Dec 20, 2020
Integrate — Creating Successful Training and Development
In our final example of integration of MVVs into HR practices, we will explore Training and Development (T&D). In the past 25 years, I have watched T&D dwindle to an almost nonexistent state in most companies. I could write a book on the impact of not investing in the development of your people, but you might find it boring. It is what it is, and it won’t change all that soon, unfortunately. But, as leaders of organizations, we must decide how we are going to right ourselves and guide our employees to work in alignment with our Missions, strive for our Visions and operate within our organizational Values.
Here are a few steps you can take to ensure you are addressing the T&D needs of your organization without going overboard:
- Discover what is needed
- Define what needs to be addressed
- Seek the resources to accomplish the T&D
- Initiate the T&D
- Follow up to ensure it was worth the investment
Discover what is needed
Do some basic fact-finding and discover the gaps within your organization. Simply going through a job description review project can help you discover what skills and abilities are lacking in your team. Summarize these by category and you will start to discover trends across your organization. Take it even further and include a development aspect to your performance review process, and document what development is needed by each of your employees. When you couple this with rewriting your company’s job descriptions, you will take it to a greater, more desirable level of detail.
Define what needs to be addressed
Without a good outline of what gap(s) needs to be closed, you have the potential to be scattered all over the place. Take the list of items that you captured during your assessment stage and better define what is needed. Employees stating they need ‘communication training” is, frankly, too broad. Do they need public speaking classes? Would they benefit from e-mail etiquette guidelines? Or is it interpersonal conflict resolution training that is needed? Just saying we need “communication training” paints in overly broad strokes.
Seek the resources to accomplish the T&D
I am not generally an advocate of online training. While it may be good for some, I do not believe it is effective for the majority of employees. My experiences have demonstrated that people learn when there is real interaction. There is more than one way to develop and train an employee. For years, it has been customary to send people to seminars. That just does not happen much anymore.
Think outside the box.
A few years back, I was supporting a company that tragically allowed many immigrants to work without the benefit of English as a Second Language training for several years. When I discovered this, I was frankly outraged that these folks were never given the resources to better themselves. When the gap was discovered, I identified a resource, hiring a gentleman who had recently returned from Asia and who had been immersed in this same immigrant culture. He developed a curriculum to deliver and help these folks speak English for less than $1,500. Now, that is what building a ‘Kingdom Minded” organization is about. Ignoring the needs of your employees is not.
Follow up to ensure it was worth the investment
Another creative solution to a problem such as this is tasking an employee to become a trainer within an organization to deliver a topic that is relevant to the need that was discovered. One organization was lacking financial management skills within the company’s leadership. The American Management Association’s program, Finance for Non-Financial Managers, was delivered by an HR leader. Doing it in this fashion saved the company tens of thousands of dollars by avoiding sending managers out to seminars and also allowing the customization of the materials.
Was it worth the investment? The CEO said it was.
The CEO in this case witnessed an increase in the attention to detail of certain executives, an embrace of principles not so easily understood before, but it also gave him insight as to who were the “A” players versus who were the “C” players.
You’re probably wondering by now how this all fits into the integration of your organization’s Training and Development and its relation to the MVVs of the organization. I believe it dovetails, such as in the example of the Asian immigrant employees.
When you honor your employees by developing them, they will honor you.
When you honor your employees by training them, they will honor you. And when God is reflected in your heart and the way you respect your employees by not only paying them correctly and protecting them with benefits, but truly caring about their development, your employees will see Christ in you.
So don’t look the other way when it comes to T&D. Your employees will see you in a whole different way.
We value your contribution. What training and development programs have you worked with that were successful? Why were they successful?
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Kingdom Company Building
Jul 17, 2020
Often we are asked how best to support family values and protect our freedom as Christians when doing business. The same extends to churches, Christian colleges, ministries and camps. The following organizations do just that.
Find an organization that operates in your state and support them. Connect with the leadership; attend functions in person and virtually. Help them get the word out to the community about what they are doing to promote Christian values within your state.
We can all make a difference—but we must be active to do so.
