Christian Science Lecturers

Lecturer preparation and organization

• Build a website for the lecturer as a landing place for their lecture information. Each branch church becomes responsible to look at the material, and the lecturer doesn’t have to send it out to each branch. 

• Maintain an app to house the details of each lecture, including flight, hotel, transportation details, lecture details, food options, etc. The app provides a logistical road map for the lecturer's trip. We make sure the data is all correct before the lecturer’s trip begins.

• Use a scheduling service to help book appointments. Send automated reminders of each meeting, including a zoom link to the lecturer and all attendees. 

• Most importantly, we stay happy, flexible, and wholly focused on the mission of the work, and seek to support the lecturer in whatever way they need.

 

Travel

• Book flights based on the lecturer’s recommendation and/or preferences. Each flight is chosen by the lecturer and emailed to us. We book the flight, choose the seat, etc - and make sure all expenses are included on the invoice.

• Help adjust travel plans if there is a weather (or other) issue that causes a delay or cancellation. For instance: a couple of times we’ve received a text from a lecturer on a plane whose next flight was delayed or canceled and we were able to find a new solution before they landed. This allowed their trip to keep going smoothly even though the flight, or airline etc., completely changed. 

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Accommodation, Transportation & Food

• Book hotel rooms based on the lecturers preferences: proximity to the lecture or airport, for example. We usually ask them to choose one hotel chain to make the booking process easier. 

• Book rental cars and/or work with the branch to confirm which church member will be providing transportation. For the rental car, we often ask them to choose one rental car company. If a church member is driving we make sure they have travel details and are in touch with the lecturer a few days before arrival.

• Provide addresses to the closest restaurants based on the lecturer’s food or restaurant preferences. 

• Track lecturer food costs (found on the invoice) over 6 months, and calculate a flat fee for food on all invoices. Some lecturers already know what this amount should be.

 

Communication with the branch church

• We make sure to maintain the open lines of communication between the lecturer and branch church, though hopefully those discussions can focus more on content and not repeated details. 

• Create invoices, or multiple invoices, based on the bookings, lecture fee, etc. Send the invoice(s) to the lecturer for verification before sending it to the branch church. 

• Make sure the branch has the right configuration for how the lecture will look in terms of furniture: a place for books and water, etc. 

• Make sure the branch tests out any A/V systems - such as the lav mic that might not have been used since last year’s lecture. 

• When the branch church has any question at all (except for content), we become the first point of contact. If we haven’t learned the lecturer’s preferences, or aren’t sure how to answer, we reach out to the lecturer. We can have more direct and efficient discussions with the lecturer because we have built that ongoing relationship. 

 

Publicity

• Work with the branch if they have publicity needs. This can mean anything from helping them find the BoL process to request it, to having our designer provide a new design with the lecturer's approval, to receiving their own design and making sure the lecturer approves it.