A Cure for Futility

Scientific management theory is the analysis of processes in order to improve productivity. So, to that end, does God also subscribe to this theory?

I once heard interviews with survivors from World War II. The soldiers recalled how they spent a particular day. One sat in a foxhole; once or twice, a German tank drove by and he shot at it. Others played cards and frittered away the time. A few got involved in furious firefights. Mostly, the day passed like any other. Later, they learned they had just participated in one of the largest, most decisive engagements of the war, the Battle of the Bulge. It didn’t feel decisive at the time because none had the big picture.

Great victories are won when ordinary people execute their assigned tasks.

Perhaps you sense you’re in a spiritual rut. Stay at your assigned task! Obedience to God—and only obedience—offers the way out of our futility.

So, is the body of Christ simply one big spiritual workflow? In the context of this devotion, it sure seems that it is. But God also must subscribe to the human relations theory of management, because He is also concerned with our needs and meeting those needs (1 Peter 5:7–”Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

How NOT to Witness Through Your Business

In previous posts, I’ve discussed how Chick-Fil-A and other businesses use their Christian faith to draw in customers. After all, a good testimony as a trusted servant is a good reputation to have in business.

However, here are four different accounts about how a car dealership in California advertised on the radio to non-Christians: they told non-Christians to “sit down and shut up.”

Lessons of the Fall

One of the aspects that we haven’t discussed as much in class are the functional reasons for communication. In this article from Fortune magazine, the former CEOs of JetBlue, Starbucks, and Motorola explain how the lack of communication was instrumental to them becoming unemployed.

David Neeleman (formerly of JetBlue Airlines): I didn’t have time to update the board on everything. If you don’t, somebody else will. You have to be able to give them an accurate picture of what’s going on, or they develop their own perceptions and start creating their own stories. And then they make their decisions. How do you keep these people up to date and give them the whole picture? That’s the job of the CEO, and I failed.

Jim Donald (formerly of Starbucks): I made it a habit of every other week updating the board through an e-mail on revenue, any store openings, any issues around the world.

Neeleman: When things start going south, communication should increase. Even if you think you’re doing enough, you’re not doing enough. I didn’t do a good enough job because [board members] developed their own perceptions of where things were headed.

It’s an interesting read, both from a communications perspective and from a management perspective.

Religion at the Register

The Indianapolis Star had an article in Monday’s paper on Chick-Fil-A and other businesses that are expressive in their Christian beliefs.

Here is a question: what about companies that overtly use Jesus to advertise their products or services (such as placing Scriptures or Christian symbols on vehicles, advertisements, etc.)? Is that a misappropriation of the Gospel? Even worse, what about such companies that use Jesus to advertise their business and deliver underperforming work that may lead people away from the Gospel by that witness?

Business Owners ‘Make a Difference,’ Says Chick-fil-A Exec

From the Noblesville Ledger via IndyStar.com:

Dan Cathy has a bigger message than “Eat Mor Chikin.”

“What you’re doing really makes a difference,” the 54-year-old president and chief operating officer of Chick-fil-A restaurants told the 200 business people at today’s Noblesville Chamber of Commerce luncheon.

Take advantage of unexpected opportunities, start with what you have, keep up with the challenges and changing expectations, never lose your sense of relevancy, and continue to grow, Cathy encouraged.

He operates the 40-year-old Atlanta-based chain of 1,356 restaurants, which in 2007 reported sales of $2.6 billion, a 16.09 percent increase of the chain’s 2006 performance and a same-store sales increase of 8.47 percent.