Managment Philosophy

Personal Management Philosophy – What I believe

My personal management philosophy is to be a leader who exemplifies Christ in every pursuit, public or private. I will build a reputation for leading teams to surpass goals established by my organization to become the best in the industry. I will set goals that are difficult to achieve which push everyone on my team to utilize their strengths to help the organization constantly improve process efficiency and innovation. I will live my life transparently so that those I interact with see the difference Christ's death, burial and resurrection have made in me.
I must ensure that my organization's strengths reflect customer needs. Concretely defined and prioritized, we must improve on those strengths until we distinguish ourselves from the competition. I must use financial reports and strategic planning objectives to set company wide goals. My job is to understand and clearly communicate this business direction and goals to those whom I supervise. I will strive to help them understand how their contributions directly effect company success or failure by implementing processes that reflect the importance of their work. I will follow a strategy of eliminating all types of waste in every aspect of the business. Other strategic decisions must be made while problem solving with imperfect information, using logic and contrary opinions. Those decisions should be held through completion or until further information proves it to be wrong and a better path chosen. Leading people requires serving them by finding their strengths, challenging them, expecting them to improve and removing obstacles to enable them to make the right decisions.
As a Christian in the role of manager, I will have many opportunities to ruin or promote my devotion to Christ and my testimony. In any leadership role we are placed in a spotlight, our superiors and those we supervise are watching intently; some cheering us on to success others hoping to witness failure. As Believers, that watchfulness is raised to the next level; it is not only business decisions that we are judged on, but personal and private ones as well. Peter tells me to “keep your behavior excellent among the [unbelieving], so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God...” (I Peter 2:12). I will share my faith openly while remembering that words without action are meaningless and perform my work with diligence and integrity. Depending on our own strength to accomplish this task is doomed to suboptimal performance, but Christ will always provide the strength needed to accomplish His will (Philippians 4:13).
My desire is to love doing whatever it is that God has me involved with. Ecclesiastes 3:22 says that finding satisfaction in your work is a blessing but ultimately, everything related to work will be lost (Ecclesiastes 2:17). Being successful according to God's standards makes me love what I do (Colossians 3:23), even when there is little recognition or even trials. I aim to inspire passion for the job and a drive for success in the people I work with, so that they love their work too.

Future Management Strategy – How to work it out

Customers- A business cannot exist without customers. In fact, even individual within a company has customers. A lawn maintenance person clearly understands that the yard owner is the customer, where as the assembly line worker's customer is the next person in the assembly process and ultimately the person who buys the product. I must understand how my work affects the customer as this is key to ensuring we are doing the best job possible for them. Knowing who our customer is, what is important to them, why they want our good or service and what value they place on it is critical to becoming great (Hartley, 2006). To fully understand this, I will place myself in the customers shoes, actually do the job or watch someone do it. If I fail to analyze these key aspects of our customer we will make decisions that negatively impact the product and ultimately the customer, giving them reason to go elsewhere.
Financial Impacts- Finances are the blood that makes a business operate, I must have money moving through an organization to make it work. Capital is needed for everything from paying salaries to investing in new technologies. Understanding the impact of cash-flows, profit and loss statements and other financial reports will enable me to make logical and well balanced business decisions. Return on Investment is an important tool I must use in decision making because if money is not returning to the company, it will go bankrupt. Other projects or endeavors may not prove profitable with this analysis but may be critical to making key strategies work. Strategic decisions are inherently more risky, but needed especially when markets change rapidly (McKenzie & Lee, 2006). I will avoid the trap of convincing myself that a choice was “strategic”, but in reality was only the path that sounded most interesting. I will take responsibility for decisions and use the best information available to move the company toward it's goals with risk minimized.
Integrity- Sometimes doing the “right” thing is hard, really hard; especially if it means losing significant amounts of money or admitting to mistakes that may ruin your reputation. There are numerous examples of companies and individuals taking the high road in the face of severe consequences (Lennick D. & Kiel F. PhD ,2007). Many of these ultimately befitted from their integrity by the customer placing more trust in them. I have experienced this personally with a recall situation where customers became more devoted to the company because of the way in which the issue was handled. I will look at any situation from the perspective of the customer; first understanding what the right action is and second how best to accomplish this from my company perspective.
Problem Solving- I love solving problems more than any other part of my job. Gathering information, asking the right questions and finding other, contradictory viewpoints are the most critical aspects of doing this well. Many problem solvers jump to the first apparent solution but typically do not fully resolve the issue. I will assess the situation, gather all available information and weigh solutions as quickly as possible. Looking at the problem first hand, in person is the most advantageous, then speaking with those immediately involved about probable solutions. I have learned to step back and find the reasoning behind the solutions that are counter intuitive; there may be some insight that was ignored by the first, seemingly adequate answer. Using this problem solving technique will yield better results than the typical “shoot from the hip” answers.
Prioritization- Time is the most precious resource any of us must utilize. Each one has a set number of days to live out life, so we must use each one to the fullest. Our priorities must be set by how we can most effectively contribute to the goals of the organization (Drucker, 1966). One of the most impacting ideas discussed by Drucker was that of removing old priorities that are no longer important. I will not continue defending the bad choices of the past, expending so much energy on that effort, that we make little or no progress toward those tasks that will most positively affect the organization. Not only is prioritization important, but I will work on one thing at a time making my time more effective in taking the organization closer to ideal state. Working on multiple projects simultaneously is not efficient. Not only will each project have lower quality, it will take longer to complete them, increasing the probability that they will become obsolete, thus a waste of time.
Servant Leadership- Is truly leading as Jesus led. It was obvious that Jesus was the leader of the band of disciples, but rarely do we see Jesus miss an opportunity to teach his men how to lead while removing doubt and any other obstacles that prevented their growth. This ideology forces management to the bottom of the organizational chart, depicting who their true customers are, those they supervise. This organizational structure almost forces each employee to see how their work effects the next one in line. As a manager, I must remove the barriers to my people becoming successful (Liker, 2004). Sometimes that means fighting battles for better tools, changing processes or moving people to another area where their strengths may be better utilized.
Processes- Every business, no matter how small, has a set of processes that dictate how certain tasks are to be done. For a one man company, those are probably only captured in thought, but as the company grows these get documented and trained on. Processes are the simplest tool to ensure smooth business management because they take the best methods learned and cause them to be utilized each time the task is done. When there is a process in place for a task it takes away much of the confusion and decision making. It enables the worker to accomplish the task that was once relegated to Managers (Drucker, 1966). It is widely believed that a majority of errors are to some extent process related or preventable if done properly. If this is true managers can focus their attention on any process that has problems, resolve them and implement the new “best method”.
Relentless Elimination of Waste- All business must be competitive to survive. There are many avenues to pursue staying competitive. One of them makes sense to do, no matter if you are number one or dead last in your industry; elimination of waste. Constantly reducing and eliminating waste from processes and business activities will reduce my cost to produce a product (Liker, 2004). The elimination of waste typically forces innovation which drives improvement in product, reputation and customer satisfaction. This activity will keep our organization improving even if we are number one. Sadly, many first in class organizations have lost to number two or three because they become complacent and depended on their old technology and strategy for too long while their competition passed them up.

