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Introduction

The Transformation of a Leader

Over 30 years ago, I was the executive vice president and chief financial officer of a small company. My background included an MBA from one of the top business schools in the world, significant management experience in Fortune 500 companies and a very ambitious Type A personality, all under the banner of being a Christian. How I ended up at a small company is another story for another time.

Shortly after I joined the company, we decided to leverage our assets and invest a significant amount of money to enter a new market. Because the company had negative net worth, the bank required both the president and me to personally guarantee a loan in order to fund the investment. This was not a problem for me because I was convicted that God had called me to this company and that God’s hand was on me and on the future of the company. As a matter of fact, I strongly believed that I was on a mission for his glory, and this conviction is what sustained me through this turnaround.

By the grace of God and hard work, we successfully entered the new market. Within a year or so, the company turned the corner and became profitable. I believed we were on a roll and that God would continue to bless us and there would be no harm. The company even negotiated an attractive health insurance premium from our group provider, which lowered our costs and added to our profitability. What could go wrong?

Shortly after this financial turnaround, one of our supervisors approached me with information about a new hire. He was an entry level employee who was actually very sick and needed major heart surgery. I immediately thought that we would face unexpected catastrophic medical costs, the group premium would increase and the company’s financial recovery would be in jeopardy. I was angry with the supervisor for hiring him. I was angry with the employee, who I thought knew he was sick and just wanted a job for health insurance benefits. In short, I believed he was trying to take advantage of us. My initial reaction was to find an excuse to terminate him, but something unexplainable in human terms caused me to pause.

As a Christian I knew I wanted to make the right decision, but I also struggled with how the world makes decisions, and that was just too easy. There had to be a better way. What did God want me to do? Did God want me to sacrifice one employee for the good of the company? Frankly, I was paralyzed about making a decision. I didn’t know what to do.

Finally, my wife suggested we go for a weekend drive so I could think clearly. Along the way, my frustration grew, until finally, gripping the steering wheel, I loudly called out to God for help. “What do you want me to do? You called me to this company, gave us financial success, and now it could be taken away. Do you really want to jeopardize the other staff for the sake of this one person?”

Then in a calm and deliberate voice my wife responded, “You are a shepherd to your employees. What would a shepherd do?”

I was thunderstruck. So simple an answer, yet so powerful! A rush descended from my head down to my feet, and a huge burden lifted off my shoulders. I knew God had spoken to me through my wife. I had my answer, and I was going to be obedient in his eyes, not the eyes of the world.

The next day, I went to the employee and told him not to worry and to get better soon because we wanted him back. The company would support him. He turned to me and said, “Don’t you worry. The hospital is performing the surgery for free, and all related expenses are being covered by them.”

To this day, I dread to consider what would have happened if I had not listened and surrendered to God’s will to take care of this single needy, lonely and suffering individual. What a lesson to learn! It was not only about profits but about people. About the people God puts under our care. It’s a lesson so easily forgotten in today’s business environment, where we hear time and time again that success is measured by financial achievement.

As businesspeople, our roles are played out in the context of various relationships—with God, our families, board members, senior executives, employees, clients or customers, vendors, shareholders and others. Interactions occur at every level of leadership as well, whether in personal, one-on-one, team or organizational realms. The same can be said of our roles at home and in every aspect of life. As the story of my dilemma and decision illustrates, conflicts in business often arise in the midst of competing priorities.

For many, the Bible, a source of truth and wisdom, provides the foundation for a consistent approach to leadership. Thus began my lifelong journey to study the Scriptures and transform my leadership style, including transforming my mind, heart and soul to learn what a shepherd would do. It is a journey I have been on for over 20 years that continues to transform me in ways I would have never thought possible, but God knew.

This book is about leadership. It is, in fact, about the greatest leader who ever lived. In The Servant Leader: Transforming Your Heart, Head, Hands, and Habits, Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges encourage us to follow Jesus as the ultimate example of leadership for all purposes. As such, what he demonstrated as a relevant leadership model is to be a shepherd. I have learned that an executive’s highest calling is to become a shepherd leader.

The purpose of this book is to encourage you—through the sharing of experiences, insights, and reflections—to become like a shepherd in your business and personal life settings. While inspired by my spiritual heritage of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the principles and practices are intended to benefit Christian, Jew and Muslim alike. As a matter of fact, the message is all-inclusive, extending to people of all faiths in all societies. My heart’s desire—and the intent of this book—is for you to receive spiritual nourishment while developing the head, heart, hands and habits of a shepherd.

A series of key questions will arise in the process of encouraging you to recognize and respond to your high calling to lead like Jesus and be a good shepherd. If Jesus, as a shepherd, is the ultimate leadership model for all purposes, how did he really lead? What wisdom did he impart to those closest to him? Why is shepherd leadership a more relevant model than traditional business school teaching and conventional wisdom?

Management theories and practices abound. Some have proven valuable, a few extraordinarily so. Several have been passing fancies. In any event, the list of possibilities is endless. Bookshelves in stores, libraries and personal collections sag under the weight of the subject. From the early days of 1920s experiments regarding organizational development, focusing on human relations and motivation, through Drucker’s impressive body of work, to the latest leading edge research efforts, every conceivable approach to management has been considered.

In the midst of it all, what difference could shepherd leadership possibly make, and why does it matter? Who is called to be a shepherd, and what does any of this have to do with you or me? Finally, how does a leader answer the universal call to be a shepherd? What is the true character and nature of the leader as shepherd, and how does it apply in business and other arenas of life?

To help fulfill the purpose and intent of this guide, each issue will be considered in turn. Yet a simple and straightforward question appears at the threshold. Why look to the shepherd?

Jesus called himself one. He saw others as shepherds as well. God the Father spoke of both himself and his Son as shepherds. He also saw his chosen leaders as shepherds. From Abraham to Zephaniah, throughout the Old and New Testaments alike, the shepherd is present and prominent. In Islamic faith and culture, before becoming a prophet Muhammad grew up as a shepherd. In terms both literal and figurative, the shepherd is on the scene, whether caring for a modest flock near the smallest village or presiding as head of state for a vast nation.

In summary, the Bible reveals the shepherd as a leadership calling, role and responsibility with equal force for men and women. When reading about a “shepherd” in a leadership context, please remember that it applies to any person who has any power or influence over another person. The key precept is that this influence is to be used to glorify God, whether in the home, church, schools, business or government. The shepherd transcends time and place, eclipses economic and social status, and bridges the political spectrum. If Jesus, the ultimate role model for leadership, saw himself as and was seen as a shepherd, how did he in turn teach and train those closest to him?

Thank you, Jesus, for your unmerited favor in calling me to be a shepherd to your flock that you entrusted to my care.