God Is My CEO: Following God's Principles in a Bottom-Line World [Hardcover]

Larry S. Julian (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2001

Many business leaders struggle with the dilemma of being successful and living a life with purpose. Often, their personal beliefs seem to conflict with the bottom-line demands of today's business world. God Is My CEO offers a practical and inspirational source of guidance for achieving a meaningful and accomplished life.

God Is My CEO details the experiences of highly successful business leaders who have managed to create impressive bottom-line results while upholding God's principals, including:

Horst Schulze, CEO, The Ritz Carlton Hotel Company

Ken Melrose, Chairman and CEO, The Toro Company

Bob O. Naegle Jr., Former Chairman and Co-owner, Rollerblade

Al Quie, Former Governor, State of Minnesota

C. William Pollard, Chairman and CEO, The ServiceMaster Company

God Is My CEO will help you . . .

Develop your God-given talents and skills, while building a spiritual center.

Focus your energies and thoughts on moving forward with a sense of purpose.

Learn to apply a practical daily plan to overcome the toughest business issues.

Gain ideas and encouragement through real-life stories of successful business leaders who have faced the same challenges.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Will money or morality emerge victorious in the war zone of work skirmishes? Julian, with seasoned experience as a leadership management consultant for companies such as 3M, Honeywell, AT&T and General Mills, provides solid answers for this troubling dilemma. He discusses 10 key principles that he deems essential for transforming workplace problems into both spiritual and bottom-line success stories. Each chapter poses an issue (such as developing patience, cultivating leadership by example, yielding control, making tough decisions and maintaining right priorities) followed by a solution. In a chapter on "integration," for example, Julian poses the bottom-line question: "How do I balance employee needs with profit obligations?" To explain his approach (to "integrate people and profits into win-win solutions"), Julian details the experiences of two business executives who have creatively solved this problem, and shares the underlying principles they implemented. Indeed, the personal stories of business leaders form the core of the book, tied together by Julian's practical steps and discussion questions at the close of each chapter. Readers will be especially intrigued by the trials and triumphs of such well-regarded business executives as S. Truett Cathy (Chick-Fil-A), Bob O. Naegele Jr. (Rollerblade), C. William Pollard (The ServiceMaster Company) and Marilyn Carlson Nelson (Carlson Companies). Many leaders, whether newly indoctrinated to the world of business or veteran executives, will find tools for the trade in this excellent guidebook to living out one's faith in a ruthless "bottom-line" world.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

"God Is My CEO is direct, on target, beautiful, and convincing. Excellent!" -- Zig Ziglar, motivational teacher, author of See You at the Top

"Larry Julian has written a game plan to help all of us score a touchdown in life." -- Dan Reeves, head coach, Atlanta Falcons

"Unlike the countless leadership books on the market, this one will never be out of date." -- Marc Belton, president, New Ventures, General Mills --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Adams Media (March 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580624774
• ISBN-13: 978-1580624770
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,072,237 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, inspirational reading, November 3, 2001

By 

Roger E. Herman (Greensboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: God Is My CEO: Following God's Principles in a Bottom-Line World (Hardcover)

America is populated by a great many people who attend religious services on a regular basis. They affiliate with a congregation of people who think, believe, and worship as they do. Millions of people build their lives around their religious beliefs and principles.

Then there's business. In the world of business, profit is worshipped by corporate leaders and employees at all levels. Achieving corporate goals becomes all-consuming, with little room for bible-based principles. Biblical teachings are fine for the personal side of life, but business is business. Or is it?

The movement known as spirituality in the workplace has been gaining momentum, with supporters careful to differentiate between spirituality and religion. The human spirit is central to the corporate spirituality theme, but God and religion do seem to find their way into the picture. When people express their spirituality, their religious beliefs underlie their values and approach, even if specific teachings are not overtly expressed.

In God is My CEO, Larry Julian surveys the landscape through the stories of twenty well-respected leaders. Each of these influential people runs a business through the application of biblical principles, with great results. You'll learn from people like Bill George, CEO of Medtronic; Jerry Colangelo, owner of the Phoenix Suns and the Arizona Diamondbacks; Al Quie, the former governor of the state of Minnesota; and Archie Dunham, Chairman and CEO of Conoco, Inc.; Horst Schulz, CEO of the Ritz Carlton Hotel Company; and Truett Cathy, founder and Chairman of Chick-Fil-A, an amazingly successful quick service restaurant chain that's always closed on Sunday.

The helpful organization of the book takes us first through an understanding of the Clash of Two Worlds. You'll learn about the relationships and conflicts between profits and principles. The ten sections that follow each includes a statement of the issue and Julian's suggestion of a solution. The rest of each section is two chapters telling the story of the biblically-based executives. The ten sections are Purpose, Success, Courage, Patience, Leadership by Example, Yielding Control, Tough Decisions, Servant Leadership, Integration, and Priorities.

Each chapter explores real-life issues with some intriguing stories that will make you think. The religious theme is, of course, prominent in this book. However, while it is ever-present, the biblical message is comfortably woven into the vignettes. You'll be surprised how fast a read this book is, as you turn page after page to follow the stories.

Roger

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Julian Captures the New Spirit of Business!, April 30, 2001

By 

A Fan (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: God Is My CEO: Following God's Principles in a Bottom-Line World (Hardcover)

In his powerful book, _God Is My CEO_, Larry Julian moves the "bottom line" in business from "profit no matter what" to "profit from doing the right thing". Written from experiences in the trenches of the business world, this authoritative book contains real, personal stories from real people who have the courage to wrestle with real challenges and solve their dilemmas using their true beliefs, not the just latest fad management techniques. Julian's ability to get today's business leaders to bare their hearts and share their personal struggles allows_God Is My CEO_ to build a very credible case for tuning in and listening to the higher power that exists in all of us. The moving accounts of leadership turmoil and victory, the thought-provoking discussion questions and the immensely helpful "how-to's" found in this book make it a work that should be read and re-read by all of us who lead businesses today. I give my highest praise to _God Is My CEO_. It's the right thing to do.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Airplane Reading, short on substance, May 8, 2006

By 

Stephen Northcutt (Kauai, HI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: God Is My Ceo: Following God's Principles in a Bottom-Line World (Paperback)

For some earlier, for some later, for some never, but for a lot of business people as we cross 50 years in age, we start to get eternally minded. I saw the book title and thought, wow, I would like to read this. I would like to be sure my espoused beliefs and work life are in as much alignment as possible.

It is a fast read and easy, doesn't challenge you very much. This is what I consider optimal airplane reading.

However, it left me hungry for more. It is basically a series of short stories, but trying to be a good Christian ( or I would think Good Jew, or Good Muslim ) in business is very hard. In the way, the book disappoints, I was entertained, even touched by some of the stories and I believe stories can change behavior. However, I don't think I can honestly say I learned any more about what I can do differently or better.

Glad I read it, don't plan to keep it on my shelves