Biography – Who am I

I am the Engineering Manager for a small design and manufacturing company with responsibility over R&D, manufacturing engineering and applications engineering. Utilizing best practices from the manufacturing floor, I have established stable processes for even the most abstract and creative aspects of design and development. These processes have increased efficiency in resource utilization and time to market.
I graduated from Oregon State University with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, specializing in machine design. I am currently pursuing a Masters of Business Administration from Corban College & Graduate School in Salem, Oregon. I intend to continue working as Engineering Manager in the engineering field to eventually be Vice President of Engineering for a large manufacturing company. I plan to utilize my administration skills working in a mission organization or my local church as an international mission organizer if God presents the opportunity.
My engineering bent drew me toward manufacturing where I have been for the last eight years. I started out in a high volume concrete block plant, learning about quality control and machine maintenance. For the last five years I have been designing windshield wiper systems for specialty vehicles like boats, trains, buses and agricultural equipment around the world. I have developed a keen ability to read customers and find solutions to their problems. Working in a small company has given me a broad experience base from marketing to accounting to production.
I worked in the service industry for the previous seven years. I started with taking over a yard care business for several years where I learned to anticipate customer needs. Next, I worked in a seed cleaning warehouse where I developed an appreciation for mechanical equipment. While attending engineering school, I worked in a deli and grocery store. This is where customer interaction was developed as well as an appreciation for inventory control.
I was born and raised in the Northwest to be a hard worker no matter the task. Growing up in a Christian home gave me a great foundation to be a leader in business and an active part of the Christian community. In my home Church, my wife and I with our two children, volunteer in children's ministries and I lead a small group Bible study.

Resources-- Impacting literature

Drucker, P. (1966). The effective executive. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers.
Hartley, R. (2006). Marketing mistakes & successes, e10. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ,Hoboken, NJ.
Heath, C. & Heath, D. (2007). Made to stick: Why some ideas survive and others die. New York: Random House.
Hunter, James C. (1998). The servant: a simple story about the true essence of leadership. New York: Crown Business.
Lennick D. & Kiel F. PhD (2007). Moral intelligence: Enhancing business performance & leadership success. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Wharton School Publishing.
Liker, J. (2004). Toyota Way. New York: McGraw Hill Professional.
McKenzie & Lee (2006). Microeconomics for MBA's: the economic way of thinking for managers. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Biblical Leadership & Ethics

Week five – Case Study:

The Leader as a Servant

1. In this careful demonstration of love (agape) to His disciples, why do you think Jesus chose to wash their feet instead of doing something else?

I believe that Jesus chose to wash his followers feet because it was something that could not be mistaken for just kindness. We can tell by Peters reaction that it was a job that is normally left for a slave of the house. To have this person who has been an incredible leader, and was thought to be the next King of Israel, do the lowest job they could think of was almost too much. They were probably confused and MacArthur says that they were probably embarrassed. I know when I am in an uncomfortable situation I can miss the point too, just like the disciples. Jesus was showing that leadership is not always the “power”, but sometimes the willingness to serve.

2. What does the example of love Jesus chose tell you about His perspective as a leader?

As Hunter pointed out in the book The Servant, Jesus was the greatest leader of all time. That is exemplified in how the world was permanently changed by Him and even to this day His influence (read Spirit) is changing people. Christ chose to be a servant leader. We are called to be like Christ in all that we do. It follows easily to say that we as believers, trying to emulate Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit should also practice servant leadership.

3. How does Jesus’ statement in verse 14 relate to the praxis principle? What outcome do you think Jesus was looking for from it?

This verse shows us that Jesus was very concerned about proper Hygiene. (sorry... I couldn't resist!)

Actually, Jesus knew that serving others was not a natural thing to do. It was important for these men to start practicing their service toward one another so that it would naturally progress to the people they would be leading in a few weeks, the first Church. By giving them the command to serve in this particularly lowly position, they truly learned to love through their actions. That is what the praxis principal is; acting in a particular way and the aligned feelings follow.

