Enjoy listening to Guest Mark A. Griffin discuss the rerelease of his book, How to Build “Kingdom-Minded” Organizations in Spanish with host Charlotte Cosden live at studio headquarters.
WVCH is a Blessing – Serving Greater Philadelphia and The Delaware Valley Christian Listeners for over 50 years!
Tune in and listen to WVCH’s weekly radio show “Be The Guest,” hosted by Charlotte Cosden. In May 2012 How to Build “Kingdom-Minded” Organizations by Mark A. Griffin was published, and its success was significant that organizations across the US and UK now use it as a guide not just within leadership teams but also boards of directors.
Six years after its first publication, in response to popular demand, How to Build “Kingdom-Minded” Organizations has now been translated into Spanish. Guest Mark A. Griffin, Chief Consultant at In HIS Name HR shared his experiences in helping shape organizations to be Christ centered and profitable.
With over 20 years of Human Resources experience at both fortune (Kodak, Quaker Oats, and Merck) as well as small and mid-sized companies, Mark has seen it all.
This blog post is out of the ordinary. We are human resource experts not marketing or social media experts by any means. We have been asked way too many times and have had to explain in painstaking detail the same question:
How did In HIS Name HR climb to the top slot in Google’s search response to the query for “Christian Human Resources”
Having been peppered with this question from a wide array of sources, we decided to answer it here, and share our methodology.
Social media can be confusing to many people, but in reality it is very simple. Social media programs are nothing more than tools that allow like-minded people to communicate. What is critical to remember is that not all people use all programs. Therefore, to reach a large and diverse group of people, you need to reach them where they are, instead of hoping they’ll somehow stumble across you.
Many people make the mistake of only using Facebook, or Twitter, when they attempt to market their voice to the world. But what about all those people who use other social media programs instead, those who are not on Facebook or Twitter? If you rely only on those two platforms, you are essentially missing out on millions of potential people who won’t hear your message.
What you want to do is essentially send your same message out through all the various social media programs. However, you will need to tailor the way in which your message is sent out to accommodate the differing requirements or constraints of each social media platform.
To start, make sure what you present fits your voice—that is, how you want people to perceive you and your services. It is a combination of your mission, vision and values. Your voice can also be defined as a “niche” that you are working to create for your organization.
In just 6 short years we have been able to develop a strong social media audience.
Unfortunately today’s churches are empty. More than any other time in history your employees are spending an increased amount of time commuting to and from work, working in their workplaces, working in the evenings and on the weekends, disengaged from their families and communities. These increased hours have resulted in employees spending more waking hours at work than they are spending time at home with their families, with friends or volunteering in their communities. Because of this, we have an opportunity and a mission; a mission to reach those who need saved. This is America’s untapped harvest, a field of opportunity. And as God proclaims, we need more workers into his fields.
Matthew 9: 35-38 says, “ Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
According to Pew’s 2014 Religious Landscape Survey, those who say they go to church or another house of worship at least once a week fell from 39 percent in 2007 to 35 percent in 2014. This number is probably misleading because many people may have embellished their attendance a bit out of a sense of guilt or obligation! However, assuming it is accurate that would leave a whopping 65% of U.S. residents not attending any religious services each week. This is a concern, because it clearly proves that, statistically speaking, your employees are probably not spiritually grounded.
That is where Christian business owners and executives should step in to help God fill the void.
As a human resources professional with 20 years of experience in both public and private companies, I can tell you from firsthand experience that the lack of faith in our workplace affects every aspect of the workplace. Employees’ lack of time to focus on their own spiritual needs will undoubtedly affect productivity, quality and safety. Harder to measure but just as important, it affects their and their coworker’s morale. Employees lacking in faith will bring far more problems to the workplace than those who are Christ followers. What most companies need are solid christian ethics in the workplace. Having biblical ethics and principles built into all you do from an HR perspective will make you stand out, in a very positive way. Most consumers want to do buiness with companies that they know have christian ethics in the workplace.
Therefore, those of us that are hesitant to embrace Christianity in the workplace must really look at it not only from a spiritual perspective, but from a business perspective as well. Far from being self-serving, this shows the attitude of a responsible business owner, attempting to prosper their business for the financial security and future of their employees and employees’ families. Ans as an owner, sometimes you might feel like your the only christian in the workplace. Often times these feelings are not necessarily accurate. They are real feelings, but we find many organizations have faithful Christians working along each other, they just are not aware of it because of the fear of talking about faith at work. We are not in the business of creating “religious companies”, on the contrary we are in the business of helping to create “Kingdom Minded Companies”. There is a big difference.
