core, the bad events will be corrected and the people will continue to continue and move on in unity.

Rabbinic Compensation Stats

Yeshiva University’s Center for the Jewish Future commissioned a study to shed some light on Rabbinic Compensation and Benefits. The survey was distributed to some 1,000 rabbis across North America, including those who serve as teachers, chaplains, campus rabbis, and are retired, in addition to those with a current pulpit. A total of 265 rabbis responded, representing a cross-section of Orthodox rabbis across the U.S. and Canada.

Here are some stats from the study:

• The average synagogue in the study employs close to two rabbis, with large synagogues, defined as those with 500 or more member units, employing almost three.

• The average synagogue employs the equivalent of about 1.6 full-time office employees.

• The median 2017 compensation for all rabbis in the survey is $90,000. For senior rabbis, the median is $100,000; associate rabbis $85,000; assistant rabbis $65,000; and campus rabbis $77,000.

• Pay varies significantly by the size of the synagogue. The median compensation for senior rabbis at large synagogues is $200,000, medium size synagogues (200-499 member units) $150,000, and small synagogues is $70,000.

• More than half (52 percent) of the surveyed rabbis do not receive health benefits, although a significant portion of them are covered under their wife’s plan.

• Nearly seven out of 10 rabbis do not receive any life or disability insurance from their synagogue, and only slightly more than 50 percent receive retirement benefits.

• Only about 20 percent live in a synagogue-owned home or apartment, or have a joint arrangement. The vast majority own or rent the residence in which they live.

• Vacation benefits are generous, however, with half of the rabbis receiving four-to-five weeks annually, and 20 percent entitled to six or more weeks.

• About 58 percent have additional employment, with the most common secondary position as a Judaic studies faculty member.

• Rabbis also supplement their income with rabbinic-related activities, such as officiating at lifestyle events, although it is typically a minimal amount; two-thirds make less than $2,500 a year doing so.

• They also typically get reimbursed for certain job-related expenses, such as conferences and professional development, entertaining guests on Shabbat and holidays and cell phone usage.

Sweating for Shalom

– I daven in a small Beis Medrash.
– It sometimes reaches the low to mid 70s in the room.
– We have a big a/c unit with a remote control.

– One day it was very warm, and nobody turned the a/c on.
– I offered to be the a/c gabbai.
– The gabbai rishon deputized me.

– On my first day it was warm and the a/c was off.
– Somebody was cold and they had objected to the a/c.
– A discussion ensued about an appropriate a/c policy.

– It seems that the Coldys raise more objections than the Warmys.
– I decided to resign my a/c gabbai position.
– That was the day that I decided to Sweat for Shalom.

A Tale of Ten Tablecloths

It seemed like a no-brainer. A visitor to our Hashkama minyan felt the davening would be enhanced if the folding tables were covered with white tablecloths. So he went out and bought 10 white tablecloths and dropped them off in the Shul.

The new tablecloths created a few small logistics problems: they need to be put on the tables; they need to be folded after the minyan; they need to be stored somewhere in our tight-for-storage Shul; they need to be cleaned periodically; and these responsibilities fall unexpectedly on the minyan Gabbai.

The larger issue is that enhancements and donations to the Shul need to be managed by a process which is administered by the officers, boards and members responsible for the care and feeding of the Shul. It needn’t be complicated, but there needs to be points of responsibility and determination of need.

This incident highlights a large point about chesed. Chesed is giving a person (or a Shul) what they really need, not necessarily what you think they need. That is why it makes a lot of sense to ask the appropriate Shul contacts when you want to make a non-cash donation. Does that make sense?

The Kitchen Cabinet

A friend challenged me on a post about getting involved a few months ago. He said that Shuls, like many organizations have closed “Kitchen Cabinets” and are not equally open to everybody.

Here’s the low down on the Kitchen Cabinet:

1) The Kitchen Cabinet is open for those who are really willing to put their skin in the game for the long term.

2) They continue to work hard for the Shul, every year, even when they are no longer officers.

3) They understand the Shul dynamics and the unique roles of the Rabbi, the President, the Officers, the Board, the Big Contributors, the Year in – Year out volunteers, and the membership.

4) They understand the change process of the Shul and which projects are worth the effort.

5) They are constantly concerned about the Shul’s financial situation.

Most Shuls want to expand their Kitchen Cabinet and if you meet the above criteria and want to accept more responsibility, please talk to those currently involved.