Jesus was preparing them to love and support one another. He knew that he would be dragged away and crucified in just a few hours. He also knew that when he was taken away the disciples would be scattered, and would need the support of each other in the next few days. This love would then transfer to how they served others in the carrying out of the Great Commission.

4. Looking at this brief episode as Jesus’ seminar on leading from authority, how would you organize and present its key concepts in contemporary terms to your own audience so they could understand them?

Training: (John 13:1-3~Jesus needed to prepare his followers to lead) Look for weakness and train to make them strengths. Make sure followers are prepared to take your place, cross train. Have a forward plan that includes “plan-b”.

Demonstrating: (John 13:4-8~Jesus showed his followers through action) Do what you expect your followers to do. Don't be hypocritical.

Defining: (John 13:9,10~Jesus makes a distinction between wants and needs) Clearly state what the objectives are, and make sure they are written down and understood by all.

Implementing: (John 13:12-14~Jesus made serving a policy for everyone) Ensure everyone within the organization is aware of the policy. Plainly state the expectation as well as the results of not meeting the expectations.

Exemplifying: (John 13:15-17~Jesus practiced the policy and told them “do as I do”) Carry our the policy visibly and make sure it is clearly in the center of everyones attention.

5. How does the “payoff” for leading from authority mentioned by Hunter in the final chapter of The Servant relate to the following verses?

Matt. 10:39, 16:25; Mark 8:35; Luke 9:24, 17:33; John 12:25

Generally speaking, when a key concept is presented in scripture, it is repeated or restated in keeping with its importance. The number of times this idea occurs suggests that this concept is one the Lord wants us to understand and practice during our time to serve Him here.

For believers, our payoff will be spending eternity with Christ. We are to use any and all skills of leadership not just to improve our ability to be successful in a work environment but to lead others to Christ. We can be leaders with authority and people will trust us, they will try to understand what makes us different. We must take advantage of that questioning. It is how seeds are planted and are cared for.

6. To sum up, if you begin to look for ways to establish authority and then lead from it in your present circumstances, what will that look like? How might it be different from the way you interact with others now?

Clearly the improvements would be seen in how people respond to me when I am in leadership roles. If I am able to establish the authority with people, they would trust that I not only say I have their best in mind but I actually do.

The things I will have to change are:

- Becoming better at analyzing needs vs. wants. Then to act accordingly with a good explanation of why the decision was made.

- Listening and removing my inner dialog to hear what the person is trying to communicate.

- Keeping my word. Do what I say I will do, when I say I will do it.

- Making sure that my goals and the company goals are clearly communicated.

- Be more Christ like!

Biblical Leadership & Ethics

References

Bansal, P. & Kandola, S. (March/April 2004). Corporate social responsibility: Why good people behave badly in organizations. Ivey Business Journal 68, (4). 1-5.

This article highlights the corporate accounting scandals at Enron and Arthur Anderson. Autopsy of these companies' scandal reveals organizational responsibility stems from individual irresponsibility and a culture of “bystander” syndrome. This is where immoral activities are accepted because nobody feels like it is their position to intervene, there is no clear process for responsibility or it is accepted within the company as the norm.

Berenbeim, R.E. (Sep. 2006). Ethical leadership: Maintain an ethical culture. Leadership Excellence 23, (9). 19-20.

Berenbeim speaks to the “Revised Sentencing Guidelines” as the standard for executives accountability and personal responsibility to ensure a companies culture is fostering ethical behavior. He uses Neru as an example to modern executives, highlighting three lessons on debate, sustainability and personal responsibility for decision making. Accountability is the standard for ensuring we all act according to ethical practices.

Buchanan, L. (May 2007). In praise of selflessness: Why the best leaders are servants. Executive Excellence 29, (5). 33-35.

This article gives a peak at the role that servant leadership has in a culture where skilled people are valued and are looking for a place where they can make a difference. Serving those around us will enable us to gain a new perspective and get better answers to the problems we face in our business lives. Three paradoxes are presented that go against traditional thinking but match up with scriptures.

Covey, S. (Dec. 2006). Servant leadership: Use your voice to serve others. Leadership Excellence 23, (12). 5-6.

This article bridges the gap between servant leadership and the idea from Moral Intelligence of the moral compass. Covey suggests that when we live and act according to the principals of “nature” (I will substitute God's Word). Our formal authority becomes more effective because people follow for the right reason; genuine commitment, not fear.

Chimaera Consulting (n.d.). Famous models: Situational leadership. Retrieved January 31, 2008 from: http://www.chimaeraconsulting.com/sitleader.htm

This site give an overview of the Situational Leadership model and explains the leaders side of the model. It helps identify where leaders can improve the interaction with employees to achieve the desired result.

Crainer, S. (Winter2003). Succeeding with values. Business Strategy Review 14, (4). 3-4.

This interview with Randall Tobias, gives real examples of what a CEO must do. They are truly charged with communicating the company vision and ensuring that each person is marching in the same direction. He states that only ethical leaders are truly successful.

Gdich. (2007, August 16) Situational leadership training [video file]. Video posted to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYyDWP2-ywE

Introduction to an ASME training session on particular style of leadership.

Hersey, Paul. Interview. Situational leadership: Conversations with Paul Hersey. By John R. Schermerhorn, Jr. Center for Leadership Studies, 2001.