National Focus on the Family
National Alliance Defending Freedom
AL – Alabama Policy Institute
AK – Alaska Family Council
AZ – Center for Arizona Policy
AR – Arkansas Family Council
CA – California Family Council
CO – Colorado Family Action Foundation
CT – Family Institute of Connecticut
DE – Delaware Family Policy Council
FL – Florida Family Policy Council
HI – Hawaii Family Forum
IN – Indiana Family Institute
IA – The Family Leader of Iowa
KY – The Family Foundation of Kentucky
LA – Louisiana Family Forum
ME – Christian Civic League of Maine
MA – Massachusetts Family Institute
MI – Michigan Family Forum
MN – Minnesota Family Institute
MT – Montana Family Foundation
NE – Nebraska Family Alliance
NH – Cornerstone Action
NY – New Yorkers Family Research Foundation
NC – North Carolina Family Policy Council
OH – Citizens for Community Values
OK – Family Policy Institute of Oklahoma
PA – Pennsylvania Family Institute
SC – Palmetto Family Council of South Carolina
SD – Family Heritage Alliance
TN – Family Action Council of Tennessee
TX – Texas Values
VA – The Family Foundation of Virginia
WA – Family Policy Institute of Washington
WV – Family Policy Council of West Virginia
WI – Wisconsin Family Council, Inc.
Worried about your HR programs at your organization? Reach out to us to discuss having a trusted partner to guide you and your team to excellence.
Contact us today. You—and your employees—will be glad you did.
In His Name HR helps organizations build high-performance human resource 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 and Twitter.
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Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Christian Higher Ed HR, Human Resources, Special Topic
Feb 12, 2014
Recorded Live Tuesday, February 4, 2014 7AM EST on 1180 WFYL-AM Philadelphia PA
Listen while Mark discusses how Christian business owners can prosper their businesses using sound HR Practices while being outward in their faith.
Have iTunes? Podcast is available through iTunes.
A Little bit about: “It’s a New Day”:
It’s a New Day is live weekday mornings from 7-9AM. Broadcasting conservative news-talk radio, talking about your liberty and subjects that matter:
• One Nation Under God
• Faith, Family, Freedom, Flag, Founding Fathers and the Future of this Great Nation
• Truth, Honesty, Integrity
• Godly Heritage
• Traditional Values
• The Constitution
• Justice in the Land
• Patriotism
Tune in and receive encouragement at the voice of freedom in the Delaware Valley….WFYL1180AM.
A Little bit about Mark:
Mark has a Bachelors degree in Human Resources from Saint Leo College and an MBA from Bloomsburg University. Mark Lives in Lancaster Pennsylvania with his wife, Gail. Mark and Gail attend LCBC Church. Having spent over 20 years working in Human Resources, Mark has encountered many changes in the workplace. Mark leads a HR Consulting firm he launched in 2011: In HIS Name HR LLC .
Having authored the book, “How To Build Kingdom Minded Organizations”, Mark has become an authority on Christianity and the workplace.
Mark is passionate about the workplace, and especially Christian business owners’ opportunity to reach their employees. He believes employees and companies should work closely together to prosper the company for mutual purposes.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Podcasts
Oct 22, 2013
Deuteronomy 30:8-10
8You will again obey the LORD and follow all his commands I am giving you today. 9Then the LORD your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land. The LORD will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as he delighted in your ancestors, 10if you obey the LORD your God and keep his commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
How long must we manage our organizations absent of God before we realize that prosperity comes when we include Him! Having met with hundreds of Christian business professionals, I seem to run into the same common thread: we go to church on Sunday and “turn off” our Christianity on Monday. How long must we all go until we come to the realization that Church is every day?
Christian Business Leaders Are Modern-day Apostles.
Christ ordained his apostles and sent them back to work. Their work included fishing, accounting and even tax collection. Christ did not demand that they stop working; they ministered in the marketplace. So, today, all of us who are Christian Business Leaders are modern-day Apostles. If you’re Christianity doesn’t stop on Sunday nights, if you instead build it into your leadership and your organization’s values, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Organization.
Help our community of readers
What has your organization done to bring Christianity to the daily workplace? What steps must you continue to take to break down the barriers? We would like to know, so that our community will grow.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Aug 21, 2012
1 Timothy 6–10
But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
In this passage we learn that, if we have food and clothing, we will be content. But many of us are not content. Christian Business Leaders must recognize this and take heed: we are to be the light to our employees, to be the beacon and the example.
Church should not be the only place you grow the kingdom for God.
How many times do we fail ourselves and our people when we don’t take the well being of all of our employees into consideration when making decisions? How often do we think only of growing the kingdom for God at our church, but not at our workplace? Where is our heart when it comes to making the hard decision in benefits design, and, rather than encouraging and developing healthy behaviors, we instead punish and increase premiums without appropriate consideration?
