Management by Objective Truth

Peter Drucker coined the phrase “management by objective.” He emphasized that companies should be guided by a single objective. In contrast to that, this article proposes that a company should be guided by objective truth. I propose that those guided by the biblical principles of truth, excellence, and love, using the SMART Goal System, will thrive. Each employee will work at their peak performance, be excited about their job and the companies' mission.

Truth

Truth is as vast as the universe. No man can fully grasp it, but God can. Therefore there is a gap between God and man. Man searches for truth , but God has it . This gap came when man disobeyed God in the garden and fell. Since the fall, mankind’s knowledge has been mixed with error. Truth then needs to be sifted from error.

All knowledge has fragments of truth. From the sacred to the secular, from business management to education, all knowledge has slivers of truth. How does man sift it out? The puritan John Milton explained this in Areopagitica, written in 1664.

“Good and evil we know in the field of this world grow up together almost inseparably; and the knowledge of good is so involved and interwoven with the knowledge of evil, and in so many cunning resemblances hardly to incessant labor cull out and sort asunder were not more intermixed. It was of one apple tasted, that the knowledge of good and evil, as two twins cleaving together, leaped forth into the world. And perhaps this is that doom which Adam fell into of knowing good and evil, that is to say of knowing good by evil.”

The premise of man’s search is to separate truth from error . Where should man look when trying to discover truth? Reading is a great way to learn knowledge, but how can truth be found from fellow people who don’t have truth?

Slivers of truth can be found in all knowledge . When reading Christian authors, truth needs to be removed from error. God, who has complete truth, has revealed truth in scripture . God embodies truth in his Son, Jesus Christ . The closer we are to God, the more truth we will find . As we get closer to God and his word, we will build a biblical framework to filter knowledge and find slivers of truth . The more we look for truth, the more we will find it in God . If we draw close to God, we will find truth and be able to sift out error . To draw close to God we need to seek his Word.

This framework of finding truth is valuable in every area of life. Scripture principles apply to every area of life, but need to be interpreted correctly . There are warnings about twisting and adding to scripture . When principles are interpreted correctly and firmly believed, they create a biblical worldview. This article has business principles that are filtered through a biblical worldview. Though the bible isn’t referenced in most of the methods, the bible supports the motives and practices defined in them. 

Biblical foundations that shape this material:

• We are created in the image of God and therefore have dignity, Genesis 1:26-27.
• We should love the Lord with all our heart, mind, and soul, Matthew 22:37-39.
• We should love our neighbor as ourself, Matthew 22:37-39.
• We should serve God in all his glory, I Corinthians 10:31, Colossians 3:17, I Peter 4:11.
• We should treat others as directed by “the one another’s”.
• We should participate within the church, Matthew 16:18, Ephesians 5:23, I Corinthians 11.
• We should be purposely evangelistic, Matthew 28:18-20.
• We should live according to the Word, Hebrews 4:11, 1 Peter 1:2-3.
• God holds the key to truth, 1 Corinthians 2:7-11.

We are to let the Word richly dwell in us. Whatever we do in work or deed, we are to do in the name of the Lord Jesus . 

The One Another's

Rom. 12:10   Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;

Rom. 12:16   Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation.

Rom. 13:8   Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled {the} law.

Rom. 14:13   Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this —not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother’s way.

Rom. 14:19   So then let us pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another.

Rom. 15:14   And concerning you, my brethren, I myself also am convinced that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able also to admonish one another.

Rom. 16:16   Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.

1Cor. 6:7   Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?

1Cor. 7:5   Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again lest Satan tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

1Cor. 11:33   So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another.

1Cor. 12:25   that there should be no division in the body, but {hat the members should have the same care for one another.

Gal. 5:15   But if you bite and devour one another, take care lest you be consumed by one another.

Eph. 4:2   with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing forbearance to one another in love,

Eph. 4:25   Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH, EACH ONE OF YOU, WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another.

Eph. 4:32   And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

Eph. 5:19   speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;

Eph. 5:21   and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.

Phil. 2:3   Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself;

Col. 3:9   Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,

Col. 3:13   bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.