Interview with one of the founders of the “situational leadership” model. Hersey developed the approach while trying to train technical staff to take the next step and become productive leaders. He realized that there was no “golden” strategy to being a good manager, but instead each situation needed a specific skill to be used. By employing the correct skill for the problem anyone could become a successful manager.

Hunter, James C. (1998). The servant: a simple story about the true essence of leadership. New York: Crown Business.

This book gives insightful, provoking thought on what it is to be a servant leader. It gives the ideology needed to understand what is truly behind our own psychological perspective on leadership that has be erroneously created from external influences. It also helps us understand how others view the world and give us ways to deal with differences in perspective.

Lennick D. & Kiel F. PhD (2007). Moral intelligence: Enhancing business performance & leadership success. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Wharton School Publishing.

This book was written to help leaders understand that a strong ethical standard is necessary when dealing in business when long tern success is desired. The authors point out that it is important to work on the ethical portion of our belief system to ensure that it does not suffer from neglect. The book also included the Moral Competency Inventory (MCI) that enable the test taker to evaluate the personal areas of strength and weakness. All choices/decisions must pass through an ethical filter to ensure we do not violate our Moral Compass.

Lovin, R. (2006). Faithful and effective. Christian Century, 123(12), 33.

Levin uses headlines from recent days to show that all Americans seem to be pulled by the measurement of effectiveness. Often times, the measure is place much higher than we are capable and some turn to deceit to close the gap. As believers we must focus on being faithful to Christ and that is how we may be truly effective in our calling on earth.

Murphy, P.E. & Enderle, G. (1995). Managerial ethical leadership: Examples do matter. Business Ethics Quarterly 1, (5). 117-121.

A biographical description of how the former CEO of Johnson & Johnson, James Burke handled the transition of power and the deadly crisis of poisoned Tylenol, twice. He was a man of ethics and made it a priority form his first day in his leading role. The article also highlights 3 other CEO's who showed superior ethical behavior.

New American Standard Bible, Updated edition. La Habra, Ca: The Lockman Foundation, 1995.

Nehemiah is an incredible book that demonstrates the plan of God carried out through one man. Nehemiah was able to get direction from God and make a plan to accomplish his task in a very short time. He meticulously planned the entire task and made sure all his bases were covered so that he could focus on the difficult issues that came up during the project.

Patten, R.M. (Sept./Oct. 2004). From implicit to explicit: Putting corporate values and personal accountability front and centre. Ivey Business Journal 69, (1). 1-4.

Article written by an executive within a large Canadian bank describing what their institution had done to prevent corporate scandal and induce a culture that truly cultivates ethical behavior. They have made and declared the code of conduct that each employee must act according to. They also use the results of company wide surveys to identify what topics of ethical behavior should be concentrated on. We need to place the ethics of our organization on the front burner so problems are prevented.

Rhode, D.L. (Jan. 2007). Moral leadership: Inspire ethical behavior. Leadership Excellence 24, (1).

Ethical Leadership does effect the financial position of companies although it is hard to measure. Many ways to ensure company wide ethical standards were discussed but it was noted that unless leaders show ethical behavior the culture will be lacking in ethical actions on all levels. Leaders have many opportunities to show their commitment to ethics if they only look.

Rowe, R. (Feb. 2003). Leaders as servants. Management 50, (1).

This short article reviews the 10 characteristics of a servant leader as defined by Greenleaf, a leader in the servant leadership movement. It was interesting to note the similarities as well as differences when compared with the I Corinthians 13 definition of Love, agape love. The article does little more than state the characteristics and present the servant leadership model as worthy of consideration.

Tonge, A., Greer, L. & Lawton, A. (2003). The Enron story: You can fool some of the people some of the time… Business Ethics: A European Review 12, (1).

This article give an overview of the Enron scandal. It raises the question that many parties share responsibility for the downfall. Ultimately it was the greed of leaders that brought them to their knees but analysts, banks and their auditors added to the unethical practices. The entire Enron problem has opened the books of our entire economic system to prevent such failure in the future.

Wheatley, M. (Jul. 2004). Servant Leaders: What has to change now? Executive Excellence 21, (7).

This article gives seven keys to servant leadership. The author seems very humanistic in her approach to servant leadership, but makes a few good points about the benefits of relationships. Wheatley gives some examples of forgiveness and restoration of things lost that support her views on the humanistic side of this leadership methodology.

Zandy, A. (July/Aug. 2007). If you want to lead…learn to serve. Debt 22, (4). 24-25.

This article gives practical examples of how to create a culture of servant leadership. Zandy points out that that the idea was based on Christian ideals but many other religions have used the same idea to show the power of becoming a servant.

Biblical Leadership & Ethics

Week Four – Case Study:

Nehemiah: God's Project Manager

1. As Nehemiah became aware of what God was calling him to do, what sequence of actions did he take before finally receiving authorization and committing to go? Would this approach still be appropriate today?

Nehemiah's first action was to pray and seek what action God wanted him to take. He was able to carefully prepare his plan. It was a fully planned action that he wanted to take and was able to develop all the details that he would need to accomplish the task. He estimated how long his task would take and what supplies he would need to complete the job. By asking the King for letters of approval to accommodate each leg of his journey, the building project, and finally the ongoing needs of the city.

Today this approach would still seem to be appropriate. It is to everyones benefit if the plan is well thought out and planned in a way that identifies where possible problems may arise and have the action ready when difficult circumstances are presented. I tend to be a planner by nature and have recently been forced into acting before the plan is laid. It has helped me to improvise on the go, but it has not been easy or comfortable for my employees to follow that kind of leadership.

2. When Nehemiah had assessed the task God called him to undertake, how did he exercise exceptional leadership in enlisting support and motivating his followers?