Reversing the Slow Death of the Aging Shul

Getting Older Means Getting Smaller
Good shuls last for a long time, and as the Shul ages so does its membership. Unfortunately older members pass away or move as their needs change as their children leave the house. The older membership shrinks as time goes on.

The Empty Seat Syndrome
As a result of the shrinking older membership, Shuls that previously had hundreds of participants on a Shabbos can find their sanctuaries half empty. This creates some disillusionment among the members as they look around and long for their Shul’s former glory. It also creates financial strain since costs invariably rise as membership-based revenue increases, but it’s a lot harder to downsize the budget as membership-based revenue declines.

Just Add Younger Members
The obvious solution is to fill the empty seats with younger members. However, the young members have different plans. They’ve gone on to start their own shuls. They do this because they want to be with people their own age and they want some control of how things are run. Even if the older membership would cede control to the younger members, which is easier said than done, the younger members are usually not so excited about steering an older battleship.

Multi-Shul Solution
Another solution, which is sometimes more successful, is breaking the Shul up into smaller minyanim. Different minyanim at different times in different parts of the Shul. The first problem with this solution is that the shul transforms from a community to a place to daven. The second problem is that few Shuls are willing to subdivide their glorious main sanctuary to accommodate downsizing, so the excess capacity and it’s accompanying costs remain.

Dare to Be Great
The ultimate solution is for the Rabbi and/or lay leadership to transform the Shul into a place for serious davening, inspiration, spiritual growth, intellectual challenge and strong communal support for all members. A place that attracts all ages with the amazing breadth and depth it has to offer.

Are We All Settling for Less?
The potential of Shuls is tremendous and perhaps we’re all just settling for a place to daven, a Daf Yomi shiur and a Shabbos drasha. A Shul can be so much more. In the future we hope to examine the characteristics of an incredible Shul and what are the practical small steps to move towards that goal.

Beyond Shushing

The Importance of Maintaining Decorum
The laws regarding behavior in Shul discourage most talking. This great set of Synogogue Guidelines by Rabbi Michael Taubes demonstrates the severity of the prohibition of unnecessary conversation and what degree of quiet is required during the various parts of davening.

Our Motivation for Quiet
Despite general knowledge of the laws, people make mistakes and sometimes talk during inappropriate times during davening. This even happens in quiet Shuls. When talking happens we would like it to stop, motivated by a combination of the following factors:
– eliminating something that is disturbing or distracting to us
– preventing the talker from committing a transgression
– helping the Shul to have the proper decorum

Is Shushing Effective?
One of the popular ways to try to stop talking is the shush. It’s certainly better than telling a person to shut-up and perhaps it’s rooted in preventing embarrassment. Although shushing will often result in the talking stopping, without dealing with the underlying causes it’s a stopgap measure and the talking will continue. Another issue regarding shushing is who has the authority to deal with talking, ofttimes it’s not the shusher.

Is Shushing Disruptive?
Sometimes the shushing is more disruptive then the talking, since the talking is often quiet, while the shushing is heard by many. Depending how it is done, shushing can be embarrassing to the talkers, which some people feel is justified. When the shushing continues through the service, it can be a real disruption.

So What’s The Solution?
Talking in Shul is a problem, but coercive behavior change is not effective. Each Shul needs to quantify who are the problem talkers and how to deal with them respectfully on an individual basis. Tolerating occasional talking may be necessary in many situations.

Originally Posted Jan 2012

The Care and Feeding of Small Tent Shuls

Our Shul, has been at a comfortable 85% – 90% Shabbos capacity for a number of years. Although we are financially stable, primarily because of our playgroup, we periodically discuss our new membership enrollment to see if there is anything we can do to insure continued equlibirum in our new member to attrition ratio. As the membership ages, the question invariably comes down to attracting younger members.

One problem Shuls face, is that there is not a homogeneous young member profile. Some want a more Yeshivish style davening. Some want a faster davening with a weekly kiddush for socialization. Some want a Shul of peers with no desire for a cross-generational membership makeup. And some want a Shul with a great knowledgable Rav.

In this era of Shul choice, you can’t be all things to all people. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try to make your Shul more appealing by eliminating some of the cruft: like burdensome announcements, unnecessary delays in davening, a non-responsive bureaucratic governing body, or an offensive culture of shhhshing. On the positive side, things like more frequent kiddushes can add some Shul appeal.

