Behind the Scenes at Church HQ: Handbooks, Ministering, & Area Presidencies | An Interview with Larry Richman

Larry Richman retired in 2022 after working as a Church employee
for 45 years. He was a project and product manager for many of the
Church’s programs, such as Sunday and weekday programs for adults,
youth, and children as well as leader training and tools. He was
the director of LDS.org and the Church’s social media efforts from
2003–2008. Larry has authored over a dozen books and thousands of
articles in magazines and websites. As an entrepreneur, he has
started several businesses and provided leadership training and
consulting for several companies. He has also served as CEO and
Chairman of the Board of Trustees for non-profit organizations.
From 2022–2023, Larry served a full-time mission as the executive
secretary for the Africa South Area Presidency. Links LDS365.com
Senior Missionary Opportunities There is already a discussion
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soon Get 14-day access to the Core Leader Library Highlights Larry
shares insights into his career working behind the scenes at the
Church and collaborating with general authorities. He discusses the
balance between following the handbook and allowing for flexibility
in leadership roles. Larry also highlights the importance of
utilizing resources like the Life Help section, Gospel Topics, and
My Calling in the Gospel Library app. He emphasizes the
principle-based approach in the current handbook and the For the
Strength of Youth guide, focusing on teaching doctrine and letting
individuals govern themselves. Larry also touches on his experience
running the LDS 365 blog and the importance of staying updated on
handbook revisions. He shares his recent mission experience in
South Africa and working with the area presidency. Larry's insights
provide valuable perspectives on leadership and resources within
church structure. 2:20 Larry Richman's career in the church. He has
worked in the materials management, translation, and curriculum
departments. 5:50 Larry retired and went on a mission to South
Africa with his wife. Now he is a church service missionary. 6:20
There are so many more opportunities for senior missionaries and
service missionaries than people know. There are so many different
ways to serve and you can do it before you retire. You can serve
from home in hundreds of different ways. 8:05 When Larry was in
graduate school for instructional science, he was offered a full
time position with the church. He helped the church implement
different projects. 9:00 Behind the scenes of the church’s programs
and the curriculum that comes out. Working with General
Authorities. 12:30 Reworking programs that have gone stale.
Employees study it out and come up with recommendations and take
them to the brethren, who discuss and pray about it. 17:00 Working
with general authorities and all the different councils in the
church. 21:00 Meetings with general authorities. Balancing and
structuring a meeting so that the spirit can speak and you address
what you need to address. 24:00 How they implement Church
Initiatives. 26:50 Implementation of new technology: blogs,
websites, social media. The Lord moves his work forward with
technology. 30:31 Larry has a blog called LDS 365. He updates
people on things the church is implementing and more of the details
on the apps and resources that the church has. 33:45 Resources that
Larry wished more people knew about: Life Help Gospel topics My
calling 40:30 Understanding and using the handbook. How strictly
does it need to be followed? 45:20 Updates and changes in the
handbook. 46:20 Larry’s experiences serving a mission in South
Africa. 48:40 How an area presidency works in South Africa. 52:00
Leaders can not truly lead if they aren’t willing to do the things
themselves that they are asking others to do. We go back and forth
between being a leader and follower. Both are important.