Christian Values of Truett Cathy - Term Paper Example

Christian Values of Truett Cathy, Founder and CEO of Chick-fil-A Christian Values of Truett Cathy, Founder and CEO of Chick-Fil-A This paper discusses the Christian Values of Truett Cathy, the founder and the former CEO of Chick-fil-A Company. The main aim of this paper is to integrate Christian faith or Christian values, with the business principles and practice. This paper, therefore, integrates Christian values with the business principles in light of Truett Cathy’s Christian principles demonstrated in his leadership and management of the Chick-fil-A Company. The paper also discusses how Truett Cathy’s Christian values have influenced the organizational and the operational culture of Chick-fil-A Company. The paper begins with a brief discussion of Christian values in leadership and management, followed by a detailed discussion of Truett Cathy’s Christian values in his management and of Chick-fil-A Company. The paper concludes with a discussion of how Cathy’s Christian values and Christian based leadership of Chick-fil-A Company have influenced and shaped the operational and the organizational culture of Chick-fil-A Company. Christian Values of Management and Leadership To Glorify God: According to the Bible, one of the main aims or goals of management and leadership is to glorify God and to love other people as we love ourselves (Mark 12: 29-31). For that reason, the Bible demands that Christian leaders should be guided by the need and the desire to glorify God in all their leadership and managerial responsibilities. For that reason, therefore, Jesus should be at the centre of all the activities and the decisions made by Christian leaders. Integrity: integrity is the second major core value of leadership and management that the Bible upholds. Integrity demands honesty and transparency in all the dealings of a Christian leader. In his teachings, St. Paul emphasised the need for Christian leaders to be honest and transparent, in all their dealings, before God and before other human beings (2 Corinth. 8: 19-21). This fact, therefore, shows that Christian leaders should be people of high moral integrity, and beyond reproach. Service: the Bible teaches that Christian leaders should view themselves as the servants of the people whom they service, and they should see their main responsibility as to serve other people. In his teachings, Jesus Christ taught that eve HE himself did not come to be served but to serve (Mark 10:45). This fact, therefore, shows that Christian leadership should be based on service to other people. Loyalty: According to the Bible, Christian leaders should be loyal to the organizations that they serve, the people that they serve, and even be loyal to their calling to leadership. The Bible teaches that Christian leaders should not betray their organizations or the people they lead like Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus Christ (Matt. 27:3). For this reason, therefore, the value of loyalty is a very important leadership Christian value. Excellence: According to the Biblical teachings, Christian leaders should constantly strive for excellence in all their undertakings. According to St. Paul, each Christian will be rewarded by God according to the service that they render (1 Corinth. 3:8); for that reason, therefore, the Bible teaches that Christians should able for excellence in all their undertakings. Shepherds/Stewards: the Bible teaches that Christian leaders should view themselves as shepherds or as the stewards of the Lord (Acts 20: 28). For that reason, therefore, Christian leaders ought to take good care of the people or the organizations that they lead. Besides the above six main core Christian values of leadership, the other Christian values of leadership are patience, perseverance, hard-work, and discipline. Having briefly discussed the main core values of Christian leadership, let us now look at the Christian values of Truett Cathy, the founder and the former CEO of Chic-fil-A. Christian Values of Truett Cathy One of the core values of Truett Cathy was that Cathy was a devout Christian, a member of Baptist church. According to Cathy himself, the main aim of his business was to glorify God. This view is tersely expressed in the mission statement of Chick-fil-A mission statement; the mission statement asserts that the corporate aim of Chick-fil-A Company is, “To Glorify God by being a faithful steward to all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence to all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A” (Darren, 2012). This fact, therefore, shows that in his leadership of Chick-fil-A Company, Cathy was guided by the Christian value of glorifying God. To put his value of glorifying God into practice, Cathy introduced a policy of closing his business on all Sundays, so that all the employees of the Company could have time to rest and to go to church to worship. The second main Christian value that Truett Cathy had was loyalty. Truett Cathy was loyal to the Chick-fil-A Company that he founded, and he was loyal to the employees that worked in the Company. Because of his loyalty to the employees of the Company, Cathy treated his employees honourably (Gagliardi, 2014). Cathy’s loyalty to his Chick-fil-A Company is actually one of the main reasons behind the Company’s success. The third Christian value that Truett Cathy had was perseverance. It actually took a lot of patience for Cathy