- Justin Forman has just written an excerpt Ken Eldred's God is at Work book in the Business as Mission Network Newsletter. If you are just now exploring BAM, It takes us to the next level:
Now that I get Business as Mission, who is doing it, what roles do they play, and where are they serving?
He identifies nine roles:
- Founder or manager of a Kingdom business. Those with entrepreneurial or managerial skills are building and leading successful businesses in developing nations.
- Lender to the poor. Christians are extending microloans to those considered unbankable. They are also providing business and spiritual instruction to loan recipients who typically establish simple cottage industry ventures.
- Mentor and financier of Kingdom businesses. Christian business professionals are providing the necessary funding, advising and mentoring to local Christians who are establishing or operating businesses in the developing world.
- Trainer in Kingdom business. Some are training local managers in the basic skills and principles of business. These training courses typically include instruction in biblical values and principles that lead to successful business.
- Short-term consultant to Kingdom businesses. Christian professionals are engaging in short-term missions work that seek to bless business owners in developing nations.
- Expert advisor to Kingdom businesses. Western Christians with relevant business experience are using their knowledge, expertise and contact network to assist Kingdom businesses in the developing world.
- Sales partner to Kingdom businesses. Kingdom business professionals and organizations located in the First World are seeking to promote Kingdom business companies in developing nations by marketing products or establishing sales channel partnerships.
- Investor in Kingdom businesses. God has blessed some people with the financial resources to be major investors in Kingdom businesses around the world.
- Manager of Kingdom business funds. Though this role is still emerging, Kingdom business professionals can also act as private equity fund managers. Working within existing laws governing the establishment and management of investment funds, they can serve entrepreneurs, managers and investors by assisting and funding Kingdom businesses.
Get the rest of this great article in the Business as Mission Network Newsletter, and God is at Work
Ken Eldred is currently CEO of Living Stones Foundation and Chairman of the Board of Advisors of Parakletos @ Ventures. For over 20 years, Ken served as CEO of Inmac, a public company he founded. He has assisted in the founding of several other successful companies, including Ariba Technologies. Ken is involved in ventures in the US, China, Europe and India, and he advises various Kingdom business ventures and ministries. He has an MBA from Stanford and was a Visiting Fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution.
Ken is the co editor of On Kingdom Business, winner of a 2004 Christianity Today Book Award. Ken and his wife, Roberta, have three sons and spend their time in Northern California and Colorado.
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