One of the keys to the successful completion of the plan was enlisting the support of the highest possible authority. This guy (the king) had power and by his reaction to Nehemiah, some authority as well. It was important that the King was on his side from the beginning. Once Nehemiah was on the way and gathering his countrymen, he was continually reminding them of truth that God had promised them. This was the place of His dwelling and the land he had promised to the Israelites many years before. Although the encouragement helped, it was also the input that he solicited form the people and getting their “buy-in”. Then he was able to delegate the project to the people who would do the work and gave personal responsibility that mattered to each one. It is interesting to note that many of the people who were working on rebuilding a section of wall were building the section that protected their personal home. Not only were they rebuilding the city but they were also fulfilling the psychological need for security.

3. Much of what can be taken from the record of Nehemiah’s actions is implied and not directly stated. From the way he organized this project, what can you infer about his ability to balance the dynamics of task and relationship with his followers? Use specific examples.

He was trying to accomplish a task, rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem. To do this required a lot of planning and the participation of many people. He got them personally involved by reminding them who they were as a nation, reinforcing the promises they had received through their fathers from God, and getting them to contribute to the well being of their families by fixing the wall nearest their homes. I think all three of these contributed to the personal involvement of each person and their willingness to sacrifice for the persecuted nation whom God loved.

4. Based on the actions he took when he learned that external enemies planned to disrupt his project and harm his workers, what needs did Nehemiah meet for them that enabled them to stay on task? What steps did he take to meet them?

Safety during the building project was always an issue. They were in a land occupied by other nations that were desperately trying to keep them down. These are the same people God had earlier defeated when he gave the Israelites their promised inheritance. Now because of sin, God had allowed them to dominate their nation and even taken them into captivity. When Nehemiah heard of the plan to attack the workers, he did two things correctly. First, he told each person that the risk of attack was present, which was probably not a great way to encourage a people who are working at an incredible pace to keep the tight schedule. Although it was uncomfortable for Nehemiah to tell them the opposite of what they wanted to hear, he was able to establish trust that he was looking out for the workers. Then, he informed them of the plan to mitigate the severity of the attack. Posting guards and having each man work with a weapon handy in case of attack, enabled that fear to be reduced. They had a plan and were ready for anything but they also knew that God was ensuring the success of the project.

5. In the course of obeying God’s calling and completing the task he was charged with, Nehemiah received delegated power from the king. How did he go about establishing the authority he needed to be a credible leader?

Once he had rebuilt the wall the next task was to reestablish the temple and the city in general. He served 150 men at his table and went through incredible amounts of food. It is noted that Nehemiah was serving these people from his own pocket and on top of that he did not even collect the “taxes” he was authorized to take. His entire focus was on ensuring the people who would be left to run the city were prepared. He preached many sermons to expose some of the problems the rulers had fallen into and God turned their hearts to actually do the right things. They stopped forcing those who were in debt to sell their property or their families into slavery. All of Nehemiah's actions showed that he was more concerned about the people and God's promise being fulfilled than his own personal gratification.

6. When immoral and unethical behavior threatened to destroy the project from within, how did Nehemiah resolve the crisis? What different roles did his power and authority play?

While the building project was still ongoing the leaders of the city were forcing the builders to continue paying “usury”. These were the same builders who were making the sacrifice of their time and willingly putting themselves at risk of death for the safety of the rest of the city. God used the words of Nehemiah to soften and change the hard hearts of the unreasonable nobles. They turned from the unethical ways and became supporters of the cause. That is where he was able to use the authority gained earlier to change the thinking of these people. Then he exercised his power by forcing them to commit to the change of heart; he made them swear before God that they would then support them. If he had not forced the oath, it is likely that the leaders and nobles would return to the unethical policy in a short while.

7. When the building project was complete, what steps did Nehemiah take that demonstrated his concern for the sustainability of the rebuilt city? The sustainability of the temple and the priesthood?

Sustainability was obviously important to Nehemiah because every action that he made was in support of the people and the processes God required for Israel to continue. He set up the food and supply chain for the Priests and the others who served in the Temple. He allowed the people to keep more of their wealth by not collecting the taxes that he could rightfully collect. He gave incentives to entice people back to the city to ensure that the infrastructure would be cared for. All these actions were for the people, but they were directed by God. He was the master planner but Nehemiah was ready to listen, serve and carry out the His will.

Biblical Leadership & Ethics

1. Develop 4 scenarios involving completely different work environments that would be appropriate for a D1, D2, D3 and D4 employee. Briefly describe each employee, giving them a personality, behaviors, attitudes and relevant skills consistent with their type. Once you have developed each employee, provide them with a leader whose style is appropriately suited for them, and describe the leader in the same ways. If you prefer, some of your leader/follower scenarios may be built on parent/ child or teacher/student relationships.

D1: Don has just been hired as a department manager for a small company. His prior occupation was pastor of a small church, where he used almost none of the technical skills needed in this manufacturing environment. He was quiet, and non-confrontational especially relating to any technical subject; he always second guessed himself. Fortunately, his boss has made sure that all the instructions for accomplishing the day to day tasks are current and up-to-date. After going through the full list of tasks ahead for that day, he instructs Don to read the instructions carefully and ask any questions that he may have. Together, they go through the instructions for the first set of tasks and Don is able to get clarification for each point that seems ambiguous. His boss reminds Don where he can be found and that if at any point he needs clarification, just ask additional questions until it is clearly understood.