Col. 3:16   Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms {and} hymns {and} spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

1Ths. 3:12   and may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all men, just as we also {do} for you;

1Ths. 4:9   Now as to the love of the brethren, you have no need for {anyone} to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another;

1Ths. 4:18   Therefore comfort one another with these words.

1Ths. 5:11   Therefore encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing.

1Ths. 5:13   and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace with one another.

1Ths. 5:15   See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all men.

Hebr. 10:25   not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging {one another} ; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near.

James 4:11   Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother, or judges his brother, speaks against the law, and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge {of it.}

James 5:9   Do not complain, brethren, against one another, that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.

James 5:16   Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

1Pet. 1:22   Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,

1Pet. 4:8   Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.

1Pet. 4:9   Be hospitable to one another without complaint.

1Pet. 4:10   As each one has received a {special} gift, employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

1Pet. 5:5   You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.

1John 3:11   For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another;

1John 3:23   And this is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us.

1John 4:7   Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

1John 4:11   Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

1John 4:12   No one has beheld God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.

2John 5   And now I ask you, lady, not as writing to you a new commandment, but the one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another.

Step 1.1 Making Decisions

The first part of making a plan is evaluating your current position. If the present isn't clearly defined, there is no way to move forward . The SMART Goal System has seven steps, the first step is assessment. These seven steps are an expanded version of the "gap analysis, "Where are you now? Where do you want to be? What is the gap?"

It is good to have lofty aspirations, envisioning a better future position. The first step to get there is assessment. Having vision and defining a mission is in step 2. The first step is to ask "where am I now?"

Asking "where" is the key. Without knowing "where" to start, you can't know "where" to go. In human resource management, employee-evaluation is used to determine "where" each employee is. Evaluation is important, but most methods are counter-intuitive. Usually there are a list of questions, with a grading scale of 1-10 to evaluate employee performance. And the questions are filled with ambiguous terms that could mean anything. One question might be, "Is this employee productive in his/her position?" How is a manager supposed to answer this? How can productivity be measured? And if productivity can be measured, how often will managers give an employee 10 out of 10! The point of evaluation should be to find an accurate measure, to spur the employee to excel. Where most evaluation are vague, leaving the employee discouraged with their poor performance.

Effective evaluation uses concrete terms, which are vital for making a good goal. To say, “I don't feel useful to my boss” is vague. A concrete assessment would be: “I don’t have the skill adequate to proofread my boss’s reports.” The more concrete the better. People don't use concrete terms because they don't won't to outright admit a problem. It hurts to define specific weaknesses. The challenge of using concrete terms is embracing the reality of the short come.  Concrete terms specifically define what needs to change. Donald Whitney in his book on leadership says this,

"To postpone a decision is really to decide for the status quo. In most decisions the key element is not so much knowing what to do but in living with the results."

You might not realize it, but you go through 5 steps every time you make a decision. These five steps take place for big and small choices. You go through this process when you go to lunch.

1. Define the problem.
2. Gather facts
3. Weigh the options.
4. Pick an option.
5. Evaluate your decision. 

As lunchtime arrives, you have a problem, you are hungry...

1. Define the problem. I am hungry, how am I going to resolve my hunger? I will go to lunch. 
2. Gather facts and analyze. What do I want to eat? I feel like eating hamburgers and fries. 
3. Weigh the options. What restaurants are available that offer hamburgers and fries? Wendy's, In-N-Out, or Farmer Boys. 
4. Pick an option and act on it. Decide which one you want and go there. You pick Wendy’s and you have lunch there. 
5. Evaluate your decision. Evaluate whether the triple cheese burger and extra large fry filled your hunger? Yes it did, but it also gave me a stomach ache, and therefore I don't want to do that again.

Going to lunch is a simple example of assessment and making a decision. In the SMART Goal System, making life plans starts with this same process of assessment. When you truly want change, starting with assessment is vital. Though it is painful to reveal  personal weakness and to humble yourself before the Lord (Prov. 22:4), there is good results. When we admit weakness and specifically define it, we are moving from one glory to the next. We are becoming more mature and more experienced in this life (2 Cor. 3:7-18).

In the SMART Goal System, there are 7 steps: 

1. Assessment
2. Mission/Vision
3. SMART goals
4. Timing
5. Responsibility
6. Action Item
7. Flexibility.