{"id":742,"date":"2009-04-23T04:01:23","date_gmt":"2009-04-23T04:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2009\/04\/another-way-of-doing-business.html"},"modified":"2009-04-23T04:01:23","modified_gmt":"2009-04-23T04:01:23","slug":"another-way-of-doing-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2009\/04\/another-way-of-doing-business.html","title":{"rendered":"Another Way of Doing Business"},"content":{"rendered":"

I was in Seattle this week for meetings at Seattle Pacific University<\/a>. Several of us who are associated with Laity Lodge got together with SPU faculty from various disciplines: business, economics, organizational psychology, theology, brain science, and marriage and family. We discussed our common vision for the integration of theology, psychology, and business, especially with regard to raising up servant leaders who are living out their faith in every part of life (Photo: SPU in the spring.)
\nFor some time, I have been aware that SPU was doing some ground-breaking work in the area of faith and business, but I was impressed by how the School of Business and Economics<\/a>, in partnership with other SPU departments, has developed a new vision for faithful free enterprise. The motto of the business school is: \u00e2??Another Way of Doing Business.\u00e2?\u009d They explained what they mean thus:<\/p>\n

[I]n the School of Business and Economics (SBE), we start with the premise that the purpose of business is to serve. In particular, it is to serve the community by providing the goods and services that will enable the community to flourish (an external goal). It also serves by providing meaningful and creative work that will allow employees to express aspects of their identity on the job (an internal goal).
\nThis philosophy of service reverses the dominant paradigm. Profit generating continues to be critically important but no longer as the end of the business activity. Rather, it is the means by which sufficient capital is attracted to the organization to allow the organization to do what it should be doing \u00e2?? that is, to serve. Shareholders are entitled to a fair return on their investments as the means to the ends of serving customers and employees.
\nOf course, efficiency, revenue generation, and profit-making remain critically important aspects of any business. Profit is as essential to the health of an organization as air is to the health of a human being. Without air, no matter how noble his or her aspirations, a person will die. This does not, however, mean that breathing is the ultimate goal of human existence. Likewise, generating profits is essential but not the appropriate \u00e2??end\u00e2?\u009d of the business enterprise. [Excerpt from an SBE brochure.]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If you find this intriguing, and I certainly do, I\u00e2??d highly recommend that you listen to an address by Jeff Van Duzer, Dean of SBE. It\u00e2??s on the topic: \u00e2??How Business Contributes to Human Flourishing.\u00e2?\u009d You can download the MP3 here<\/a> or at this iTunes link<\/a>.
\nI was struck, not only by the vision for business at SPU, but also by their commitment to interdisciplinary conversation about business (and other matters). In academic institutions, it\u00e2??s rare for members of the business, psychology, neuroscience, and theology faculties to work together on projects of mutual interest. It almost seems as if they don’t have mutual interests. SPU is to be highly commended for their exemplary effort in this regard.
\nSeattle Pacific University is a Christian school with historical associations to the Free Methodist Denomination. The university\u00e2??s statement of faith<\/a> explains that they are \u00e2??historically orthodox,\u00e2?\u009d \u00e2??clearly evangelical,\u00e2?\u009d \u00e2??distinctively Wesleyan,\u00e2?\u009d and \u00e2??genuinely ecumenical.\u00e2?\u009d I know that several of their faculty are Presbyterians, so the Wesleyan commitment of the university does not shut out those of us with Reformed leanings.
\nIf you\u00e2??re considering a career in business, I\u00e2??d highly recommend that you check out SPU for undergraduate or graduate education. As a plus, you\u00e2??ll get to live in Seattle, one of my favorite cities (in spite of its well-earned reputation for drizzle, balanced by its equally well-earned reputation for coffee and seafood).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was in Seattle this week for meetings at Seattle Pacific University. Several of us who are associated with Laity Lodge got together with SPU faculty from various disciplines: business, economics, organizational psychology, theology, brain science, and marriage and family. We discussed our common vision for the integration of theology, psychology, and business, especially with…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-faith-and-work","category-recommendations"],"yoast_head":"\nAnother Way of Doing Business - Mark D. 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Roberts","description":"Mark D. Roberts: Thoughtfully Christian Reflections on Jesus, the Church, and the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/1ff094a57b7e41f534434b1723df3d73","name":"Mark D. Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=742"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/742\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}