to establish, and to wait for the Chick-fil-A Company. Cathy started his restaurant business in the year 1946, the Dwarf Grill restaurant; Cathy later changed the name of the business to the Dwarf house (Steps to Success and Power to Change, web). The Chick-fil-A Company was actually founded in the year 1967. When at one time the restaurant of Cathy was burnt down, Cathy did not give up, but he put up tents with grills and he continued with his restaurant business. These facts show that Truett Cathy embodied the Christian value of patience. Another important Christian value that Cathy embodied was the value of hard work. It was actually the hard work of Cathy that enabled him to succeed in his restaurant business (Gagliardi, 2014). Cathy also constantly encouraged his employees and even his family members to embrace the value of hard work in their lives. Another important Christian value that guided Cathy in his leadership of Chick-fil-A Company was the value of service. According to the work philosophy of the Chick-fil-A Company, the employees of the Company are expected to do their best to serve their clients in the best possible way; the employees of the Chick-fil-A Company are expected to go out of their way in serving their customers (9 leadership Lessons and Quotes from Truett Cathy of Chick-fil-A, web ). This fact, therefore, shows that Cathy was guided by the Christian principle of service in his management of the Chick-fil-A Company. Cathy also was guided by the Christian value of excellence in his leadership of Chick-fil-A Company. This is because as the CEO of Chick-fil-A Company, Cathy always emphasised on the need for the Company to give the highest quality possible goods and services to their customers. This fact shows that Cathy was guided by the Christian value of excellence in his leadership of the Chick-fil-A Company. As the CEO of Chick-fil-A, Cathy also had great respect for other people. One of the main reasons why many people visited Cathy’s Chick-fil-A business was due to the enormous respect that he had for other people (Darren, 2012). Cathy’s respect for other people was demonstrated by his service oriented management of the Chick-fil-A Company. Cathy was also a man of integrity. Throughout his tenure as the leader of Chick-fil-A Company, Cathy was never accused of any form of misappropriation of the Company’s resources, or any other form of gloss misconduct (Darren, 2012). This fact, therefore, shows that Cathy was a leader guided by the value of integrity. Cathy also was guided by the Christian value of discipline in his leadership of the Chick-fil-A Company. Cathy was disciplined in life and he always ensured that he fulfils all his obligations as the leader of Chick-fil-A Company. Having looked at the Christian values of Truett Cathy, the founder and the former CEO of the Chick-fil-A Company, let us look at the ways in which Cathy’s Christian values influenced and shaped the operational and the organizational culture of the Company. One of the important ways in which Cathy’s Christian values has influenced the culture of Chick-fil-A’s corporate culture is that the Company has developed a culture of closing their businesses on Sunday and other important Christian days like Christmas. This is in line with the policy that was put in place by Truett Cathy. Also, Cathy’s strong faith in God has made the Company to concentrate more in serving people than in maximizing the profits for the business. This in turn has led to more customer satisfaction and more sales. Secondly, Cathy’s value of respect for other people has made the Chick-fil-A Company to have a culture of respect for all the employees and even the customers of Chick-fil-A Company. The culture of respect has made the Chick-fil-A Company to have many customers and to be, therefore, a successful business. Cathy’s Christian value of service, also, has made the Chick-fil-A Company to have more customers and to be a successful business organization. This is because the Chick-fil-A Company has a culture of giving excellent services to their customers. The service oriented operation of the Chick-fil-A Company, therefore, has made the Company to be successful. In conclusion, Truett Cathy embodies many Christian values of leadership and management. The Christian values of Cathy are demonstrated in his leadership and management of Chick-fil-A Company. Cathy’s Christian values have, indeed, influenced and shaped the corporate culture of Chick-fil-A Company in a big way, and the Company’s success can actually be attributed to Cathy’s leadership style informed by his Christian values. References 9 Leadership Lessons And Quotes from Truett Cathy of Chick-fil-A. Web.http://www.google.com/url? url=http://www.moneycrashers.com/leadership-lessons-from-truett-cathy-founder-of-ch> Darren, G. (2012). "The World of Chick-Fil-A and the Business of Sunbelt Evangelicalism". Southern Spaces. 8th March. Gagliardi, N. (2014). "Chick-fil-A Poised For Change With Passing Of Founder". Forbes Magazine. 7th October. Steps to Success and Power to Change. Web.http:www.google.com/url?url=http://powertochange/ discover/faith/cathy1/&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&sa=U&ei=KOU4VcGBH8_XarTLgYAE&ved> The Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Web.https://www.google.com/url?url?=https://www.biblega teway.com/versions/New-Living-Translation-NLT-Bible/&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&sa=U&ei=z-> Read More