D2: James has been working as a CAD drafter for four and a half years. He is older than most of the people he works with. He is happy to be assigned tasks that are the same from day to day with little variation. When he is asked to work outside his comfort zone, he shuts down, gets grumpy, and irritable. He knows quite well how to work within the drafting software, but lacks the mechanical aptitude to understand complex behavior of non-standard mechanisms. His manager needs him to complete some work that is more difficult than what James is used to, but he is the only one available to complete the task before the due date. Knowing that James may need additional help with a particular piece of the task, his manager takes additional time to tell him that he is capable and gives some general direction on how to accomplish the specific troublesome task. His boss then tells James that when he gets to that piece he would like to come back and see how he is progressing and offer any needed assistance.

D3: Kenneth is a clerk in a deli at the local supermarket. He has worked there for six years and is the now the senior worker. The only one in the department with more experience is the manager. He is confident and loves his job. He is very personable, and loves to help people. As a great planner, he has been supervising the night shift very successfully for the last 2 years. Kenneth's boss just got Jury Duty for the next 10 days and will only be able to be there over the weekend. Mr Jury Duty has seen Kenneth train all the current employees to do every part of their jobs. Kenneth is a great teacher because he is able to explain the how and why of each function. To assure Kenneth that things would run smoothly, he gave a few words of encouragement and leaves a checklist of the major things that must be done that Kenneth is not usually responsible for. The he leaves with one last word of confidence.

D4: Ben has worked as an auditor for 23 years. He doesn't want anything more than the job he started at, Auditor 1. It is comfortable, it pays the bills and there is virtually no stress. In fact, he can almost do his job while sleeping, but tries hard not to prove that. His superior is a 21 year old kid just out of college, who is officially an Auditor 2. He was only an Auditor 1 for three months before he was promoted because he was a ladder climber and had high aspirations. Both of them understood the circumstances and dealt with each other as such. Ben was assigned an audit, then did all that needed to be done. As for his “boss”, he used the work review time as an opportunity to gain understanding and experience that this 23 year veteran exuded.

2. Looking at any one of the 4 scenarios you developed, explain why the leader/follower pairing is appropriate given the circumstances, and anticipate what direction the leader will try to move the follower given the fact that their relationship is successful.

Kenneth (D3) had a boss that knew he was more than capable to do the job that needed to be done. He was also perceptive enough to know that Kenneth may be uncertain of his ability to make sure all the tasks get completed. So he left a tool, the checklist, to ease Kenneth's mind and give Kenneth the assurance that all was being cared for, that nothing was being forgotten. Kenneth's department manager was training him to be able to take over his job.

3. In this same situation, explain what step the leader might appropriately take toward restoration if the follower's performance declines.

If declining performance is noticed during the weekend return of Mr. Jury Duty, he will be able to assess whether additional tools should be left or if other, more detailed instruction could be put in place for the next five day absence. He should be able to encourage Kenneth in the specific area of need. Then give some specific pointers on how he has done things that has mitigated the problems currently faced by Kenneth.

4. Discuss how application of Situational Leadership is meant to be generative and redemptive in its design as opposed to static or maintenance-oriented.

I believe that the whole premise for this style of leadership is that for every situation you must independently asses the need and react with the appropriate style. As people change and grow they may move into different categories and need to be managed with respect to the new situation. The originators describe the model as a way in which to analyze the situation and react in a predictable manner to ensure the best possible outcome.

5. Finally, looking at Situational Leadership in your own work/life context, can you see examples where leader/follower styles are in conflict? Describe one briefly, and how you might counsel the leader to modify their style to help resolve conflict issues.

Yesterday, I saw a great example of conflict where the owner of my place of employment walked by a group of engineers who were in the middle of a design review for manufacturability. The owner did not know what the meeting was for but immediately jumped into the discussion and laid out the plan on the best way to make the part. Unfortunately, his taking charge got the entire group off track of the goal, and caused some resentment and frustration with the person who was leading the meeting. I had a conversation with the group later in the day and they all respect the opinions of the owner and desire his input, but by jumping in and taking over meeting they were reduced to feeling worthless. After all, we hired these engineers to do the design work. By giving such a detailed plan (which was opposite the direction the group was moving) it made them all feel as if he thought they were stupid.

The counsel I would give to the owner is that we all appreciate the input and desire him to be part of the process, but he needs to present his ideas and allow them to fuel the brainstorming of the entire group. I have given this advice and it must not be the correct advice for this situation, because he has not changed. But... it is his company, he can do what he wants. It just will not be as successful as it could be.

Biblical Leadership & Ethics

1. The founding partners of KRW claimed to be strong on integrity and responsibility to their clients. How were those values aligned with their organizational actions?

In the beginning their actions were not aligned. Some of the misalignment may have been related to the relatively new business. Their ideals were possibly untested and they had not thought through the process of ‘what to do if …’ What was clear from the story is that the first reaction to a stressful and new situation was not the most moral response. They were thinking only of themselves and not what those choices would do to others. If they had been honest with themselves they may have looked at the goals of their business and realized that they were very selfish. That may be acceptable if there is only one or two people in the company. As they grew, their goals or attitude of “let’s have fun and make money” did not grow with them.

2. How did KRW owners handle organizational responsibility during their first financial crisis?

The owners of the company were thinking of their goal; to “have fun and make money”. Unfortunately, they acted as if that were their only responsibility when the first real financial crisis was upon them. In their minds the objective of their business was at stake so they went to the first solution that may have alleviated their soon expected failure to meet their goal. They laid off most of their workforce. Their decision was shortsighted and not fully founded. They gave severance packages to the workforce and in some cases, had hired them back before they had even burned through the severance money. That says to me that those workers were paid to sit at home under pretty stressful circumstances. KRW could have done much better to have continued to employ those workers but refocused them on building the business. They would have gotten something for the money paid out and improved their business at the same time. But hindsight is 20/20.