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In His Name HR helps organizations build high performance Human Resources programs. Visit them at In HIS Name HR or e-mail them here.
Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.
MARK A. GRIFFIN is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Follow him on Facebook at InHISNameHR or Twitter @InHISNameHR. In His Name HR helps organizations build HR programs based on MVV. Contact them for more information at (InHISNameHR.com) or e-mail them at HR@InHISNameHR.com.
CLA Dallas 2017: Clarify your organization’s leadership strength by attending Mark Griffin’s CLA Conference workshop “Managing Employees to Success.” April 4–6, 2017.
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In His Name HR helps organizations build high performance Human Resources programs. Visit them at In HIS Name HR or e-mail them here.
Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.
This month we are celebrating our 4 year publication anniversary. In How To Build “ Kingdom-Minded” Organizations, author, speaker and accomplished HR consultant Mark A. Griffin gives Christian leaders encouragement in building values-led organizations during these difficult economic times.
Most importunately Mark shows you how to make it happen. Using a model he developed through years of organizational development experiences, Mark demonstrates how to integrate your Mission, Vision and Values into all of your HR practices. This ensures your Christ centered culture is integrated into your organization and maintained into the future.
With over 20 years of Human Resources experience at both fortune (Kodak, Quaker Oats Company, and Merck Pharmaceutical) as well as small and mid-sized companies, Mark has seen it all. Enjoy reading Mark’s thoughts on how you might best build “Kingdom Minded” Organizations in today’s “politically correct” business world.
Let Mark inspire you to be bold and brave in your faith, by ensuring Christ is in your workplace.
About The Author
Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In HIS Name HR LLC, a human resources outsourcing and career coaching firm created to help companies pilot the complex issues of managing HR.
As a human resources professional with 20-plus years of experience in both public (Quaker Oats Company, Kodak Inc., Merck Inc.) and private companies (Woolrich, Conestoga Wood Specialties, Valco Companies Inc.), Mark is passionate about building high performance workplaces through utilizing best practices while leading companies with strong values.
While serving in the United States Air Force, Mark received his Bachelor of Science degree in Human Resources Administration from Saint Leo University. He earned his MBA from Bloomsburg University while interning for Congressmen Kanjorski as a Military Liaison during the first Gulf War. Mark has completed several executive education programs at the University of Michigan and is a certified practitioner of the Myers Briggs Type Instrument MBTI®.
Mark and his wife, Gail, have two adult children, and will celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary June 2016. They attend LCBC Church. Mark has traveled the world coaching leaders on “Business as Mission” in Eastern Europe, India, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Speaker and accomplished HR consultant, Mark A. Griffin gives Christian leaders encouragement in building values-led organizations during these difficult economic times.
Contact: Mark A. Griffin, In HIS Name HR LLC, 717-572-2183, MGriffin@InHISNameHR.com
MARK A. GRIFFIN is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Follow him on Facebook at InHISNameHR or Twitter @InHIS-NameHR. In His Name HR helps organizations build HR programs based on MVV. Contact them for more information at (InHISNameHR.com) or e-mail them at MGriffin@InHISNameHR.com.
CLA Dallas 2014: Clarify your organization’s Mission, Vision, and Values by attending Mark Griffin’s CLA Conference workshop Building a Kingdom-Minded Organization.” April 14–16.
Enjoy listening to Guest Mark A. Griffin and host Charlotte Cosden dialogue about the launch of Mark’s newly released book.
WVCH is a Blessing – Serving Greater Philadelphia and The Delaware Valley Christian Listeners for over 50 years!
Enjoy listening to this recorded version of WVCH’s weekly radio show “Be The Guest,” hosted by Charlotte Cosden. The topic is “How To Build A Kingdom-Minded Organization”. Guest Mark A. Griffin, Chief Consultant at In HIS Name HR shared his experiences in helping shape organizations to be Christ centered and profitable!
With over 20 years of Human Resources experience at both fortune (Kodak, Quaker Oats, and Merck Pharma) as well as small and mid-sized companies, Mark has seen it all.
Tune into this Podcast and enjoy Mark’s discussion with Charlotte on how you might best build “Kingdom Minded” organizations in today’s “politically correct” business world. Let Mark inspire you to be bold and brave in your faith, by ensuring Christ is in your workplace.
