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 .