Friday, 16 January 2009
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The Business and Faith of Chick Fil-A and Others
by mr pineOver the Christmas holiday, I was back in Georgia visiting my folks for a few days, and one thing that I notice every time I go back is how much more open people and businesses are about their faith in God than here in Maryland. It encourages me quite a bit. Granted, the ratio of practicing Christians to non-Christians in the South is probably considerably higher, but it is one of the things I appreciate about my old home.
I think most Christians know of the fast food chain Chick-fil-A and that the CEO, S. Truett Cathy, is a devout Christian. In fact, the Corporate Purpose Statement reads:
"to glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us and to have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A."
I've known that this was the corporate purpose statement since my sister worked for them many years ago. At the restaurant where she worked they would have morning prayer meetings before they opened and almost everyone who worked there attended church and appreciated the fact that they were closed on Sundays. But the "Christian-ness" of the restaurant was pretty much kept under wraps.
But in one of the restaurants I visited over Christmas, I saw the Corporate Statement above on a huge display, not near the bathrooms, not in a discreet corner, or behind a plant, but rather right next to the main menu board above the cashiers' heads. It was hard to miss. You almost felt like you had to order a #1 combo with a side of "glorifying God by being a faithful steward..." minus pickles.
Later that week, I saw the above commercial from Interstate Batteries. At first I thought, "Oh, great, another cheesy ad from a Foundation for a Better Life," but then the song came on saying, "We need more of God's love..." so then I thought... "Is FfaBL coming out of the closet?" But then on the last few seconds, I saw the weblink to Interstate Batteries. (http://www.interstatebatteries.com/godslove/)
I investigated further and found out that the Chairman of Interstate Batteries, Norm Miller, is also a devout believer, and even has a sample believer's prayer in his testimony on the website. I also found their Mission Statement:
To glorify God as we supply our customers worldwide with top quality, value-priced batteries, related electrical power-source products, and distribution services. Further, our mission is to provide our partners and team members with opportunities which are profitable, rewarding and growth-oriented.
All this got me thinking. Though both of these companies are billion dollar entities, neither of these companies are publicly traded. If they ever went with an IPO, I'm sure the owners would make many millions of dollars by doing so. But I'm sure one of the fears is that if they ever became public companies, the shareholders might force some changes. For Chick-fil-A, at least, a change might be to open on Sundays (fast food restaurants are known to make 20% of revenues from Sunday sales).
In a world where the buck is generally the bottom line, it's nice to see Christian business owners "wasting" money on cheesy TV commercials and not opening on Sundays to try to live out their faith... that it even extends to the business that they do.
I think if I ever open up a small business or something I will make a mission statement like the ones above... I can see it now...
Nate's Plumbing's Mission Statement:
To glorify God as we plunge your toilets with vigor, unclog your drains of nasty wet hair, and fix your leaky pipes until they drip no more... forever and ever, Amen.
What do you think about corporations meshing in faith with their business? What would you think if these companies ever went public and the shareholders made them change that?
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About the Author
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- From: mrpine
- Name: Nathan
- About Me: I attend a rather large church where I serve in many capacities - Sunday School teacher, praise leader, deacon, cranky old man. I sometimes think that my students only like me because I take them to McDonald's occasionally instead of having class. Graduating high school, I wanted to be one of two things - an engineer or a writer. I heard somewhere that in order to be a good writer, you have to read a lot... Hello, Georgia Tech! But even after I had my creativity lobotomy... I mean, finished engineering school, I still had the bug. One day I found Xanga, and over 400 entries later... I still dread reading. My xanga alter ego is xanga.com/nathon
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Comments (28)
In-N-Out, primarily a West Coast chain, has Bible verses printed on their packaging material
I love Chik fil A and respect and appreciate the company for not opening on Sundays. I didn't know they weren't publicly traded, however, I'm glad to know that they wouldn't sacrifice the mission in order to make more money.
Lol, I'm sorry, I don't think I could take anything like that seriously... The plumbers mission statement was hilarious, though.
Despite how it might bring people together I disagree with religion being part of an institution that is not dependent on it. I disagree with religion being a part of business in general.
While I appreciate the positive outcomes that may come from religious unity, or unity in any sense, I still remind myself that in reality its not ethical or business like to institute religion. It discourages people who think much differently from being a part of these corporations, and it wouldn't be the first time a corporation has ever gone all Christian and then mistreated someone of a differing faith, causing lawsuits.
Religious unity should be expressed outside, and not merged with, a company's goals.Though I can't say that as an atheist myself I would take the religious jingles seriously.
I think it's grand of them to stick to their beliefs and what they want to do. Good for them.
With the stock market the way it is, I really doubt many privately-held companies of any stripe are bursting to go public at the moment.
I don't have a problem with someone organizing their own business however they like, as long as they don't discriminate in who they hire, serve, etc. 92% of Americans say they "believe in God" anyway, so the mission statements shouldn't give too much offense. I'm guessing even most atheists will like those chicken sandwiches. Mmmmm.
i'm pretty much against it... unless they really want to carry out their religious beliefs and only hire/serve those of the same faith.
I think that it is good to incorporate what you believe into your business. It is very businesslike. When you own a business, you put everything that you are and everything that you have into it. Most times, the owners in a sense, are the business. So how can you force someone to separate who they are from what they do. You can't. If you are a Christian, you will know this to be more true, that a house divided against itself will not stand. Obviously these companies are doing something right to be as successful as they are, so who are we to say what they do or do not do is "businesslike".