3. What action finally triggered a fundamental realignment of KRW’s priorities? Was it proactive or reactive?

After, once again, pushing their staff beyond breaking point, one of the managers laid down the law. In essence, the staff declared, 'we are valuable assets and you must treat us as such. We will continue to work hard for you if you will exhibit the values you strive to teach; having integrity and doing the right thing.'

The change was simply reactive. The owners did not objectively look at the organization to evaluate how to improve the labor problems, so when it came to a head they had no alternative than to change into what the employees were asking for. After all, it was not outrageous things being demanded. If they were to put the same goal to the company as a whole, it would have been a much easier realization to see that unmeetable expectations and overburden do not equate with “having fun and making money”. If they had looked at the company in this way, they may have seen the problem and corrected it in a proactive manner.

4. What role did KRW owner/partners play in re-articulating organizational values?

According to the article it was the employees who grabbed onto the rudder and started to steer in a new direction. They seemed to be able to clearly articulate what their individual goals were. When the individual goals were evaluated together they seem to meld into one new mantra: “do the right thing”. It appears the company knew the theories and was able to teach them, but putting them to practice in a business model was outside their ability.

5. How did KRW owners handle organizational responsibility during their second financial crisis? What had changed?

During the second financial crisis they were able to make better choices. Some of this likely was the experience they had gained; they did not want to make the same mistakes. But also, the culture had changed. It was no longer an institution focused on profit of owners only, but the wellbeing of the entire company. Owners/executives even sacrificed their own money to make sure those who had truly shaped the organization were able to remain employed for as long as possible. Times were tough but loyalty was very high. In part because they were able to make a difference, but also because the owners were now living what they sought to teach and were looked up to.

6. In the end, how well did KRW leadership come to embrace their responsibility to serve others?

Once the cultural change took place it appears that the leadership was able to see the results of behaving according to the ethical compass. Although the change was lead by staff, it was adopted throughout the rank and file. Each person in the organization was able to see the value that the company had for society and see their dreams coming true; “make the world a better place”. Leaders were so effected by the changes they made personal sacrifice for those who worked for them.

7. In this case, how would you assess the impact of moral realignment on organizational long-term viability?

Moral realignment was essential for them to continue doing business. The “train wreck” really happened while they were experiencing a time of growth and success. They did not have any mechanisms in place to deal with the reality of growth. They needed more work done, but did not have the skills or trained resources to do it. The first ditch solution: put more pressure on the good workers you have to become more productive. When stress is high and a multitude of tasks are ahead you can rarely work efficiently without some accountability and prioritization. In this case the owners were called on the carpet to be accountable to the actions of not giving proper resources for the work at hand.

8. How might this scenario have played out differently if KRW leadership had acted in alignment with positive established principles and values from the beginning? What would you have done?

KRW ended up as a good organization which valued the people and customers they worked with. If they had started off on that road, they may have arrived sooner. Instead of wasting money and time during the first financial crisis, they may have been able to focus on internal processes that would ensure smooth growth and a full declaration of goals, values and missions. With the direction declared each employee would have been able to make each choice in harmony with the company. Maybe they would have had a plan in place to implement if another financial crisis were to present itself. Then in 2001, they would have enacted the plan and made the modifications needed to ensure their success.

If I were at the helm, I may have made some of the same mistakes. Ethics being the center of focus for now, I would like to say that being selfish and ignoring the impact of my decisions on others would not be one of them. It is truly hard to say what I would have done, I have one advantage over them, I see the entire story knowing how it ends. How wonderful would life be if we knew the outcome of each decision? Fortunately, we do know the end of one story: Christ wins and we spend eternity with Him!

Biblical Leadership & Ethics

Week One – Case Study:

Johnson & Johnson CEO,

James Burke

1)What actions did Burke take upon assuming direction of J & J that helped affirm and develop the existing moral climate?

As one of the first noted point of business after he was named CEO of Johnson & Johnson, Burke called the leaders of the company together to discuss the validity of their Credo (Murphy & Enderle, 1995). Simply because it was one of the first things he set out to do showed that it was important to him. It also demonstrated to the rest of the organization that he meant to do business by the “rules”. Not just any rules, but the Credo which was set in place by his predecessors. It showed his loyalty and that he was interested in making sure it was still viable. Have things changed since the original draft? Where there additions that should be inserted? Was it still the basis for how they ought to behave organizationally? Apparently there were things that needed improvement because it was modified slightly.

By placing the Credo into the corporate eye and elevating it's content, Burke was able to give everyone within the company a standard with witch to measure themselves. Weather it is how they interact with customers, vendors or coworkers they had universally understood guidelines. Before they spoke or made action they were enabled to discern weather it was the right thing to do. When we all have the same guidelines we can be sure we are working with one another an not against, ensuring progress toward becoming a better organization.

2) When the first Tylenol poisoning incident occurred, how did Burke's responses directly reflect specific declarations in J & J's Credo?

Burke's response to the first poisoning was a direct reflection of the first three lines of their Credo:

We believe our first responsibility is to the doctors, nurses and patients,
to mothers and fathers and all others who use our products and services.
In meeting their needs everything we do must be of high quality.

