Does children's check-in really impact the ministry experience? For those of us with any experience in children’s ministry, we can instantly answer this question with a resounding “Yes!” So, as a ministry leader in the children’s area, what are some of the key components of the check-in process that should be closely evaluated to ensure this experience is a positive one?

First, let’s toss out a number of questions for consideration:

• Should the church focus on an automated system versus a manual one? If automated, is it preferable for the system to exist in a “local” environment or would a “hosted” environment (that leverages the Internet) be more ideal?

• Would the culture of the church support volunteer-assisted versus self check-in, or a combination of both?

• Does the system align with the church’s position on security in the children’s area?

• Do families only need the ability to check-in for a single service/ministry or do they need the ability to check-in for multiple services/ministries at one time?

• Can families check-in everyone all at one time, including those volunteering in the children’s ministry? Or, do they need to navigate multiple lines to check-in each member of the family?

• Is there a need for the system to operate in a multisite environment? If so, does the church need to simultaneously manage information across all campuses, including managing the ratios in each of the individual classrooms?

• Is it acceptable that the check-in system exists in a stand-alone environment or does it need to be integrated with the main church database? ...