If you first love your brothers and sisters within your companies, if you truly care for them by engaging them in the decision making and future building of your company, if you partner with them for the good of themselves and their families, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” company.
Help our community of readers
How have you engaged your employees in the decision making and future building of your company? What advice would you give to those who have never done so? Thank you for your thoughts. Your contribution helps others.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Jul 26, 2012
Stewardship of Treasure
This blog series has been dedicated to introducing you to the concept of Stewardship. Stewardship takes on many forms: time, family, faith, talent, prayer and, finally, treasure. In the last post, I described stewardship as it relates to prayer. In this post, I would like to introduce you to the concept of Stewardship as it relates to treasure.
Most people don’t like to talk about money. I remember my parents squirming in the pews when I was a kid as the priest talked about needing to extend an existing building. Not quite what they wanted to hear! But over the past several years and, especially shortly after my mom died four years ago, I have received greater revelation of what my perspective is as it relates to the Stewardship of treasure.
This revelation is not really all that complicated. It’s simply that none of our stuff is ours — it belongs to God. Once you get that, the rest is peripheral! After my mom passed, I felt a strong sense of her presence in spirit, her warm embrace and her guiding heart. When my father was liquidating her earthly treasures, I respectfully declined taking anything. Nothing really meant anything to me. It was her spirit, her life song, her memory that I cherished.
I think that’s all God cares about. He cares about our devotion to Him, our release of earthly treasure, and our focus on HIM.
Over the past few years, my leanings toward materialism have declined considerably and I find myself much happier. Don’t get me wrong — I still like my iPhone and I’m tapping away on my MacBook right now, but I consider these tools, not treasures.
With this concept in hand, that God owns everything and none of it is ours, I don’t feel so compelled to die after having accumulated the most I can. I want to die doing the most for HIM, not myself. This does not mean that prosperity is bad, that wealth is dirty—remember it is not money that is the root of all evil, but the love of money. It also does not mean that success should be shunned. It just means that, if it occurs, it is an outcome, not the goal.
I do believe it is Biblical to tithe. I also believe a joyful giver is a joyful recipient of all that God has to offer.
I could go into all the Biblical references that support tithing, but I am sure that there are some who could show what they believe to be Biblical facts against it. As for me, I support it. I have been blessed to have heard a message from the pastor, David Ashcraft, at my church home LCBC, who describes the 10-10-80 plan. David explains that a great way to manage your finances is to tithe 10%, save 10% and spend 80% on your living expenses. It makes much sense and is especially easy to remember and follow.
This wraps up this series and this posting. We would love to hear your comments on Stewardship of Treasure. This is always a topic that sparks a lot of interest and debate. The community values all opinions.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Christian Stewardship Series
Jul 18, 2012
Stewardship of Faith
This blog series has been dedicated to introducing you to the concept of Stewardship.
Stewardship takes on many forms: time, family, faith, talent, prayer and, finally, treasure. In the last post, I described Stewardship as it relates to prayer. In this post, I would like to introduce you to the concept of Stewardship as it relates to faith.
It has been my experience that many people are just too afraid or uncomfortable to talk about their faith. I can empathize. I, myself, was caught up for many years, struggling to talk about faith and my difficulties with the tenets of Catholicism with anyone. I was, perhaps, conditioned not to question authority, but instead to accept what was told to me blindly as truth.
I was a coward and did not pursue a relationship with Christ.
When I look back at my cowardliness, I am relieved that, at some point, I made a turn toward the truth. That point was when I heard for the first time the clarity of the salvation message from Pastor Powell at NorthRidge Church. Many devout Christians will argue that it was not the pastor speaking, but the Holy Spirit. I agree that the Holy Spirit does, in fact, breathe life into those who are ready to receive. Sometimes though, we are not ready to receive for many years, and sometimes, because of our upbringing, it is much sooner. There really is no recipe for success; it is a God thing, a preordained date and time that you will become a faithful servant of Jesus.
“15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” – Ephesians 4:15 – 16 (ESV)
Eternal Security
I have learned in these past eighteen months that many denominations carry the same message, that acceptance of Christ as your Savior is your ticket to eternal security. What is my advice to those who seek faith? Don’t confuse the message with what man has added to it. Find Christ. Find a like-minded Bible believing Church that fits your personality and style of worship, connect in a life group of other Bible believers and serve in your community as an ambassador for Christ. That, my friend, is being a Steward of your Faith. Of course, these are my opinions. And my opinion means nothing to the way you decide to be faithful.
