Nabil A. Ibrahim

Leslie W. Rue

Patricia P. McDougall

G. Robert Greene

ABSTRACT. There is a sizeable group of self-described

"Christian" companies which have declared their belief in

the successful merging of biblical principles with business

activities. As these companies have become more visible, an

increasing number of anecdotal newspaper and magazine

articles about these companies have appeared. Surprisingly,

no rigorous research has been conducted prior to our recent

study. This article provides national estimates of the size and

predominant characteristics of self-identified "Christian"

companies. In addition, the study investigated the types of

relationships these companies maintained with their employees,

customers, communities, and suppliers.

Today there is a sizeable group of self-described

"Christian" companies which have declared their

belief in, and active pursuit of, the successful merging

of biblical principles with business activities.

While the number of such companies in the United

Nabil Ibrahim is an Assistant Professor of Business Administration

at Augusta College, Augusta, Georgia. He has published articles,

case studies, and professional papers in the areas of business policy

and strategy.

Dr. Leslie VV. Rue is Professor of Management in the College of

Business Administration at Georgia State University. He is the

author of over forty articles, cases, and papers that have appeared

in academic and practitioner journals. He has coauthored eight

textbooks in the field of management.

Dr. Patricia P. McDougall is an Assistant Professor of Management

at Georgia State University. Her research focuses primarily on

new venture strategies and international entrepreneurship and

has been published in several academic journals.

Dr. G. Robert Grenne is an Associate Professor of Management at

Old Dominion University, No~olk, Virginia where he teaches

strategic management and entrepreneurship. He is a Contributing

Editor to

articles in various academic and practitionerjournals.

Spiritual Fitness in Business and has published

States appears to be growing, research in this area has

been anecdotal in nature. As far as one can determine,

no empirical research has been conducted to

determine and measure the dominant characteristics

or cultures of these companies. Thus, although the

cultures of various types of organizations have been

studied and analyzed, no research has been conducted

on the practices or cultures of any existing

"Christian" organizations.

Organizational values and culture

Much theory and research has focused on the role of

values and corporate culture in organizational life. In

recent years, research on organizational values seems

to have evolved from a focus on the value orientations

132

N. A. Ibrahim et al.

References

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Applications

Umstott, D.: 1988,

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School of Business Administration,

Augusta College,

Augusta, GA 30910,

U.S.A.

College of Business Administration,

Georgia State University,

Atlanta, GA 30303,

U.S.A.

College of Business Administration,

Old Dominion University,

Norfolk, VA 23529,

U.S.A.

values 0f organizations.

In earlier studies, values were examined mainly

from an "organizational behavior" perspective by

focusing primarily on the values of individual

organizational members - those "broad, general

beliefs about some way of behaving or some end

state that is preferred by the individual" (Umstott,

1988). Starting in about 1970, researchers began to

study values from a broader perspective - within the

context of organizational policy and strategy. As a

result, considerable attention was given to organizational

values. Organizational values are defined in

the same way as individual values "except that the

end states are those that are preferred by the organization

and shared by organizational members . . .

Cultures of successful organizations see a good

match between individual and organizational values"

(Umstott, 1988). Indeed, the terms ~corporate character,"

"corporate values," "corporate culture," and

"core values" have been used synonymously by many

of managers in organizations to an emphasis on

JournaI of Business Ethics

© 1991 10: 123--132, 1991.KluwerAcademic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

Characteristics and Practices of

"Christian-Based" Companies