REPLIES: INSTRUCTIONSThe student must reply to at least two classmates’ threads by 11:59 p.m. (ET) Sunday of theassigned Module: Week. Your replies must include meaningful and substantive contributions tothe discussion, and ideally provoke and challenge the thinking of your colleagues. Each replymust be 200-300 words.Replies: Specific Reference RequirementsFor Discussion Replies: Introducing HR and Christian Worldview and Discussion Replies: Shapingthe Future of HR, include a references section, and be sure to have in-text citations for thefollowing sources:• At least 1 citation from Valentine: Human Resource Management.• At least 1 citation from Keller: Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work toGod’s Work.• At least 1 citation from a related scholarly journal.For Discussion Replies: Exploring Employee Engagement, Globalization, and ChristianWorldview and Discussion Replies: Exploring Job Design, Staffing, and ChristianWorldview, include a references section, and be sure to have in-text citations for the followingsources:• At least 1 citation from Valentine: Human Resource Management.• At least 1 citation from Hardy: The Fabric of this World: Inquiries into Calling,Career Choice, and the Design of Human Work.• At least 1 citation from a related scholarly journal.
Reply # 1
Discussion Thread: Shaping the Future of HR
When given a chance to speak before the CEOs of the Business Roundtable, I would encourage them to create the future of HR by embracing the strategic rigor within their theological lens. Modern work is an issue of burnout, lack of engagement, and increasing turnover, not just technical failure. They are failures of meaning, dignity, and purpose. Management professionals should transform ways of human resource management to not only be seen as a productivity enhancement tool, but also as a system through which people achieve flourishing. Based on strategic HR theory in combination with the Christian perspective of the world, I would advise CEOs to implement three fundamental suggestions that will assist in the paradigm shift toward more comprehensible and effective leadership: (1) structure jobs to reflect vocation and purpose, (2) transform leaders to steward people and not just results, and (3) build culture through values-based alignment and shared moral responsibility.
- Design Work that Reflects Vocation and Purpose
The first recommendation is to reframe job design and employee development through the lens of vocation. Hardy (1990) argues that work, at its best, is a calling—a means through which individuals participate in God’s ongoing creation. This insight challenges organizations to go beyond efficiency models and instead ask: What kind of work helps people serve others meaningfully? Valentine et al. (2025) echo this in advocating for job enrichment, autonomy, and development strategies that treat employees as assets to be cultivated, not costs to be minimized. A study has determined that employees perceive meaningful work when they get the chance to make meaningful contributions to objectives and goals, and their ability to be engaged, innovative, and resilient all increases accordingly (Zhang et al., 2024). CEOs ought to promote job positions that enable employees to utilize their talents and integrate day-to-day activities within organizational values. Doing so can restore dignity and meaning to the workplace and reduce disconnection among today’s workforces.
- Develop Leaders Who Steward People, Not Just Performance
Second, I would challenge CEOs to shift leadership development from authority-centered models to stewardship-centered leadership. As Keller (2012) writes, work is not merely a means to achieve success; it is a way to serve others and contribute to the greater good. Leaders, therefore, must be trained not only in managing KPIs but also in developing and nurturing the human potential entrusted to them. Valentine et al. (2025) recommend the ethic-based, emotionally intelligent leadership development, which enhances trust and group performance. According to the empirical evidence published in the Frontiers of Psychology, servant leadership and transformational leadership forms are found to attain employee retention and organizational citizenship behavior (Goestjahjanti et al., 2022). CEOs should focus on creating leaders who do not just consider their teams as performers but as people with experiences, challenges, and abilities. Such a leadership style parallels the Christian principles of humility, care, and relationship accountability.
- Cultivate Culture through Values-Based Alignment and Moral Responsibility
Finally, culture must be treated not as a side effect, but as a strategic and moral imperative. According to Hardy (1990), one of the institutions in which modern people search for meaning and identity is the workplace. Organizations are therefore the ones mandated with the duty of molding that environment in a manner that indicates fairness, confidence, and honesty. Theologically based culture of stewardship, dignity, and mutual accountability can be tactically applied with the means of employer branding, selection systems, and ethical standards (Valentine et al., 2025). Besides, organizations higher in the level of values congruence among employees and the organization exhibit greater performance and retention (Goestjahjanti et al., 2022). CEOs must intentionally define, model, and measure culture, not simply for brand consistency, but for ethical coherence. As Keller (2012) emphasizes, organizations should be communities where people are valued not just for what they produce, but for who they are.
Conclusion
The future of work lies with automation, AI, and social upheaval, and HR needs to change itself as a system that creates compliance and measures into a field of dignity of the imago Dei in every worker. My proposed three strategies: (1) structure jobs to reflect vocation and purpose, (2) transform leaders to steward people and not just results, and (3) build culture through values-based alignment and shared moral responsibility, provide a blueprint that the CEOs can use to create strategically successful, theologically sound workplaces. Christian theology does not retreat from the world of business; it redefines what faithful success looks like in it.
References
Goestjahjanti, F. S., Pasaribu, S. B., Sadewo, T. I., Srinita, S., Meirobie, I., & Irawan, A. P. (2022). The effect of transformational leadership, servant leadership, and organizational learning on manufacturing industry performance. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 895361. to an external site.
Hardy, L. (1990). The fabric of this world: Inquiries into calling, career choice, and the design of human work. Eerdmans.