It always makes me happy to see a company standing up for their religious beliefs.
@misswonderj@xanga - I agree.
The danger is that the "Christian" label might spill over into all aspects of the business. How far do the businesses take it, do they choose only Christian suppliers/vendors and employees? Showing preferential treatment for beliefs rather than value or performance?
Christian companies probably can out-compete others, but is it because they are a worthy venture, or merely religious networking? It puts my business at a disadvantage because I can't display the Darwin fish or voice my often atheist opinion without conservative Christians being affronted and taking their dollar elsewhere. Trust me, it happens!
@SandraDeeDees@xanga - I don't think it should matter if they only buy from Christian vendors. I don't agree with this business philosophy, but it would be unfair to say that Christians shouldn't make preferences on who they select to do business with, when almost every single corporation in america already gives preferential treatment to specific groups of people. Certified Woman Owned companies and Certified Minority Owned companies get preferential treatment with buyers from every major company. We can't say that one group deserves special treatment and another doesn't.
@MichaelCavaness@xanga - The preferences shouldn't have anything to do with religion, that's like saying the government won't choose to fund historically black colleges because they don't like black people, do you see the problem here? Business is business. It isn't "Christian" business.
This methodology would end in only scandal and failure. Understand the concepts of BUSINESS.
To those who think that religious beliefs should not be integrated into a business model... a thought/question
What do you think about companies who are "green" and only buy from "green" suppliers and promote "green" initiatives? Would they be seen as discriminating against "non-green" businesses? Or using their environmentalist networking to have an advantage over other businesses?
How is a company standing up for their belief in "saving the planet" any different than one that stands for "Christian values"?
@MichaelCavaness@xanga - In fact, just so you're aware, Chick-fil-A does make faith-based choices on suppliers... the toys in their kid's meals are/were from the Veggie Tales organization, a solidly Christian-themed group. Should they be forced to find a secular supplier for their kids' toys?
I love Chick-Fil-A. They have super yummy food. The fact they as a company they choose to exhibit their Christian beliefs is a bonus to me. It doesn't change the taste of the food. :)
I love Chick-fil-a, for so so so many reasons, quality being one of them. Every store I've been to is ALWAYS clean, food is fresh and yummy and the cashiers are ALWAYS friendly and don't have that "Hate. Life." look on their face. XD
I hate Chik fil-a. Their food is so bloody nasty. Although they do have decent waffle fries, but the chicken itself tasted... horrible.
I thiknk it's good taht glorifying God is part of their mission. As christians, that is what are daily life should be about. I do nto think this means that they can only hire or serve Christians.. and having a ministry does not necessarily mean that you must "preach at people" but merely serving God through what you do.
As a Christian, I would not be opposed to working at or even dining at / utilizing services from a buisness dedicated to a different faith. I can still glorify God in that. Sure these places may not be putting scripture verses in neon signs above their casiers... but, they aren't hiding their beliefs either... with that... it is really the consumer's choice to utilize their facility.
i think it's great; i met mr. cathy a few years back and he's a very nice man. anyway, if you've worked in fast food before, you know that they don't always allow you to be off on the weekends or on a sunday to worship at your local church. i think it's good that their practices allow their employees to go to church on sunday morning; or at least if you don't go to church, you're guaranteed that day off.
I think it's a great thing, good for them!
Btw....that picture is making me really hungry!! 
Lol on the plumbing ad!
The two companies mentioned in the original post still have to comply with federal Equal Employment Opportunity requirements (ie, can't discriminate based on ethnicity, gender, creed/faith, sexual preference, etc.). However, a good employer would make sure that a newly-hired employee would be made aware of the company's purpose statement or mission statement at the time of orientation (the first day on the job). If the employee feels strongly that they don't believe in the mission statement, the employee is free to say "thanks, but no thanks" to the job, and walk away.
These companies are obviously not trying to keep their commitment to their faith a
secret. For an atheist or devout non-Christian (ie, Buddhist, Wiccan, etc.) to apply for a job that they know to be outspoken in its Christian beliefs and then turn around and cry foul, would (to me) be like an avid MADD supporter going to work at a Beverages and More (Bev-Mo, a warehouse-type liquor store). You knew when you applied that their beliefs were opposed to yours ... what makes you think they'll change once you start working there?
Along the lines of what Errborne said, it's the consumer's choice to do business there ... it's also the ultimately employee's choice to work there. Unless the employee is a bad one ... then the employer can choose to fire him, if it is appropriate.
@Sir_Bissel@xanga - I agree! We ate there once and my chicken sandwich didn't have anything on it but a pickle. So I hate pickles so I took it off and was left with this dry awful piece of chicken on bread. Good for them for being true to their values, but the Holy Spirit isn't working in the making of that food.
I applaud Chick-fil-A and others like them!
I'm old enough to remember when nothing was open on Sundays and it was even hard to find a gas station that was open! If you were traveling on Sunday, the Howard Johnson's were open on the turnpikes. The all might dollar has become the god of corporate America and I won't be surprised when (it's only a matter of time) stores and malls are even open on Christmas and Easter! 
BTW, they even had a prayer in public schools and we even said "in God we trust" during the pledge of allegiance!
@kerusso - don't you mean "one nation under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance? "In God We Trust" is on our money.
@heyyoulady@xanga - Oops!
We were talking about money and that's what stuck in my mind! 