Although Small Tent Shuls don’t have as many problems as some of their Big Tent cousins – attention, discussion and maintenance is necessary to maintain your Shul’s appeal in our age of increasing Shul Choice.

The Rabbi As Professional Super-Jew

Rabbi Avrohom Gordimer has an article in the Winter 5776/2015 edition of the OU’s Jewish Action titled “Reclaiming the Dignity of the Rabbinate: What in the World Happened and What Can be Done?” He points to the changing role of the Rabbi as one of the main causes of the loss of Rabbinic dignity.

Rabbi Gordimer points out that in prior eras, the Rabbi was chiefly a halachic decisor. Today, in addition to being a halachic decisor, the Rabbi often finds himself in the roles of:

educator
religious counselor
personal counselor
mentor
fundraiser
synagogue manager
congregational policy guide
lifecycle event officiator
prayer service leader
public orator
synagogue fund manager
public relations voice
communal and political activist

…a professional Super-Jew

Among Rabbi Gordimer’s suggestions is that Rabbis should narrow their non-Rabbinic duties. I would like to share my personal experience. Although our Rabbi is not active in all the above roles, many members of our shul do view him as a Super-Jew, and regularly consult him on a variety of religious, personal, shul and communal matters. The line after a Maariv in November can be so long that you might think it’s time to sell your Chametz.

Our Rav also respects the administration and Board of Director’s roles in operating the shul. He works with us and is careful to respect the separation of duties. However, as the wisest Torah-oriented person we know, we seek his advice on almost everything – with the possible exception of where to buy the soda or which brand of tissues to purchase. Sometimes the line of responsibilities gets crossed, but it’s a small price to pay.

As it turns out, there are a few other professional Super-Jews in our neighborhood of Kew Gardens Hills. I was talking to a friend in another shul recently, who is currently being out-priced for a home in KGH, and was considering moving to another comparable community. One of his major concerns is that people in that community aren’t as close to their Rebbeim as we are here. In other words, the Rebbeim there are not functioning as Super-Jews, and he is hesitant to move to a community and lose that important part of his life.

Rabbi Gordimer’s article is an important read and he makes the appropriate disclaimers that each Rabbi and community needs to consider any steps it needs to take. However at the end of the day, I think we need to work towards producing more Super-Jews, and not try to confine their amazing powers.

Young Israel of Woodmere – Growth Culture Shuls Comes in All Sizes

I’ve written about The Rise of The Growth Culture Shul in the past, but the Young Israel of Woodmere is an example of a large growth culture Shul with many lessons to be learned.

It wasn’t always that way. In a must-read short article from 2007, THE SILENT REVOLUTION: How One Shul Put an End to Talking During Tefillah, Rabbi Danny Frankel (no relation) describes how the Young Israel of Woodmere transformed itself from a culture of non-stop talking to one where hundreds of people have worked on and improved their understanding and practice of prayer.

I was talking to a Baalei Teshuva friend who was a little frustrated with the talking in his Shul. I explained that it is easy for a BT who comes to davening as a mature adult and takes it serious from the start. But many people were exposed to davening when they were younger in Shuls where talking was the norm. Those habits are much harder to break. But the YI of Woodmere did just that, on a grand scale.

Highlights of their effort include:
– Getting a signed commitment for decorum from more than 1,000 members
– Streamlining the davening by 15-30 minutes each Shabbos
– Increasing the coordination and effectiveness of the Gabbaim
– Providing more education on Tefillah, the parsha and the haftorah

It hasn’t stopped there. They’ve have recently announced that Rabbi Shay Schachter has recently joined the Shul and will be starting a new, comprehensive Bais Medrash program. This in addition to an already strong education program headed by their rabbinic team.

When a Shul builds a growth culture it creates a flourishing community regardless of the size. Yasher Koach to the Young Israel of Woodmere!

Software is Eating Davening

In 2011, Marc Andreesen, one of the world’s top tech investors, penned a piece in the the WSJ titled “Why Software Is Eating The World”. The thesis is that cheap computing, combined with massive connectivity, and billions holding a powerful pocket-size computer, will change how business is done in almost every industry. Business and government will spend billions of dollars trying to connect with us on our smart phones on a regular basis.

Most of us have already been effected by this change as we check our emails, texts and social messages many times a day. And as I recently told my Rav, it will only get worse as more and more of our daily and business lives with require the use of our smartphones.

