It has been said that Culture trumps Strategy. Coca Cola Bottling Company Consolidated takes this a step further by believing that Culture trumps Everything. Last week, Bill Moore and I had the privilege to attend the most recent t-Factor (Transformation Factor) Summit at the CCBCC headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina where we witnessed a culture of Servant Leadership that CCBCC has been dedicated to creating and establishing deeply into the company’s DNA. Our experience was that CCBCC not only believes that culture is a reflection of the actions of an organization’s leaders but that they practice it with excellence and humility.
CCBCC: Host of the t-Factor Summit
CCBCC’s stated Purpose is to honor God in all they do, serve others, pursue excellence, and grow profitably. CCBCC believes that their culture and their purpose not only go hand in hand but are one in the same. They stressed that building a purpose driven culture starts with a committed leader but isn’t achieved overnight – it takes time, dedication, and perseverance. Participants at the conference were challenged to create written purpose statements not only for their companies but for themselves as individuals to ensure that we spend the limited time we have on earth as good stewards of what we have been given.
CCBCC believes that their 16,000 employees across 16 states are the most important resource they have. They also believe that a purpose driven culture fosters purpose driven careers which leads to not only engagement at work but also more fulfilling lives. Because of these beliefs, CCBCC has created an employee driven value statement with the desire that employees find purpose in their careers at CCBCC and become servant leaders themselves. This value statement has become a competitive advantage in attracting the best employees available in the market.
The leadership team at CCBCC is dedicated to inspiring employees to live out vision and not work for compensation alone. They offer many flexible but non-mandatory opportunities for growth, inviting employees to bring their whole self to work. They sponsor regular prayer groups and bible studies, offer small group mentoring programs on topics such as faith, marriage, and purpose, and organize community service events that allow employees to engage in servant leadership outside of the company. Additionally, chaplains have been employed at CCBCC for the past 18 years because the CEO Frank Harrison understood that it is often during times of crisis in people’s lives that they can be reached and supported and sense God’s love for them best.
Key Takeaways from the t-Factor Summit
To be certain that faith and ministry emphasis in the workplace is approached properly but does not experience legal paralysis, there was a presentation by legal experts at the summit. Company sponsored faith-based programs are legal – the First Amendment protects the freedom to exercise speech and religion. The EEOC compliance Manual Section 12 allows these programs as long as employees can opt out of them and employers do not require or coerce employees to abandon or adopt a religious practice. These guidelines are in the best interests of everyone and align with the religious freedom our nation was founded on.
Dr. Bill Jones spoke to our group about the stages of spiritual growth and how our understanding of this process and progress is crucial to our ability to help people move along a path to maturity in this critical area of their lives. He also stressed the multiplication factor which finds application not only in impacting someone’s life but also in equipping them to invest in others in the same way. This can be accomplished in the workplace as well if not better than anywhere else – it may seem like a strange idea to some but the business field is a tremendous platform for ministry. We can view people as an asset to be used or we can view them as having intrinsic value and who are placed in our path to bless and help and invest in. Deciding to make a difference for others will always cost us something but it is worthwhile when we understand that we are temporary stewards of what we have and we can have an eternal impact when we steward it well. This is something the leadership of CCBCC understands well.
Our Commitment to Transformation
CCBCC desires to meet the emotional, physical, and spiritual needs of those they encounter. This is a commitment we have at PacMoore as well – for many years we have been focused on creating a culture that fosters whole life transformation in our employees, communities, customers, vendors, and all we come in contact with. We are food contract manufacturers but dry blending, extrusion, spray drying, and our other capabilities are not our ultimate purpose. When we execute them well we grow profitably which is critical but our ultimate purpose is to commit our work to Jesus Christ and honor Him as we serve others.
We are thrilled to be connected with CCBCC and are encouraged to continue on with the outreach efforts we have established including chaplain services, bible studies, prayer groups, spiritual fellowships, mentoring, community service, and more. The learning at the Summit has encouraged us and “motivated for more acts of love and good works” as it says in Hebrews 10:24.
We are grateful to CCBCC for their investment in us. We are grateful to God for the opportunity.