Good News for Tumultuous Business Times- Radio Series Launched to Inspire Christian Business Owners
Contact: Keith Wilson, Praise His Name, 740.264.4604; Mark A.Griffin, In HIS Name HR LLC, 717.572.2183.
Wintersville, OH – FEB 14,2012 /Christian Newswire/ “Praise HIS Name” in partnership with “In HIS Name HR LLC” announce the launch of a twelve week radio series highlighting faith in the Christian owned workplace. Tune in and enjoy listening to Mark A. Griffin, Chief Consultant, inspire you as he dialogues with host Dee Kovach, exploring twelve inspiring weeks of Christian Business topics.
Week 1-Why do you need to build a “Kingdom Minded” company?
Week 2-What is a “Kingdom Minded” company?
Week 3- What is an Organizational Mission?
Week 4- What is an Organizational Vision?
Week 5- What are Organizational Core Values?
Week 6- HR Practices, what are they?
Week 7-How to integrate Your Mission, Vision and Core Values into your HR Practices
Week 8-How to hire the best candidates for your company
Week 9- How to manage employees to their potential within your company
Week 10- How to get your non-performers off the bus
Week 11- Ways to effectively introduce Christ into your workplace
Week 12- How best to develop and manage your Company Culture
In HIS Name HR LLC specializes in Christian business consulting for Christian owned companies who want to integrate Christ into their workplaces through the implementation of High Performance Organization HR practices.
In HIS Name HR LLC’s mission is to provide world class business consulting by assisting our clients in their quest to be prosperous and “Kingdom Minded.” We provide progressive Human Resources programs that will increase profitability, eliminate non-value added practices, increase productivity, improve quality and, most importantly, enhance employee well being.
“Praise His Name” is the place where listeners can tune in and hear interviews, music from today’s best Christian artists, inspirational messages, sermons from area pastors, talk shows with a Christian-based theme and yes, even comedy. Praise his Name is an Internet based radio station that allows on demand listening to what you want to hear, when you want to hear it. Best of all, the station is available 24-hours a day.
Praise His Name’sMission is to be the Voice calling out on the Internet! An oasis of Peace, Truth, Grace and Love in a world looking for real answers.
Learn more about Mark A. Griffin and his quest to help the Christian owned company live their faith by visiting him at www.InHISNameHR.com, or call him 717.572.2183 or contact him on www.Twitter.com/InHISNameHR.
So there you have it. The past few blog postings have given you plenty of ideas on how to integrate your MVV into the culture of your organization through your HR practices. There is a lot to digest, especially if you are not an HR practitioner. Don’t be overwhelmed by the possibilities before you. Simply work out a plan with your Team.
The first step is to create your Mission Vision and Values. Always include your employees in the process. Hire a good facilitator if necessary, but get this done for the sake of your organization.
The second step is to document what HR practices you currently have in place and what practices you still need. This may be a good time to bring in an HR expert to, at minimum, consult with you to help you understand what practices would serve your organization best.
My firm specializes in conducting a thorough examination through a rigorous HR assessment. Contact us today if you are interested in powering your organization to the next levels of performance through the development of HR practices that drive yourMissionand support your Vision in a way that personifies your wonderful Christian values.
Wrapping It All Up
Family-owned companies, as well as non-profits, have a distinct advantage over their secular counterparts. This advantage is the flexibility to state where they are coming from and how and why they are founded, without being accused of proselytizing in the workplace. Simply stating that your organization is “founded on Christian principles” is enough to let the public know where you are coming from and clear the air that you are not requiring your employees to commit to a certain faith’s principles.
We all have choices to make as leaders. We can choose to leave behind a legacy that our families, employees and communities can remember, or we can take an easier route, put our heads down, and reflect the politically correct agenda to which we have all been assimilated. The decision is yours and yours alone. Of course, the Holy Spirit has a lot to do with it, and I am confident that, when you consult with Him, you will choose the right path — the right path to avoid worrying about sharing your faith through your MVV with your employees, community, customers and vendors.
Having met with hundreds of people regarding the process of building Kingdom-Minded organizations, one thing is for certain: many recipients of this are frightened by the thought of sharing the message of Jesus with their employees. They are even frightened at the thought of insinuating that they are believers. I try to comfort them; I try to console them; I pray with them and I pray for them. But, at the end of the day, they need to make the decision for their organizations. They need to decide that the message of Jesus Christ is and will always be first and foremost, ahead of their companies and their own uncertainties.