“17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” – James 2:17 (NIV)
What are you going to do to be a good Steward of your Faith? Post a few notes here; we would love to know.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Christian Stewardship Series
Jul 11, 2012
Stewardship of Prayer
This blog series has been dedicated to introducing you to the concept of Stewardship. Stewardship, as I have explained before, takes on many forms: time, family, faith, talent, prayer and treasure. In my last post, I described stewardship as it relates to talent. In this post, we will explore the concept of Stewardship as it relates to prayer.
When we devote time to prayer, we deepen our relationship with God and become better prepared to offer ourselves in service to God and others. Many people approach prayer as a tool to use only when they want or need something from God. The prayer often sounds like, “Lord, help me through this problem and I will do X, Y and/or Z for you.” This becomes somewhat transactional and is the way that I found myself praying in the past. When I took a deep look into the way in which I approached prayer, I realized that I was not humbling myself before God, but simply trying to process a business transaction.
In reality, praying like this could be considered “Acts” Christianity or nothing more than quid pro quo, Latin for “this for that.”
The past several years have just been mind-numbing with change in our communities, our country and overseas as well. We have been bombarded with WikiLeaks, stock market ups and downs, record level unemployment, a housing crisis, threats from North Korea and Iran, and political turmoil in the USA.
However, as we navigate through all of this, we still find one part of our lives that has remained constant —God’s love for us. Regardless of issues we face or turmoil we navigate, we all have been blessed with a God who loves us. We should also be grateful to God that we have shelter, food, and clean water to drink. In addition, we have family and coworkers who love us.
Another aspect of Prayer that I shamefully admit that I have only recently learned is the opportunity for us to do a self-reflection of what is in our heart. I mean, I had heard of the concept, and embraced it superficially, just lightly reflecting on it, but never really made it something that I was going after with tenacity and vigor.
I have had the blessing of being coached by some incredible prayer warriors who have instilled in me the importance of searching areas of my heart that I have yet to release to God. Places of sin, despair, worry and lack of faith. This takes time to do, and it is actually fairly upsetting when you consciously outline to yourself the areas you have left to let go to God. It’s not easy. It takes humility and the willingness to release any amount of control thinking, but it is the most rewarding and liberating aspect of being a fully devoted follower of Christ.
As we approach probably what will be increasingly greater times of difficulty, I know that I am going to concentrate on thanking God, hopefully more so in my prayers than asking God for a good deal. So, personally, over the next few months, these are a few thoughts I will be praying and reflecting on:
- When I pray, do I thank God more than I ask God for a deal?
- Do I reflect and give thanks before every meal, regardless of circumstance or location?
- What can I do for God and the advancement of His Kingdom?
- Do I believe that everything I have is a gift from God?
- Is prayer simply a task on my schedule that can be postponed or canceled?
- Am I willing to make a commitment to prioritize prayer?
- Do I believe that prayer consists simply of words and phrases, or do I believe that it impacts my relationship with God?
- Have I considered inviting friends or family to join me in prayer?
Therefore, my challenge for you is this: Do you know what you are thankful for? And are you willing to thank God for all He has done for us, even in the face of all the adversity we experience? What are you thankful for? We would love to know. Please share your thoughts here with our community of readers.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Christian Stewardship Series
Jun 28, 2012
Stewardship of Talent
This series has been focused on introducing you to the concept of Stewardship. Stewardship takes on many forms; time, family, faith, talent, prayer and treasure. In the previous post, I described stewardship as it relates to family. In this post, I will examine the concept of Stewardship as it relates to talent.
All of us are blessed with talents. These talents are what make each one of us unique, different from one another. It continues to amaze me as I grow older the stark uniqueness and individuality of all of us, regardless of our similarities in where and how we grew up, where we were educated or where we worship or work.
We clearly are so different from one another!
I believe that our Talents are created by God and are so special that they were determined before we were even put on this earth. Because of this, I think it is important that if we were all created uniquely for a special purpose, that we respect and understand our unique Talents and differences.
Having worked in HR for over twenty years and having witnessed some of the most unimaginable demonstrations of lack of leadership, I believe the most damaging are those leaders who fail to appreciate the Talent differences among the people who work for them and the organizations they lead. God created artistic people and God created analytical people. Without the stark difference of the Talents offered by each, we would still be living in primitive conditions. We must recognize the Talents of others and make an effort to lift all Talents up, and not just some.
