BRIDGEPORT,
Monday, November 6, 2006 - In the next big step in an ongoing
commitment to improve and enhance financial controls, Bishop William
E. Lori has announced the appointment of a top business professional,
Deacon William Koniers of Stratford, as Finance Director
of Parish Finance Services for the Diocese of Bridgeport, effective
today.
In this newly-created
position, Deacon Koniers will oversee the implementation of a
program to enhance and strengthen financial controls and procedures
at all 87 parishes throughout Fairfield County.
Details of
the program will be shared this month at five regional meetings
of pastors, parish finance councils, and parish councils across
Fairfield County. The purpose of these gatherings will be to explain
the key elements of the program, receive feedback, and learn of
existing best practices in the parishes that can be shared and
incorporated.
Skills
and Experience
“We
are fortunate to find in Deacon Koniers not only a man of great
faith who is an active member of his parish community, but someone
with an extraordinary resume,” says Bishop Lori. “Deacon
Koniers has the knowledge, skills, and experience that we need
to assist our dedicated pastors in furthering the mission of the
Church. With the twin goals of greater transparency and accountability,
Deacon Koniers will provide our parishes with helpful management
tools.”
Bishop
Lori's column in the November 4 edition of Fairfield County
Catholic discusses the plan in more detail:
click here.
WELCOME
ABOARD – Deacon William Koniers (left), the new finance director
of Parish Finance Services, is greeted by Norm Walker, chief financial
officer of the Diocese of Bridgeport.
Positive
Feedback
Key elements
of the new program were presented to pastors and priests at a
meeting in Bridgeport on October 30. Feedback was positive, according
to Msgr. J. Peter Cullen, Vicar General and Moderator of
the Curia of the Diocese.
"Our
pastors are willing partners in this effort to enhance and strengthen
controls at both the Diocesan and parish levels," says Msgr.
Cullen, himself a former pastor for many years in Bridgeport and
New Canaan. "Our pastors bring to the table years of experience
and fiscal responsibility, and are pleased to help the Diocese
take this to the next level. Their input, guidance, and leadership
will be invaluable are we take the next steps towards implementation
of this program, which will benefit all of the Catholic faithful
in Fairfield County."
Biography
of Deacon Koniers
A native
of Philadelphia, PA, and graduate of Philadelphia University,
Deacon Koniers, 56, has more than 30 years of experience in global
corporate management and operations. He spent 11 years in various
management positions with General Electric, and another 11 years
with Pirelli North America. His responsibilities included operations,
strategic planning, financial services, mergers and acquisitions,
business process re-engineering, and commercial financing.
Most recently,
he was a division president with full profit-and-loss responsibility,
and then promoted to corporate vice president, customer service,
for Air Products HealthCare, a $300 million regional provider
of ancillary home healthcare products and services. Among his
duties were co-owning and redesigning a new "order-to-cash" revenue
cycle, and implementing change management throughout a company
of more than 2,000 employees.
Deacon Koniers
was ordained to the diaconate by Bishop Lori in 2004, and has
since served at Saint Catherine of Siena Parish in Trumbull. He
and his wife of 32 years, Jeanne, live in Stratford. They have
two children, James and Marianne.
He is a third-degree
Knight of Columbus, and is proud of volunteer work as senior vice
president of the Stratford Coalition for the Homeless, which operates
two transitional shelters, Bethlehem Houses I and II.
"Deacon Bill
is a bright and gifted man," says Deacon Anthony Detje, director
of the permanent diaconate program. "Even though he held very
responsible management positions with Air Products, he selflessly
gave of his time to his parish, including directing the RCIA ministry,
and overseeing a very creative parish survey project. As committed
as he is to his business life, you always know that his two families
- his own and his parish - come first."
-30-
A
Conversation with Deacon William Koniers
Why
did you decide to leave the corporate world to come work for the
Catholic Church?
Deacon
Koniers: I'm a person who believes in setting personal
goals and objectives. I have already achieved everything I set
out to do in my business career.
Since my ordination
as a deacon two years ago, I have been undergoing a continuing
conversion to the Church and her mission.
Bishop Lori
and I spoke several times, and I am impressed with his vision
and leadership. After much discernment and prayer, I decided I
wanted to dedicate the rest of my life and career for the betterment
of the Church. I know that sounds very noble, but I really mean
it!
What
can you tell us about the new program for strengthening parish
finances?
Deacon
Koniers: The special Task Force created by Bishop Lori
carefully developed several key elements covering a wide range
of areas, including best practices for parish finance councils;
controls for collections and expenditures; improving financial
reporting to parishioners; training for pastors, parish finance
council members, business managers, accountants, and counters;
and instituting annual re-views and tests of parish financial
controls and procedures.
Before we
finalize and implement these key elements in all 87 parishes over
the next year, we need observations and feedback from both clergy
and laity and to fine-tune the recommendations as necessary. So
far, we have shared the key elements with the Diocesan Finance
Council, the College of Consultors, our pastors, and many priests.
