Organizational Behavior – Faith That Gets Results

Table of Contents Table of Figures 3 Acknowledgements 4 Biography 7 Preface 8 Chapter 1 - Organizational Overview 12 Chapter 2 – Biblical Leadership 20 Chapter 3 - Leadership Starts With You 36 Chapter 4 - Management Tools and Techniques 49 Chapter 5 – Working with Others 71 Chapter 6 - Conflict Management 82 Chapter 7 - Teams 100 Chapter 8 - Change Management 107 Chapter 9 - Doing the Work 120 Bibliography 142 Appendix 1: Model of How Organizations Work 145 Appendix 2: Practical Tools 146 Appendix 3: Strategic Decision Making; Getting it Right 149 Scriptural Index 152   Biography Dr. Larry Ruddell grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina and graduated from Davidson College near Charlotte with a degree in psychology. He then attended The Ohio State University, where he received his master’s degree in Counseling. After working for two years with the dean of students office and as an instructor at Sterling College in Kansas, he completed his seminary degree at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with an emphasis on counseling. After ordination, he served for two years as pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Webster, Texas. Dr. Ruddell was later commissioned as a chaplain in the United States Navy. After three years of active duty with the 2nd Marine Division, he completed his doctorate in educational leadership at the University of Houston with an emphasis on computer systems and business ethics. He then worked as a computer consultant with major companies in the Houston area during the 1990s, including a stint with Booz-Allen & Hamilton. He also developed the original database for MINTS International Seminary. He graduated with his MBA from the University of Houston–Clear Lake with a focus on business management. He has worked with Houston Baptist University (assistant professor in business) and Belhaven University – Houston (associate professor in business) where he taught graduate and undergraduate courses, developed curriculum, and published and carried out a number of other academic activities, including serving as dean of the Belhaven-Houston campus for five years. He continues to serve as founder and president of The Global Institute for Ethical Leadership and as vice-president of academic affairs for MINTS International. He is also the dean of the Alliance Theological Seminary in Houston. Dr. Ruddell is the author of two books: Business Ethics – Faith That Works, 2nd edition and Database Management for Business Leaders. He is also a contributor to Sports Management for Sports Management Professionals, 2nd edition.   Preface This book is meant to serve as a supplement to an organizational behavior and/or leadership course in Christian business schools and is highly recommended for small business leaders as well as for pastors and leaders of nonprofits. This book is distinctive in two important ways: it takes a holistic approach to and its perspective is distinctly biblical. Let me start with how the book is holistic. Any business school program normally starts with a course called “Organizational Behavior” (OB). It concerns the people side of business and how people “work.” However, too often we separate the “work” itself from how people do the “work” which often means nothing and no one “works!” For example, Franklin Markow states, “While many of the management disciplines look at the ‘hard’ side of organizations [the work] … OB looks at the ‘soft’ side, the skills needed to effectively lead and manage people.” A major OB textbook, for all intents and purposes, dissociates OB from the work itself. There is a section on “The Organization System,” where the culture of the organization is addressed, but that is about it. The section does talk about finding “a good place to work” but doesn’t seem interested in the “work.” We don’t want to do that in this book. Throughout, we want to tie the two together. We want to inspire people and help them to understand and accomplish the organizational mission. For example, Nehemiah focused on the work (“work” occurs twenty-one times in the book ): “So we built the wall … for the people had a mind to work” (4:6). He also used motivation (an OB topic) for accomplishing the work. He did this through an appeal to community honor (2:17), and confirmation that the king himself had approved the work (2:18). While the work was going on, he motivated by highlighting the consecration of sections as they were completed (3:1), having family units and clans work side by side (3:2-12; 4:13), and celebrating at the end (8:13-18; 12:27 ff.). But note that the motivation occurred in the context of the overall mission: the “good work” (2:18) to “build the wall of Jerusalem” (2:17). The first and last chapters of the book, in particular, provide details of how OB is applied in the work of an organization. This overview is certainly not exhaustive but should provide a helpful overview for students and other leaders alike. Secondly, this book is distinctly biblical. Starting in the twentieth century, Christian leaders in churches and organizations looked to business as a good way to run their organizations. I spoke with a colleague a number of years ago who had worked in a large, successful church with a gifted preacher. I asked him about the preacher, what he read, and what he talked about with his leadership staff. Evidently the pastor read a number of business books and referred to them often and recommended them to his staff. This approach was somewhat helpful in building order and efficiency, but all too often, it ignored the Scriptures.