One specific area of concern is smartphone use in Shuls. Although most people in my neighborhood successfully silence their smartphones during the silent Shomoneh Esrai, it’s very tempting to sneak a peak to see if a notification of interest has arrived during davening down times. An increase in this seemingly harmless activity leads to more distraction in our extremely difficult task of focused davening.

In our troubled times we need tefillah to keep connected to Hashem, to strengthen our emunah and to request help for our troubles. Increasing our distractability is not the direction that makes sense. I think we need a set of sensible guidelines to prevent software from eating davening. Stay tuned.

The Customer Segments of Your Shul

I’m co-teaching a class on Software and Startups for high schoolers which includes a few sessions on the Business Model Canvas. The Business Model Canvas identifies 9 building blocks which define how an organization operates.

One of those building blocks are Customer Segments, which defines the different groups of people that your Shul serves. On the first cut we would say that includes men, women and children who have different needs. A closer look might reveal that you men’s group might be divided into men who are teenagers, single adults, young marrieds, have larger families, have grown children, and retirees.

Different segments often need different services, such as minyanim, shiurim, group activities, social services, etc… As a Shul you have to determine when it merits to address specific needs of a segment and whether you have the manpower and financial resources to address them.

In our Shul we recently added a weekly shiur and Shacharis targeted for men in their 20s and early 30s. In this case, the Key Resources powering the project were the Rabbi and some of the young men. Maggidei shiur were recruited, the members of the segment were encouraged, and the shiur/minyan has gotten off to a great start.

It’s important to continual review whether your Customer Segment’s needs are being addressed and any steps that can be taken to provide better services when necessary.

There Will Be Conflicts in Shul – Our Job is to Resolve Them

I was talking to my Rav recently and he pointed out the obvious fact that when 10 people get together there will be conflicts. Most will be small and easily resolvable, but on occasion a bigger one will come our way. People have rights, people have interests and people have opinions and sometimes those rights, interests and opinions lead to machlokes.

When machlokes does occur, it’s important to keep in mind that our goal is to eliminate (or minimize) the machlokes. Our sense of justice leads us in the direction of siding with the party more in the right, but restoring peace is a higher priority than judging the situation.

A second thing to keep in mind is that not all conflicts will be resolved overnight or even in a few days. It’s up to the Shul administration to devise and pursue a strategy to resolve the conflict. If that doesn’t work, it’s time to go to plan B and sometime C, D and E. It can be frustrating and tiring, but the administration must be proactive, and not avoid their obligation to try and restore peace.

One final point that’s worth noting is that Shabbos morning is a poor time to try and resolve a conflict, even though that’s the time when a conflict is most likely to occur. For one thing, there’s not much time given that the davening is proceeding. Secondly it makes the conflict more public and therefore more damaging.

Conflicts in Shul are not fun, but here are three consolations in conflict resolution:
1) There are ample growth opportunities
2) It’s one of our main missions in our man to man relationships
3) The resulting peace and quiet tastes so good

Thermometers and The Problem of Objective Standards

A Policy Enforced By Thermometer
In a previous post about The Politics of the Open Shul Window, I recommended setting a policy based on using thermometers and creating a committee or a person to enforce a temperature based policy. A recent incident caused me to re-evaluate that suggestion.

A New Clock Arrives
My weekday Shul is in a small room that fits about 35 people and it can get quite warm when the window is closed, which it often is. It’s basically a grin and bear it situation. Recently, one of the Mispallim donated a big new atomic clock (it’s a Neitz (sunrise) minyan), with a digital thermometer visible to all. After davening, I looked at the thermometer and it was 78 degrees. I went to the Gabbai and mentioned that 78 degrees is warm by objective standards, and I asked if perhaps it can be remedied.

Returning to the Scene
I was away for a few days, and when I came back it was cooler in the room, because the window had been open, but the thermometer was changed to Celsius. When I noted the Celsius change to the Gabbai, he just smiled. He also mentioned that a local Rav had a thermometer to monitor the temperature, but subsequently removed it.

The Problem of Objective Standards
On the surface objective standards seem fine, because they’re measurable and fair. The problem comes because the objective standard makes everybody a potential enforcer of the policy and that’s usually unworkable. With an objective standard, any person can insist that one degree above the agreed upon temperature requires the window to be open. There usually needs to be some discretion in policy enforcement and the objective standard eliminates that.

What’s the solution? Assign someone to be responsible for the temperature and opening of the windows, but don’t state an objective standard that can be called to enforcement by any member.