William Vanderbloemen (born 1969,
Taylorsville, North Carolina
Taylorsville is a town in Alexander County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,098 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Alexander County.
Taylorsville is part of the Hickory–Lenoir– Morganton Metropolitan Stat ...
) is an entrepreneur, pastor, speaker, author, and CEO and founder of Vanderbloemen Search Group, an
executive search firm serving churches, ministries, and faith-based organizations.
Education
Vanderbloemen received a B.A. in philosophy/religion from
Wake Forest University (1992) and later earned an M.Div from
Princeton Theological Seminary (1995).
Career
Ministry
After graduating, Vanderbloemen took a post as the associate pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of
Hendersonville, North Carolina. At 27, he accepted his first senior pastorate at the Memorial Presbyterian Church of Montgomery in Alabama.
In less than four years there, the membership tripled and the church completed a $5.5 million building program.
In 2001, Vanderbloemen was a guest chaplain for the
U.S. House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
.
[
At 31, he was elected senior pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Houston. At the time, he was the youngest senior pastor ever elected to Houston's oldest church.] In 2006, he presided over the funeral of former U.S. House Representative, Senator and Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen
Lloyd Millard Bentsen Jr. (February 11, 1921 – May 23, 2006) was an American politician who was a four-term United States Senator (1971–1993) from Texas and the Democratic Party nominee for vice president in 1988 on the Michael Dukakis ti ...
.
Corporate career
Vanderbloemen has studied the issue of pastoral "succession planning" as a means to help churches and ministries continue beyond the term of a main spiritual leader and has become a consultant on the topic of church succession planning and compensation analysis for churches and ministries. He also works with relief organizations, such as World Vision International and Living Water International
Living Water International (LWI) is a faith-based non-profit organization that helps communities in developing countries to create sustainable water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) programs in response to the global water crisis.Moore, Mike, 2003, ' ...
.
Vanderbloemen has been a media commentator on the issues surrounding Mars Hill Church
Mars Hill Church was a Christian megachurch, founded in 1996 by Mark Driscoll, Lief Moi, and Mike Gunn. It was a multi-site church based in Seattle, Washington and grew from a home Bible study to 15 locations in 4 U.S. states. in addition to ser ...
and its former pastor Mark Driscoll
Mark A. Driscoll (born 1970) is an American evangelical pastor and author who founded the now defunct Mars Hill Church. He is the senior and founding pastor of the Trinity Church in Scottsdale, Arizona, which was founded in 2016.
In 1996, Dr ...
, ''Christianity Today
''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "evange ...
'', and ''Gospel Herald
''Gospel Herald'' (Scottdale, Pennsylvania) was the official publication of the Mennonite Church from 1908–1998. It was formed from a merger of ''Gospel Witness'' (Scottdale, Pennsylvania) and ''Herald of Truth'' (Elkhart, Indiana). As part o ...
''.
Vanderbloemen says that "all pastors are interim pastors"," and talks about a "hyper-connected world", rendering the needs for churches to plan ahead because they will face transition issues.
He has been a contributor to ''Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'', where he covers topics about having a strong faith and building a business, ''Fortune
Fortune may refer to:
General
* Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck
* Luck
* Wealth
* Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling
* Fortune, in a fortune cookie
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''The Fortune'' (1931 film) ...
'', and ''Outreach Magazine
''Outreach'' is an evangelical magazine based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It focuses on activities of growing churches and is non-denominational. It is a periodical from the organization Outreach, Inc., founded in 1996 by Scott Evans and pro ...
''. He has also been published through Fast Company, '' Entrepreneur'', and ''Inc
Inc. or inc may refer to:
* Incorporation (business), as a suffix indicating a corporation
* ''Inc.'' (magazine), an American business magazine
* Inc. No World, a Los Angeles-based band
* Indian National Congress, a political party in India
* I ...
''.
Vanderbloemen served as a human resources manager at Anadarko Petroleum. In 2008, he was the senior vice president/ministry practice leader at FaithSearch Partners, an executive search firm focused on faith-based hospitals, health care systems, and ministries.
Vanderbloemen Search Group
Based in Houston, Texas
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
, Vanderbloemen Search Group opened in 2009. The executive search firm, which also conducts compensation analysis and consulting services for organizations, specializes in a mix of domestic and international placement of faith-based leaders within churches and ministries, as well as Christian organizations. It works with churches all over the world and of every denomination.
Vanderbloemen Search Group acquired the search firm Help Staff Me in 2011. In November 2012, It was accepted into the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC).
Personal life
Vanderbloemen, his wif
Adrienne
and their seven children live in Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
.
Works
* discusses the process of pastoral succession planning
*
References
External links
Vanderbloemen website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vanderbloemen, William
1969 births
Living people
American Christian clergy
American Christian writers
People from Taylorsville, North Carolina
Wake Forest University alumni