The most damaging act a leader can commit is one of diminishing one’s Talents not only directly to the person but to the person’s co-workers. Several years ago there was a highly talented, big-thinking, out of the box, strategic manager who was leading the accounting department for a company I served. This guy would have never been able to get the company to where it was without the Talents he was given by God. His lack of resources, people, and finances were made up for by his sheer devotion and imagination as to how to get more done with less, and make it work. Unfortunately, he fell victim to a new boss. This new boss came into the organization accustomed to having large amounts of staff, resources, and finances. He quickly dismissed anything the big thinker was doing, often ridiculing him in front of others and embarrassing him ruthlessly for weeks. Ultimately, the accounting executive was pushed to the side. To this day, I don’t think the new leader has any concept of what his lack of appreciation for Talent had done to the organization.
That organization had potential, but now it barely gets by and people hate working there. How do I know? The employees keep calling me asking for help to get out!
My challenge to you, therefore, is to think deeply and consult with your loved ones on discovering what your Talents are. What Talents make you unique? Most important, how will you use these Talents within your family, your church, and your community?
My next challenge is for you to uncover what Talents your coworkers have. What makes them unique? How do they like to spend their time when they are not working?
As we continue to grow and prosper as the body of Christ, let us do so by understanding others and ourselves at a greater level, so we can rise above our differences and continue to build the Church for a better tomorrow.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Christian Stewardship Series
Jun 10, 2012
Stewardship of Family
This column is dedicated to introducing you to the concept of Stewardship. Stewardship takes on many forms; Time, Family, Faith, Talent, Prayer and Treasure. In the previous post in this series, I described stewardship as it relates to our time. In this post, I would like to introduce you to the concept of Stewardship of Family.
As I researched this article, I came across St. Patrick’s Church in Largo, Florida, that outlines seven signs of a stewardship family. They are:
- time together
- family prayer
- respect
- worshiping together
- supporting one another
- shared responsibilities
- service to others
I would like to write about two of these areas, time together and supporting one another. The first one, time together, means just that, spending time together with no distractions, no cell phones, no TV and no Internet. It is hard to do with a culture so inundated with distractions, but it is important. I know one family with teens that has a “no texting” policy in their car. That way, the teens and their parents can have focused conversations, without distractions.
Time together can also be accomplished by volunteering in the community. What better way to demonstrate compassion than to help the elderly or the homeless together as a family? What is especially inspiring is when we hear stories of employees’ families who support other employees’ families in times of need. This is done not in a formal way, but out of concern for another employee’s situation.
Families helping families — what a wonderful way to share your family’s kindness.
The second area, supporting one another, can easily be accomplished by sharing household responsibilities. Shared responsibilities means that no job or household chore is restricted to parents or children. In order for a family to operate, it needs teamwork, which means that everyone pitches in, using their unique talents to help better the family. Children should not rely solely on the parents to do everything, and neither should parents rely solely on their children to carry the burdens of managing the household. It is so encouraging when we experience a family where each member feels it contributes to the good of the whole. A good example would be a family where the smaller children set the table, the teens help with dishes or cleaning, and the parents show their appreciation for this.
Living in Lancaster County has exposed me to the plain life of Amish and Mennonite people. When you spend time with a plain family, you quickly realize that the family functions are interdependent, all the way down to the four- and five-year-olds. Each family member has responsibilities, chores, and oftentimes if a chore is missed, it could result in a late meal or spoiled crops!
One aspect of helping to be a good Steward of your family is to instill a motto, a word, or a saying that can help guide the family though difficult times. A few years ago we had a series at church that was based solely on the word, “Others.” The organization of this series stemmed from one family’s experience with the word. You see, this word was so important for one family; it was the one word that was passed on to each new generation. In my family I use the three words, “God, Family, Education,” to try to keep us focused on what is important.
In closing, it is important to note that families almost always default to stewardship behavior because it is natural behavior, and most family members want to support each other. It is important to know how your family relates to these forms of Family Stewardship and in what areas your family is strong and what areas need work.
Please take some time thinking and discussing this with your family, for we only have one life to share with each other.
It is important that we all feel we contribute together with uplifting attitudes and, most important, with purpose and good intentions for our families.
Please help our community of readers by sharing experiences that you have had in your attempt to be a good Steward of your family. We appreciate your comments.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Christian Stewardship Series
