Tech Forum

Our stake president wants to track ministering visits monthly. He wants to see total number of visits AND the details as well by ward: Bro N / Bro O assigned to Fam A & Fam B, only Fam A visited. Or perhaps these families assigned to these companionships were missed. This is in addition to the quarterly ministering interviews being recorded in MLS.

Anyone have any idea of software that can do that? He's not opposed to buying / subscribing to a package.

Thanks

You need to be aware of General Handbook 38.8.31, and Meetinghouse Technology Policy 4.9.3/4.9.4.

Even if such software existed, using it would be questionable - especially if it was cloud-based.

If you ever get a chance to talk with anyone in the area or higher, you might want to inquire about the best way to deal with the stake president's request. I'm sure there's reason the church moved away from recording visits to recording interviews. Some of those reasons might be legal.

Thank you very much for your clear and unambiguous response. I appreciate the information and have passed it on.

In April 2018, Elder Holland said:

The only report that will be made is the number of interviews leaders had with the ministering companionships in the ward that quarter. Simple as that sounds, my friends, those interviews are absolutely crucial.

Because this report is different from anything you have submitted in the past, let me stress that we at Church headquarters don’t need to know how or where or when you make contact with your people; we just need to know and care that you do make it and that you bless them in every way you can.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/stu ... gthen-them

Thanks for those quotes. I often find myself forgetting counsel given either in the GHB or in other formal settings like this. And while a local leader may well receive revelation that goes beyond anything "required" by Church HQ, it's important to always analyze why the baseline was established, and whether it may be sufficient, before adding additional local practices.

This seems to be similar to the day long ago when monthly reports became quarterly reports, but many local leaders still wanted to track monthly stats. The church software had been changed such that monthly stats could no longer be tracked, so clerks and secretaries were forced to track stats outside of MLS just to keep their local leaders happy.