The Executive Pastor (XP) serves as the chief integrator of Compass Church’s vision, strategy, and ministry execution across all campuses and ministries. Working in close partnership with the Senior Pastor, the XP ensures that Compass operates with health, clarity, and momentum.
The XP is the primary leader of staff culture, organizational systems, weekend excellence, and ministry alignment, freeing the Senior Pastor to focus on vision, preaching, leadership, and expanding the mission.
Requirements
Spiritual & Personal Characteristics:
- Spiritually Mature: A devoted follower of Jesus Christ, living above reproach, consistent in prayer, Scripture, and spiritual disciplines (1 Tim. 3, Titus 1).
- Second Chair Calling: Loves serving behind the scenes, thrives in the “second seat,” and flourishes by making the Senior Pastor’s vision a reality.
- Humble & Secure: Confident in leadership yet unassuming, not seeking the spotlight but eager to elevate others.
- Relationally Gifted: Builds trust quickly, shepherds staff well, and creates unity in relationships.
Leadership Style:
- Vision Translator: Excels at taking the Senior Pastor’s vision and turning it into strategy, structure, and execution.
- Integrator: A natural systems builder who ensures that all Compass ministries and campuses are aligned and moving in the same direction.
- Leader of Leaders: Thinks like a coach, investing in staff and volunteers, raising up new leaders, and developing pipelines for the next generation.
- Cultural Architect: Models and cultivates a healthy staff culture marked by unity, joy, collaboration, and accountability.
- Operational Strategist: Skilled in organizational leadership, budgeting, HR, facilities, and multi-site management.
Experience & Skills:
- 7-10+ years in senior leadership within a large or multi-site church (2,500+).
- Demonstrated ability to manage complex organizations with multiple staff and ministry layers.
- Skilled in finance, HR, and operational systems, with a heart for people over processes.
- Familiar with digital ministry models and online reach strategies (aligned with Compass’ future growth in media and global ministry).
- Strong communication skills; able to speak with authority in meetings, coach effectively in one-on-ones, and encourage in moments of crisis.
Personality & Cultural Fit:
- Thrives in dynamic, fast-growing environments and brings energy, adaptability, and leadership during seasons of growth and change.
- Enjoys solving complex problems and finding creative, practical solutions that move the mission forward.
- Possesses the ability to think strategically while maintaining a strong commitment to operational excellence and execution.
- Demonstrates unwavering integrity, loyalty, and trustworthiness, serving as a trusted partner who helps protect leadership focus and organizational health.
- Approaches challenges with a solutions-oriented mindset, embracing innovation, calculated risk-taking, and continuous improvement.
- Has a strong passion for reaching people with the Gospel and a deep commitment to helping the church expand its Kingdom impact both locally and beyond.
- Brings an entrepreneurial spirit that is comfortable building, refining, and adapting systems as the church continues to grow and evolve.
- Maintains a healthy balance of confidence and humility, leading with conviction while remaining teachable and collaborative.
Why We Love This Opportunity
What excites me most about this opportunity is the combination of health, growth, and mission. I also love the dynamic of this role. The opportunity to help build strong systems, develop leaders, and create organizational clarity while supporting a Senior Pastor who is focused on vision and preaching is exactly the kind of ministry leadership environment where great Executive Pastors thrive.
About Compass Church
Compass Church isn’t just a church with a long history…it’s a church with momentum.
Founded in 1869, Compass spent more than 150 years as First Presbyterian Church of Salinas before launching into a new season of ministry as Compass Church and aligning with the ECO Presbyterian denomination. While the name changed, the mission only became more clear: helping people find and follow Jesus.
Today, Compass is one of the most evangelistically effective churches on California’s Central Coast. In the past few years alone, more than 1700 people have made decisions to follow Christ, including nearly 700 last year. In the past three four they have grown from 900 on a weekend to more than 2600 with more than 60% of new members joining through conversion or reaffirmation of faith…evidence of a church that is actively reaching people, not simply reshuffling believers from other congregations.
Ten years ago, Compass launched its first satellite campus in Marina, one of the fastest-growing communities in the region. The church continues to think strategically about reaching new people while remaining deeply committed to biblical teaching and meaningful discipleship.
What makes Compass especially unique is its diversity. You’ll find multiple generations worshiping together, a broad range of ethnic backgrounds represented, and people traveling from across the Central Coast to be part of what God is doing.
This is an ideal opportunity for a highly driven executive leader who thrives at a rapid pace, loves building scalable systems, and excels at developing high-performing leaders. A chance to step into a historically grounded yet fiercely future-focused ministry, this Executive Pastor will act as the ‘deputy chief of staff’ to help scale a fast-growing church to 5,000 attendees and maximize its Kingdom impact with an unrelenting urgency to “fill heaven and empty hell.”
About Monterey County (Salinas)
Salinas is the capital of the Salinas Valley, which has long been known as “The Salad Bowl of the World” for its fresh produce, and which is also renowned for its flowers and vineyards. Although agriculture is the foundation of the local economy, more than 100 manufacturing firms call Salinas home.
Some of the largest employers in the area include:
Dole Fresh Vegetable, Taylor Farms, County of Monterey, and Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital.
Salinas is in Monterey County with a population of 156,143. Living in Salinas offers residents a dense suburban feel and most residents rent their homes. Salinas is a community of neighborhoods with a wide variety of housing options including modest cottages and modern townhouses to spacious “rancheros” nestled in the oak-dotted countryside.
Salinas has extensive health and medical services with two of the County’s four hospitals located within the City – Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital and Natividad Medical Center.
Salinas’ weather is influenced by their near proximity to Monterey Bay. The morning fog is generally cleared by afternoon breezes. The average temperature is 68.2 degrees, with summer temperatures in the 70’s which dips at night into the ’50s. Winter temperatures are generally in the low 60’s, dropping at night into the middle ’30s. The average rainfall is 14.4”, usually occurring in winter and early spring.
Here is a LINK with more about the city of Salinas.
