What is a Ministry Site Portfolio?
Ministry sites create “portfolios” in the Mobility Database System (MDS). Each portfolio is a collection of relevant information. The Ministry Site Portfolio includes:

• The Ministry Site Profile – all the basic information that you provide about your site, its purpose, its gifts and its mission. The form is required.
• The Reference Recommendation – completed by someone outside of your ministry site who knows your ministry well. The form is required.
• The Seven Reflections form – gives you seven questions that you might choose to write about in order to expand your portfolio. This form is optional.

Who can use the MSP?
The MSP is designed to be used by congregations and ELCA-related organizations (schools, hospitals, camps, social ministry organizations etc.) that are seeking to call an ELCA rostered leader. Ministry sites outside of the U.S. may request that ELCA Global Mission complete a MSP on their behalf. The MSP is not for use by sites that are seeking non-rostered persons (authorized lay ministers, lay professionals and other church workers) nor by non-ELCA rostered leaders (e.g. full communion partners).

Is there a schema behind the MSP?
Yes, the MSP seeks to have you reflect on three things: your sense of identity and purpose, resources and assets, and context and needs. Where these three converge you are likely to discover what your mission truly is. Said differently, for something to be truly a part of your site’s mission, it must be congruent with your sense of purpose, be possible within your resources, and answer a clear need in the immediate context. The various questions on the MSP seek to encourage you to achieve this clarity of self understanding and mission.

How do I open the MSP?

• Click on “Call Process Forms”.
• Notice that a sample of the form is available for your review (found at the bottom of this Web page).
• The MSP is a Formatta form; the option to download the Formatta program is in the right-hand column.
• Left click on “Ministry Site Profile”.
• The system will ask you to create an account by giving an email address and a password. The system uses the email address as your ID and also for messages; be sure the address goes to an office or person who can monitor your call process work. Also, be sure to save your password somewhere where it can be retrieved.
• Click on “Create an Account” to submit this email address and password.
• Next the system will ask you to create a profile (name, address, congregational ID number etc.). Your office secretary should know your congregational ID number, or ask your CPA.
• Once the profile is submitted, the system will allow you to download a MSP.
• Save the MSP to your computer – somewhere where you can find it again as you work on it in the future.

How does a Multiple Point Parish (MPP) use the MSP?
The MSP can be filled out (1) by each member congregation singly or (2) by the several congregations jointly.

• In some instances each member congregation will want to write its own MSP – if so, they should indicate that they are a part of a MPP on the MSP Profile page, enter their congregational ID number, then use the MSP to describe themselves and use the “Commentary” on p.13 to explain about the MPP.
• In other instances all the member congregations will want to go together in writing just one MSP – if so, they also indicate on the MSP Profile page that this is a MPP, leave the congregational ID question blank, then use the MSP to describe themselves as a whole and use p.13 to explain how it all works.

How does an ELCA-related organization use the MSP?
Schools, hospices, social ministry organizations and similar settings may be seeking to call a rostered leader. They can post their opening in the MDS by cooperating with the synod bishop in filling out a MSP. The bishop can excuse them from completing sections 5-7 of the MSP. The bishop can also allow them to list their own personnel director in item #20 (p.14) as the contact person for their search if the bishop does not wish to be the conduit for inquires about the position.

What is the “Summary Description” all about?
You will notice that on the Ministry Opportunities page you can do searches of position openings within the ELCA (explained below). The brief “summary description” that you write for question 8 (p.7) becomes the centerpiece of information on your position listing.

Why does the MSP ask for the “maximum compensation”?
In general, the larger the amount of available compensation in your budget, the larger the pool of candidates will be for your consideration. The MSP asks for the maximum in order to help create the largest pool of candidates possible, to challenge you to put your best foot forward, and to help CPAs do a better job of finding potential candidates.

Whose name should appear as “Call Process Contact Person”?
Give the name of your Call Process Administrator (CPA) for question 20 on page 14. You may want to check with your synod office to be sure you have the right name, phone number and email address for your CPA. ELCA-related organizations may list their personnel directors in question 20 if the CPA agrees. The small check box allows the CPA to unlock the information in question 20 in order to edit it.

How do I submit my MSP?
See “How do I submit a form?” above.

What is the MSP “Status Page”?
When you have submitted your MSP, you can go to the web site and click on “Access Account” and then “Ministry Site”. Log in by giving the email address and password you used to open a MSP account. The “Status” page shows the date that the MSP was submitted, whether or not it has been approved for posting to the system by the CPA, and the date that the Reference form and Seven Reflections forms arrived. Use the page to request a copy of your MSP (which is sent to the email address within the form), to download a copy of the Reference form, or to request that your MSP be archived.

How does the Reference form work?
Once you have successfully submitted your MSP, you can go to “Access Account” to view your “Status Page” and to select the option to download a reference form.

• Download the form and save it on your computer.
• Contact your reference to see if they are willing to write a reference for you.
• Then send the form to your reference as an email attachment.
• This is a PDF form, making it easier for your reference to use the form.
• When complete, your reference simply connects to the internet and clicks on the form’s “submit” button.
• Your reference should save a copy of the completed form on their computer.
• What was written on the form can only be shared with you by the reference him/herself.

How does the Seven Reflections form work?
You can also download your reflections form on your “Status Page”. Save it on your computer, then answer as many questions as would be helpful (choosing four is the suggestion). The form submits to the database in the same way that the MSP did. Seven Reflections is an optional form designed to help you expand your profile by giving it greater breadth and depth.

I submitted my MSP, but now I want to change something. What do I do?
Simply locate the copy of your MSP on your computer, edit it and resubmit it. Resubmitting a form, however, does mean that two versions of the form will be in the system. You can request that the older version be archived by going to your “Status Page”. Archiving is something only a CPA can do. If you are resubmitting a MSP, the two supporting forms (Reference and Seven Reflections) will also have to be resubmitted.

What if I need to change something within the MSP Profile (MSP p. 1)?
Once the MSP has been submitted to the MDS, you can go to your “Status Page”, log in with email ID/password, and click on the menu item for “Profile”.

And if a supporting form is edited and resubmitted?
If the Seven Reflections or Reference forms are resubmitted, they will automatically attach to the current MSP in the portfolio.

What if our ministry site has more than one position open?
A MSP can be submitted for the first position. It can then be edited and resubmitted describing the second position. Both MSPs can exist in the system simultaneously (just don’t request that the first be archived). Each can be archived by the CPA when needed.

What if I can’t find my MSP on my computer?
Two possibilities: (1) go to your “Status Page” in the MDS and request a copy. The system will send a copy to the email address that is on page 1 of the MSP. Or (2) ask your CPA to locate a copy within the system and send it to you.

Can an old MSP that has been moved to the archives be retrieved?
Yes. Your CPA can retrieve old MSPs.

Continue to Rostered Leader Profile