Keller, T. (2012). Every good endeavor: Connecting your work to God’s work. Dutton.
Valentine, S. R., Meglich, P. A., Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2025). Human resource management (17th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Zhang, J., Javaid, M., Liao, S., Choi, M., & Kim, H. E. (2024). How and when humble leadership influences employee adaptive performance? The roles of self-determination and employee attributions. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 45(3), 377–396. to an external site.
Reply # 2
Good afternoon class and esteemed members of the Roundtable. It is a honor and a great responsibility to speak with the CEO’s whose organizations make up nearly one-quarter of America’s GDP and support so many U.S. jobs. The influence used goes beyond balance sheets since it shapes the way work is experienced by millions and how our nation flourishes. I want to share three recommendations for cultivating human resource practices that are strategically and theologically grounded. These ideas pull from current best practices in human resource management while also integrating a Christian worldview that sees work as a business necessity and as a sacred calling.
The first recommendation is to align talent strategy with organizational purpose and vocation. Hardy (1990) believes work is not just an economic transaction and that it is a vocation for people to participate in God’s creative and redemptive purposes. Translating this into modern business means recognizing employees as persons and not just units of output. Valentine et al. (2023) thinks that aligning talent management with organizational mission enhances engagement, retention, and discretionary effort. However, this alignment is not achieved through vision statements by itself, and it requires deliberate recruitment, onboarding, and career development processes that help employees connect their own aspirations and skills to the larger mission of the organization. When leaders take the time to help employees understand how their work serves corporate goals and the common good, they create a sense of calling that goes beyond contractual obligation. Keller (2012) believes that when people understand their labor as part of God’s work, they approach it with renewed purpose and resilience.
The second recommendation is to build a culture of stewardship planted in fairness, transparency, and development. Stewardship, in the theological sense, means managing people, resources, and opportunities in ways that honor the trust placed in us. Luke 16:10–12 (ESV, 2001) says that those who are faithful with little will be faithful with much, and in the corporate sphere, that faithfulness is expressed through the equitable treatment of employees. Research agrees that transparent HR practices increase employee trust, which influences performance and loyalty (Biswakarma, 2022). Valentine et al. (2023) believe that fairness in compensation, access to professional development, and equitable promotion processes are essential for engagement. These are not just compliance measures, they are moral imperatives that come from the belief that all people are made in the image of God and therefore deserve dignity and equity. Keller (2012) sees training and development as an act of cultivation, similar to tending a garden, where investing in an employee’s growth multiplies the organization’s capacity for innovation and service. By approaching pay equity audits, transparent communication, and continuous learning as acts of stewardship, organizations not only build trust but also position themselves for long-term sustainability.
The third recommendation is to create ethical courage and restorative practices in organizational decision-making. The marketplace today is characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity, and HR leaders can find themselves at the choice of business pressures and moral dilemmas. Hardy (1990) wants us to see work not only as a participation in creation but as a redemptive act. This requires moral clarity and the willingness to act justly even when the cost is high. Strategically, studies show that organizations with strong ethical cultures consistently outperform their peers in the long run (Nassif et al., 2021). From a Christian perspective, ethical courage means standing for justice, protecting the vulnerable, and seeking reconciliation when harm has occurred. In practical terms, this may involve creating safe, non-retaliatory systems for employees to report wrongdoing, implementing conflict resolution processes that prioritize restoration over mere compliance, and going beyond the legal minimum in wellness and safety programs to care for employees’ holistic well-being. Valentine et al. (2023) believes that ethics in HR is both a governance function and a culture-building exercise, and Christian ethics deepen this commitment by making truth-telling, fairness, and reconciliation non-negotiable values.
In conclusion, I ask you as the leaders of the Business Roundtable is clear. Use your talent strategy with organizational purpose and vocation so that employees see their work as a calling and not just a contract. Build a culture of stewardship through fairness, transparency, and development, treating people as image-bearers whose growth is part of your organizational responsibility. And finally, create ethical courage and restorative practices so that your leadership protects the vulnerable and promotes reconciliation, even when doing so carries short-term costs. These principles are not crazy ideas, but they are strategic advantages in a world where trust, engagement, and integrity drive both performance and reputation. Keller (2012) believed that work done with excellence and integrity becomes a testimony to the employees and stakeholders who witness it firsthand, but to society at large to see that there is a better way to do business. By integrating theological soundness with strategic excellence, you have the opportunity to shape organizations that are profitable, high-performing, and deeply human.
References
Biswakarma, S. K. (2022). Effect of performance appraisal system on employee satisfaction in budget hotels of kolkata. International Journal of Circular Economy and Waste Management, 2(2), 1-10. to an external site.
Hardy, L. (1990). The fabric of this world: Inquiries into calling, career choice, and the design of human work. Wm. B. Eerdmans.
Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001) Crossway. (Original work published 2001)
Keller, T. (2012). Every good endeavor: Connecting your work to God’s work. Dutton.
Nassif, A. G., Hackett, R. D., & Wang, G. (2021). Ethical, virtuous, and charismatic leadership: An examination of differential relationships with follower and leader outcomes. Journal of Business Ethics, 172(3), 581-603. to an external site.
Valentine, S., Meglich, P., Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2023). Human resource management. Cengage Learning.
