Many dream and have aspirations when starting a business, and it is usually a thrilling adventure at that. Nevertheless, one of the main problems that can be noted for startups and their founders is recruitment – to attract visionary and devoted employees to the company, people who are ready to work to achieve the company’s goals and not only do not object but actively participate in the achievement of opposite goals, which can be encountered in any organization. If there is one valuable resource that is central to the success of every organization it is the people and more specifically the team; but, it is not easy to develop especially one that is credible and it needs to be done prayerfully and wisely.
The Challenges People Face When Recruiting Credible Employees
Where there is a start-up involved, the pressure is enormous and every employee recruited can make or mar the company. The stress of getting the right people could be very high simply because everybody counts more in a small team than how he or she does in a larger organization. The struggle to find visionary and loyal staff can be attributed to several factors: The struggle to find visionary and loyal staff can be attributed to several factors:
Limited Resources: The first major challenge that startups face when recruiting employees is the problem of resource constraint, where the startups will be – most of the time – experiencing cash constraints thereby making it hard for them to attract talented and competent employees. Going up against firms that can pay more and provide more may be difficult.
High Expectations: It is sometimes challenging to identify like-minded people since the founders and the entrepreneurs have ambitions for the respective firms.
Trust Issues: During the initial stage the organization should have loyal staff, especially for sensitive information, responsibilities, and reputation of the organization. Hiring not only talented people, but good people at the same time, is very difficult.
Amid these issues, startup founders helplessly touch the heavens for divine intervention to help them source for the correct team. The Bible gives us several examples of people who asked God for directions in making the right choices, such as choosing the right persons to help in the execution of a particular mission.
Ways of Approaching God for Assistance in Selecting Team Members
In the Holy Bible, wherever the leaders are pictured as seeking divine intervention for direction in choosing the right people, we witness it. All these examples remind me that calling for the help of the Higher Forces influences hiring for the better and creates more unison teams.
Moses and the Appointment of Leaders (Exodus 18:13-27): Moses was overburdened with the role of dealing with the Israelites, particularly the task of hearing and deciding on all the disputes they had. His father-in-law, Jethro, gave him suggestions about hiring suitable men who were fearing God to assist him in handling the public. Such advice Moses took and when he prayed for directions, the worthy leaders to be selected to assist share the load.
Nehemiah and the Rebuilding of Jerusalem (Nehemiah 1:11-2:5): When Nehe-Sumuku was given the commission to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, he comprehended sufficiently how he required dependable and devoted people around him. He enlisted the support of God in achieving his goal by praying for the help of God and because of this he was able to recruit people who were congruent to his vision and helped him in achieving the task. ’
Jesus and the Selection of the Apostles (Luke 6:12-16): Even before summoning the Twelve Apostles, Jesus prayed during the night. He prayed to God in a manner to choose the appropriate person who would continue with the Lord’s work. The apostles were not very perfect but they were good and devoted to the service of Jesus Christ and their efforts were instrumental in establishing the groundwork for the propagation of the Gospel.
The Repercussions of Staffing with Unreliable Employees
Recruiting the wrong calibre of employees can be a disaster for any new business. The impact of untrustworthy staff can be felt in several ways: The impact of untrustworthy staff can be felt in several ways:
Moral and Ethical Breaches: Self-serving employees are likely to represent a company’s best interest for personal gains at the expense of the company or clients, use company resources to get personal gains, or even betray the company, clients, or partners. Such actions can affect the company’s image to the worst and result in legal problems.
Financial Losses: Unscrupulous persons especially when holding a position in an organization can lead to an organization losing a lot of money for instance through embezzlement, stealing or even making wrong decisions. More so in a startup company where the resources are limited such losses can be fatal.
Low Morale and Productivity: Such an employee is a threat to any organization since he or she defeats the morale and efficiency of the entire team mainly due to a lack of acceptable organizational culture. They have the potential to moan, bitch and complain or never have the enthusiasm to work, fight and create drama in the workplace.
The Prayer for Visionary Staff and Loyal Staff
Hiring is one of the toughest tasks any startup is going to face, and prayer is one of the most effective ways that the founders of such enterprises can cope with it. Below are some prayers that can be used to seek God’s guidance in this process: Below are some prayers that can be used to seek God’s guidance in this process:
- Prayer for Wisdom in Hiring: God, please help me with the kind of stuff that I am hiring in my company. This led me to select talents that are right not only for this organization but should also embrace this vision and these values. Lord help me to select those who will enhance the growth and success of the firm through presence in the workplace. Amen. Raed Bible Verse: James 1: 5
- Prayer for Trustworthy and Loyal Staff: Lord God, You are the only source and provider of employees who are honest, dedicated, hardworking, and committed to the vision of this company. Guard this organization against anyone who intends to cause it harm and bring around dedicated and ethical employees. Amen. Read Bible Verse: Proverbs 3:5 and 6
- Prayer for Team Unity: Dear God, please grant the staff members of this company to work as one family. Assist us in developing a culture of mutual respect and cooperation, acknowledging one’s and other’s abilities. May we help each other within those positions and work for the goal of building this business with Your love. Amen. Read Bible Verse: Psalm 133: 1
- Prayer for Visionary Staff: Oh God, grant me visionary employees who will provide out-of-the-box ideas, extraordinaire and commitment in their duties. May they be inspired by the goals of this company and present ideas that will help in the achievement of the laid down objectives of this company. Please assist us to develop and foster these talents so that they may grow in parallel with the business. Amen. Read Bible Verse: Proverbs 29:18
- Prayer for Integrity in Leadership: God, help me to keep my integrity and make the right judgment when I am in the position of the leader. Can I set the bar high and encourage ethical practices and policies of truthfulness and clarity in the organization? Amen. Read Bible Verse: Proverbs 11:3
Implementation in the Modern Context of Start-ups
At present, the proliferation of start-ups brings about the problem of hiring employees rapidly without giving much thought to it. Nevertheless, effective business owners cannot underestimate the cost of recruiting and staffing people who have different measures of the company’s values. Supplication is another way which is used to ask for God’s intervention and confirmation on each decision made to hire a particular person.
Every successful founder of a new company must find time for them to pray for the team and the prospects of the new firm. By tabernacle with God, they can gather a team of wise and loyal great staff who are visionaries committed to the business’s vision and values. This, in turn, can culminate in the improvement of organizational performance and its sustainability.
Conclusion
Selection of the right people is one of the most important factors when it comes to the formation of a great startup. Employees with vision as well as employees with organizational commitment can positively influence innovation, organizational climate, and organizational outcomes. But the task of identifying such people is often not an easy one. Thus, when handling these challenges, startup founders should pray to God and ask for direction in assembling the relevant team.
The Bible has many instances where leaders prayed before selecting their associates, and these instances are worth remembering as concerns prayer in the personnel selection context. Indeed, prayer can be operative in the process of developing a discernment that is vital so that one can make the right decisions in today’s high-stakes startup world where every decision is critical.
