Roles That Make Sense for Church
Flock uses a role system designed specifically for how churches actually work. Every person has a role that determines what they can see and do — and each role is built to match a real responsibility in your church.
The principle is simple: everyone sees what they need and nothing more. A group member does not need to see organization-wide analytics. A group leader does not need to manage billing. Each role gives the right access for the right job.
The Five Roles
Organization Admin
Who this is: The person who set up the church's Flock account — typically a senior pastor, executive pastor, or church administrator.
What they can do:
- See data across the entire organization — every campus, ministry, and group
- Manage the organizational structure (add campuses, create ministries)
- Invite and manage staff at all levels
- Access the admin dashboard with church-wide analytics
- Manage subscription and billing
- View the Intercessory Prayer Wall and prayer sentiment data
What they see: Everything. The full picture of the church's group life, from attendance trends across campuses to individual prayer activity.
Campus Pastor
Who this is: A pastor or leader responsible for a specific campus in a multi-campus church. In single-campus churches, this role may not be needed.
What they can do:
- See data across all ministries and groups within their campus
- View attendance trends, at-risk members, and group health scores for their campus
- Access the Prayer Portal to monitor prayer patterns
- Support group leaders and ministry directors within their scope
What they see: Everything within their campus. They do not see data from other campuses.
Ministry Director
Who this is: The person who leads a specific ministry area — for example, the director of small groups, the youth ministry coordinator, or the adult education leader.
What they can do:
- See data across all groups within their ministry
- View attendance trends, at-risk members, and group health scores for their ministry
- Support the group leaders under their care
What they see: Everything within their ministry. They do not see other ministries or campus-wide data.
Group Leader
Who this is: The person who leads a specific group — a small group facilitator, Bible study leader, Sunday school teacher, or life group host.
What they can do:
- Manage their group's roster (invite members, manage membership)
- Take attendance (photo or manual)
- Create and manage events
- See private prayer requests from their group members
- View insights and at-risk alerts for their group
- Moderate group chat (pin messages, delete inappropriate content)
- Post announcements
What they see: Everything within their group. They see all public prayers and all private prayers submitted by their members. They see attendance data, event RSVPs, and engagement metrics for their group only.
A group can have multiple leaders (co-leaders), and they all share the same permissions.
Group Member
Who this is: A regular participant in a group — someone who attends meetings, participates in prayer, and connects with the community.
What they can do:
- View the group's Prayer Wall and submit prayer requests (public or private)
- RSVP to events
- Participate in group chat, chat groups, and direct messages
- View the member roster and contact information (based on profile visibility settings)
- See their own attendance history and stats
What they see: Public prayers, upcoming events, group chat, and the member roster. They cannot see private prayers, attendance data for other members, at-risk alerts, or analytics.
How Roles Are Assigned
Organization-Level Roles
Organization admin, campus pastor, and ministry director roles are assigned through the admin dashboard. The org admin invites staff by email, selecting the appropriate role during the invitation process.
For a full guide, see Staff Roles and Permissions.
Group-Level Roles
When someone joins a group, they automatically become a group member. The group leader (or co-leader) can promote a member to co-leader from the group's roster settings.
What the Hierarchy Looks Like
Think of it as a set of concentric circles, where each role can see its own circle and everything inside it:
Organization Admin (sees everything)
└── Campus Pastor (sees their campus)
└── Ministry Director (sees their ministry)
└── Group Leader (sees their group)
└── Group Member (sees their own activity)
Each level has full visibility into the levels below it, but cannot see above or sideways. A ministry director can see all groups in their ministry, but not groups in another ministry.
Common Questions About Roles
Can someone have multiple roles? A person can be a member of multiple groups and can lead one group while being a member of another. Organization-level roles (admin, campus pastor, ministry director) are separate from group-level roles.
Can a group have more than one leader? Yes. Co-leaders have the same permissions as the primary leader. This is perfect for married couples who co-lead, or for training up a future leader.
Can a member see other members' attendance? No. Members can see their own attendance history and general group stats, but not individual attendance records for other people.
What happens if someone's role changes? When a role is updated, the person's access changes immediately. If a group leader steps down to become a regular member, they immediately lose access to private prayers, attendance tools, and insights for that group.
Related Help Articles
- Staff Roles and Permissions — Managing organization-level roles
- Managing Your Group Roster — View and manage members
- How to Invite Members to Your Church Group — Bringing people into your group