Bible MBASample

Do Not Run Your Company Like a Slave Camp 

Remember: the duller the ax the harder the work. Ecclesiastes 10:10 MSG 

To get the best out of an ax, you have to sharpen it. Similarly, to get the best out of people, you have to train them and give them the tools that they need to do the job. When you do not give people the tools and training they need and expect them to deliver results, that's not a company you are running, it's a slave camp. This was the approach the Egyptians took with the Israelites when they increased their quota of bricks to deliver while not giving them straw. (Exodus 5:7-8) 

Importantly, unlike an ax, which we sharpen only because we want to use, or a slave camp where the only interest is the output, we train people not merely so we can use them. In fact, you should seriously search your heart to be sure that you don't view people as expendable resources, only to be used. 

People are not to be used, they are to be nurtured: the ultimate goal of the Christian employer should be to help his staff realize their full potential as human beings even as they help to drive the business to its full potential. The ideal scenario is for both the staff and the business to grow; anything else is not sustainable. 

What this means is that you must resist the temptation, for instance, to only train a cleaner to improve in their ability to clean. Do not yield to that temptation. Instead, be willing to offer staff every opportunity they are willing to earn and embrace to be all they can be. It should be the case that someone who started off in your company as a cleaner can, if they apply themselves, become the CEO someday. 

A key part of the training you should give serious thought to is on-the-job mentoring. Not only is this a great way to pass on your skills to staff, but it also offers great opportunities for the type of one-on-one interaction that allows your faith life to shine through and rub off on the staff involved. It is the type of scenario that allows you to “let your light so shine, that they may see and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”