When I started my HR consulting firm in April of 2011, I, too, had a decision to make. I could take the easy route and mask my purpose under a secular type of business model, content to secretly connect with Christian leaders to help them develop their companies to be Kingdom-Minded, or I could step out in faith and “out” myself as a Christ follower to my world of secular business associates. Having friends and contacts in senior level positions at some of the most politically correct organizations in the world made me understandably somewhat nervous as to how they would perceive the path I had chosen to take. Some of these executives are at such companies as Pepsi, Merck, Kodak, Armstrong, PayChex — the list goes on. Although most of what I do does not fit within these organizations, most of these specific executives have helped by connecting me to Christian-minded business people who could help prosper my business.
Ultimately, I decided to “out” myself, and, since then, I have received incredible, gratifying, heartfelt compliments spanning across my secular business network. What made me decide to go outward and name my firm “In HIS Name HR, Christian Business Consulting” was my reflection upon the passage of Matthew 25:14–30 NIV Edition
His master replied, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’shappiness!”
So, let me ask: if this was your last day and you were to meet God tomorrow, would you feel as if you had shared the message of Jesus with all whom you knew? Are you truly a good and faithful servant? I know that, when that day comes, I want to be able to look in God’s eyes and ask, “Father, was I pleasing? Was I a good and faithful servant?” I want to hear that, yes, I was.
For many years I have witnessed leadership at a variety of levels at several companies struggle to see the value of certain HR practices. One practice of uncertain value from them within HR that always seems to pop up is Job Descriptions.
Why do you need job descriptions? Do companies really use them? We created some 5 years ago, will they work? Are they just an old school personnel requirement? Well, you actually need them for a variety of reasons, such as to:
Reiterate your Mission, Vision and Values (MVVs)
Align employees to shared goals
Use as an effective hiring tool
Reinforce what is required from your employees and why
Reiteration of your Mission Vision and Values
Job descriptions should remind employees what the overall objective is for their position. Why? Because that objective should tie in to whatever the Mission and Vision of the company are. Absent a clear objective statement, both new and current employees won’t understand why it is they do what they are asked to do. That might sound a little crazy, but I have met hundreds of employees over the years who, when asked why they do what they do at work, they had no answer. I do know that when employees know the objective and why they exist in their roles, they are self-driven to exceed that objective.
We are not becoming lazy as a nation; we are coming unguided!
It is the greatest fallacy of the workplace that we have become merely lazy, when, in fact, it all stems from lack of leadership and experience in guiding employees to excellence.
Align employees
Employees should be involved in the development of their job descriptions. They should gain ownership in the process and fully understand how their position relates to others within the company, and how each position depends on the other for performance. Of course, HR can champion the process, providing the process and keeping track of the descriptions themselves.
The creation of the description should be done by the employee and employee’s manager.
One of the best-run companies I have had the pleasure to work with linked all the descriptions for each of their positions on a shared Local Area Network while also visually linking all employees together via an electronic organizational chart. It left no one wondering who was responsible for doing what, while reporting to whom, and why?
A hiring tool
A candidate should never be interviewed without a formal job description in hand. There is no way to assess a candidate fairly without this basic tool. High-performing companies have recruitment processes that included the revision of the job description while, at the same time, the development of relevant questions for the interview process itself. Want to inspire interest in a candidate? Give them the job description, because almost no organizations do this. When people know what it is they are required to do, it creates interest and potential ownership once they are hired.
Reinforcement of what is required and why
Repetition is a good thing. When job descriptions repeat important information that is reflected in other areas of the company, it reinforces the importance of that information.
When employees see the same messages over and over from a variety of sources, and tied to several processes, it means something to them. It leaves an imprint.
This is why building in language that reiterates the commitment to living up to your Company’s Mission and striving for your Vision will help get your employees going in the right direction collectively. It is also important to capture in the job description the behaviors that are required and that relate to the Values of your organization.
Essential to all job descriptions are the Purpose of the Position, Position Requirements (Education and or Experience), and Physical Requirements/Environmental Conditions. Of course you should always include the statement: “This description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities required of an incumbent. An incumbent may be asked to perform other duties as required.” This statement ensures that you don’t have folks walking around saying, “That’s not in my job description!”
What good and bad experiences have you had in dealing with job descriptions? Are they a waste of time from your perspective or have you witnessed employees flourish when using them? Please leave us your comments below. Thank you.