The next step, this month, is to hit the road, and present our
ideas at vicariate gatherings of parish finance councils and lay
trustees. We hope to issue the final result and the implementation
plan in early December.
How
important is it to work closely with the pastors and their parish
team?
Deacon
Koniers: I'm a firm believer in frequent communication
and openness. There are good and sound "best practices" already
in place in many of our parishes. The goal is to add to these
best practices and share them with other parishes. This task will
be the most rewarding aspect of my position, networking person-toperson
with my colleagues.
The more you
can bring leadership together in a teambuilding atmosphere, the
better. Everyone in our parishes needs to be part of the change
process, have a seat at the table, and take ownership of these
changes.
The biggest
challenge will be convincing this wide and diverse audience that
improved processes and controls will help set the stage for the
better financial stewardship of our parishes and the common good
of our diocese.
How
will your business background and experience help you in your
new role?
Deacon
Koniers: Coming from a 32-year career in the corporate
world, I believe I can share many good and varied business experiences
and have an arsenal of transferable skills and programs at my
disposal. Over the years, I have come to appreciate the need for
standards, compliance, and accountability.
I have never
been labeled a "caretaker." I am personally at my best when the
dynamics of an organization are changing. The reality is that
our Catholic Church in the United States is changing. We live
in a very different world today, one that expects nothing less
than the very best from our clergy leaders and lay administrators.
The winds of change are here, and all organizations - secular
and religious - are now being held to very high standards of professionalism
and efficiency. No one in our society will tolerate abuse or fraud,
whether in the private sector, the government, or, especially,
the Catholic Church.
What
is your management style?
Deacon
Koniers: My style will not be to manage from an office
or armchair, but to go throughout the diocese and develop strong
working relationships. I've found throughout my career that dictating
policies and procedures via e-mail or fax just doesn't work.
I intend to
eventually meet with all 87 pastors and their staff to build their
trust, assess their needs, and determine the level of administrative
professionalism and expertise.
Quite frankly,
our parishes and the important work they do are the very backbone
of our diocese. We're here to help them fulfill their important
mission.
Would
we be making this effort, had the crisis in Saint John Parish
in Darien not occurred?
Deacon
Koniers: Yes. We need to remember that, since Bishop
Lori arrived five years ago, many financial improvements have
been made in the diocese and our parishes. This new program is
just the next phase. We were already heading in this direction.
We're committed
to our efforts to become more transparent and effective financial
administrators. Our parishioners have a right to expect, and demand,
that our diocese continue to manage finances professionally and
strive to be the best that it can be at all times.
These expectations
can only be met by leveraging known best practices and new technologies
and keeping an eye out for identifying and instituting additional
best practices for the administrative work that we do.
Do
you believe that being a member of the clergy will help you in
your new role?
Deacon
Koniers: I do. I'm extremely proud to serve my Church.
Being active in parish life throughout the years, first as a layman
and now as an ordained clergyman, I believe I have gained an appreciation
of the day-to-day complexity of running a parish. I'm also keenly
aware of the challenges facing our priests and deacons.
As a member
of the clergy, I have come to better understand the Church's mission
of evangelization. Recently, I have focused on trying to identify
how we can all help and strengthen the Church. How can we assist
her?
Our Catholic
Church has been, throughout the ages, a significant provider of
services and aid to people in need. We cannot continue to maintain
this high level of service unless we become more proficient at
managing our own house.
How
does your new position fit in with the recently-launched Pastoral
Plan for the Diocese of Bridgeport, "Following
in the Footsteps of Christ"?
Deacon
Koniers: I would like to think they go hand in hand.
For evangelization to be effective, we need to support it with
a well-run administration and organization. Good stewardship,
whether for our evangelization mission or for the day-to-day financial
administration of our diocese and its parishes, is the priority.
I sincerely
hope and pray that, over time, our pastors will come to understand
that we're here to help, serve, and assist them in every way possible.
There's no room in the Holy Catholic Church for the diocese to
be viewed as non-supportive of parishes, or vice-versa. There
can be no "us" versus "them." We're all in this together.
If we all
execute our jobs well by practicing good stewardship and serving
our parishioners throughout Fairfield County, then our "return
on investment" will be most rewarding - leading more souls to
Heaven.
NEW HAVEN – The Knights of Columbus will sponsor a “spiritual
pilgrimage” with Pope Benedict XVI as he travels to Turkey later
this month. Knights, their families, and all Catholics are being
asked to pray daily for the pontiff during the trip, which begins
on Tuesday, November 28, and concludes on Friday, December
1. 
FAIRFIELD
- His Eminence, Theodore Cardinal McCarrick, Archbishop
Emeritus of the Diocese of Washington, DC, will deliver a public
lecture on "Evangelizing in Today's Culture" on Wednesday,
November 29, at 7:30 p.m. at 
Last
Resort for So Many