Burke was stating with the companies actions that the customers who use the product were first in priority. The company pulled 31 million bottles of Tylenol from store shelves, even though it is likely that most were not tampered with, because they did not want to chance any further mortality from low quality (Murphy & Enderle, 1995).

Burke was leading by example. Although the mistake was not directly their fault, they accepted responsibility because they did not do enough to prevent the tampering. Near the end of the Credo they state their willingness to ensure mistakes are paid for. Rhode (2007) describes how this is one of the most important aspects of leadership, leading by example. We was willing to lead in this case by putting the public before the business. The huge cost of the recall may have seemed like a loss, but in the long term everyone benefited. The drug industry made improvements to packaging, Johnson & Johnson was seen as a company who cared and Tylenol is still used and accepted by consumers today.

3) What proactive steps did J & J undertake to ensure against future repetition of the criminal incident?

The first time the medicine was poisoned, Johnson & Johnson went after the root cause. Once it was discovered that the poisoning was post manufacturing they set up press conferences to alert the media to avoid any further problems. They organized the removal of product from shelves to assure consumers the problem was being solved. Next they worked with government agencies to improve the packaging so that it was tamper proof (Murphy & Enderle, 1995).

Then it happened again. They were already working diligently to prevent tampering and did not have any further ways they could ensure the safety of the consumers. So, in 1986 they removed product from the stores altogether. This must have been a challenging decision to make since Tylenol was one of the main brands for the company and was a major contributor to the success of Johnson and Johnson, with Burke at the helm (Murphy & Enderle, 1995).

4) When Burke permanently withdrew Tylenol capsules from the market after the second poisoning incidents, what message was he sending to both the public and his own internal clients?

By permanently removing the product from the shelf he was again saying that the consumer and truly the view of Johnson & Johnson products must be preserved. He desired that the customer be safe and would hold a high view of the companies products. Since the product was once again tainted, that product must be removed. Its removal showed the public that Johnson & Johnson had taken the initiative. This was also good marketing. Taking the product out of the limelight, gives meaning to the saying “out of sight; out of mind.” The customers apprehension was removed completely until the perceived risk was gone. For example, I can go to the store and purchase Extra Strength Tylenol right now, without even the slightest hesitation, in fact I have some in my kitchen drawer.

The internal customers (his management and employees) were able to be proud of their work because Johnson & Johnson did the right thing. They could rest assured that in the little things their employer would do what was best for themselves, not just what looked best on the bottom line. In many places of employment the idea that employees are being taken advantage of is rampant. I sincerely hope that this idea is only spread because employers are poor communicators or are having trouble in an area of policy; not actually trying to take advantage of the ones who do the work, who make the organization what it is.

5) What conditions had to exist to allow Burke to exercise the kind of decision power he exercised?

Burke must have been in a situation where his team asked the hard questions. The management team looked at the situation and undoubtedly had debate over what to do. There may have been some who wanted to take the same stand as the FBI stating that a full recall was not necessary. But through skillful debate, problem solving and a moral compass Johnson & Johnson was able to make that choice. It is unlikely that he made the decision alone, but because they had their Credo written and it was part of the culture, he could have made the same decision on his own. This points out the power of the moral compass and the benefit of having the alignment model visible and easily accessible as seen in Moral Intelligence (Lennick & Kiel, 2007).

6) After the incidents and Burke's reactions, how do you think the public saw Burke? Johnson & Johnson?

The public was stunned that there had been two different incidents of poisoning. Seeing that Burke was willing to completely remove a product from the shelf gave confidence that he cared for consumers. Even beyond the profit of his company.

The public was in disbelief that Johnson & Johnson was dealing with this issue again. Since this company did not know how to solve the tampering problem, they were loosing stock value, and consumer confidence. Then Johnson & Johnson pulled the product. I think the public would have been comforted that Johnson & Johnson were looking out for them. The removal of the product fueled questions from the public. But what about these other over the counter medications? Don't they have the same problem? What are they doing to ensure my safety? How are they going to prevent me or my family form being the next victim? They turned this truly tragic moment into a scenario where the Public now only trusted them. Brilliant marketing based on ethical principals.

7) Evaluate Burke's performance throughout his tenure as CEO in terms of moral and emotional competence. How did his actions demonstrate alignment with his moral compass? Finally, how did Burke help J & J take steps toward becoming a morally intelligent organization?

During Burke's employment as CEO of Johnson & Johnson, he acted according to his personal ethical standard. He was fortunate to align himself with a company that shared those standards. His moral competence was, from what I know, superb. Every situation was met with a decision that was gaged carefully by the companies Credo and his personal ethics. As far as his emotional competence, he seemed to be a talented reader of others. He directed the Credo to be reestablished getting input of others on his management team. He correctly predicted the reaction of the public and was able to use that emotional information to make wise business decisions. He was in all actions aligned with his moral compass.

Burke took the lead and demonstrated that morality was one of his critical drivers. It was not just something spoken about, but displayed in every action, and it worked. It worked for Burke because he was continually promoted, and respected. It worked for Johnson & Johnson because they were able to come through several crisis situations and become stronger through them. It worked for society because now medication has many warning labels and anti-tampering protection for consumers. Although ethical leadership may be uncomfortable at times, it is the better choice in the long run.

Lennick D. & Kiel F. PhD (2007). Moral intelligence: Enhancing business performance & leadership success. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Wharton School Publishing.

Murphy, P.E. & Enderle, G. (1995). Managerial ethical leadership: Examples do matter. Business Ethics Quarterly 1, (5). 117-121.

Rhode, D.L. (Jan. 2007). Moral leadership: Inspire ethical behavior. Leadership Excellence 24, (1).