Welcome back to the Christianity and Business Podcast, an initiative of the RTW Dunham College of Business at Houston Christian University. I'm your host, Darren Shear, and this is a show that helps Christian business leaders to integrate biblical values into business. On today's episode, we're joined by Alex Caesar. Alex is CEO of Alex Caesar Ventures, which is revolutionizing businesses with biblical truths. From the football field to the boardroom, Alex has excelled as a leader. During his time at Texas AM, he was team captain on the football team and MagnaCum Law Engineering grad. Shortly after, he became president of two multimillion dollar real estate companies and scaled his personal portfolio to 340 units creatively using zero dollars out of his pocket. I think they call that OPM, right? Other people's money.
SPEAKER_00That's what they call it.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Now Alex is following his calling and showing other businesses and individuals how to succeed. And his focus is organizational improvement through cultural transformation. Alex, welcome to the Christianity and Business Podcast.
SPEAKER_00Thank you so much, Darren. I appreciate it. I'm happy to be here. Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_02Excited to have you. When did you first realize God wanted to be involved in your work in business?
SPEAKER_00Wow. So I realized that early on. So my grandfather's a pastor, dad's a pastor. So I kind of had that uh upbringing and installation very early on, but it became very personal to me as I got into my teen years and later on professionally. But they just always told me, you know, whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might. So I knew that in everything that I did, there was a way to honor God. That I was just a steward of everything that I was placed in charge of and an owner of nothing. So I realized that early on the layers begin to stack on and add on as I begin to have more professional experience.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And I I saw that you said I learned that culture was not just a good idea, but a god idea. Absolutely. When you talk about culture with Christ, what do you mean by that?
SPEAKER_00So, what I mean by that, culture is not just a good thing, but a god thing. So the way that I view organizational culture is this: two ways. Number one, it's a God-given responsibility for us to steward the things we're placed in charge of. Whenever he placed Adam in the garden, he said to take care of it, to cultivate it. So that root of culture is simply how we care for things. And then the way I define culture, it's three words that kind of wrap up everything into one. It's beliefs, behaviors, and then what we all care about, results. So how do we uh influence a belief system that in turns influences the way we behave that produces an intended result? So the way I've been able to kind of combine those things is one to recognize that we are uh given a responsibility of stewardship and how we care for our people, our uh our staff, our resources, our time is a direct correlation to what God has given us and how He expects us to behave. So um that that's how I began with it. And then I started to go into the different ways of how culture is created. So I defined it first, you know, what is culture? Another thing that I dove into is why does it matter? So just to give you a few stats, in 2019, Lifeway Research said that uh 4,500 churches closed down. Another stat from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said that 47 million Americans quit their jobs in 2021. Not they were fired, they voluntarily walked away from it. So there are many other things, dysfunction within organizations that point to hey, we have a problem and we have a culture problem. So we're experiencing symptoms of a culture sickness within a lot of organizations. So why does it matter? And then lastly, how is it created? So, how do I influence those beliefs? How do I influence behavior within the organization? And I kind of kind of came up with building blocks of of how to do that. So, vision, mission, purpose, core values, branding, team building, and authenticity. And we can dive into any one of those that you want to, but what I did was took the word of God. Because if we're if we look at it, it's like, why do we have such a great, powerful source of truth, such a great, uh, powerful tool? And we hear it on Sunday, but we walk into the workplace on Monday and it's like we forgot it. So for me, being a young president of a company and trying to figure things out, I turned to a source that was familiar to me, a source that it changed my life. And I said, Hey, if this can change my life, if this can alter my eternity, it can help me today. And I just begin to um kind of dive into the word of God and just let the spirit minister to me. And he and I just say that the spirit spoke to me simply simply to speak through me. A lot of things that God revealed in the way of uh vision and mission and purpose from his word, I just took those principles and applied them to business uh and have been able to see a good deal of uh success in the worldly sense of how most people view success uh by using biblical principles and truth.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. What's an example of one of those biblical business principles or passages and how you apply that to cultivating uh culture with Christ?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, absolutely. So I'll talk about one of the building blocks, which is organizational vision, which a vision statement is an inspirational statement defining what an organization wants to achieve in the future. So inspirational, it gives us hope for an out intended outcome, an intended future, descriptive, and then it's futuristic. So one of my favorites is Habakkuk chapter two, and this is how I teach organizations to write a vision statement. In Habakkuk chapter two, it reads, uh, starting at I believe verse two, then the Lord answered me and said, Write the vision and make it plain on tablets of stone, so that whoever reads it may run with it. For the vision is yet from appointed time, it shall speak and not lie. If it tarries, wait for it, because it will surely come. From that I derive the five P's of vision. So if an organization is going to write a vision statement, number one, it must be personal. The scripture states, the Lord answered me. The vision was first and foremost personal to what Habakkuk was experiencing during that time. The nation of Judah is suffering injustice, and he's kind of struggling with the idea of how can God be good and bad things happen. So that's first and foremost. If you're going to write an organizational vision statement, it needs to be personal to your organization, not generic to where anyone can use it in plug and play. Number two, the vision needs to be permanent. He says, write it on tablets of stone. What I mean by permanent is just simply you need to write it down. Because when you write your vision statement, it can be shared with clarity and consistency. Kind of like the telephone game, one person says something, it comes out at the other end, and it doesn't even sound like what the person said at first. We need to make sure that we all have a collective and clear understanding of where we're headed. That's why we write it down. Writing it signifies faith for the fruition of the outcome. So that's faith. Number three is it needs to be practical. He says to write it and make it plain. Many organizational leaders go wrong here in that we want to sound smart. So we kind of get cliche, we get very jargon-ridden. It's like, how do we make this practical? How do we make it plain to where everyone can understand what we're actually trying to accomplish? Number four, it needs to be purposeful. It says whoever reads it needs to be able to run with it. What does that mean? A vision statement is a call to action that prompts towards progress. I should read it and be inspired to action. I need to be able to do something with it. And lastly, it needs to be patient. A vision statement is not a statement about tomorrow, but it is a futuristic, you know, one-year, two-year, three-year, 10-year statement that states, hey, this is what we're aiming to accomplish. I believe it was T.D. Jakes who said that the danger of being a visionary is that a visionary sees what shall be, but has to wake up and deal with what is. So it's like, how do we balance the vision with perseverance for today and hope for what's going to happen tomorrow? So that's the five P's of vision, just from that one simple statement, and and and God just kind of revealed some things to me. And yeah. So it's just a practical example of how scripture can be applied and how you combine culture with Christ within the organization.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, love it. What's an example of a mission statement that you would say uh or a vision purpose statement that really encapsulates those five Ps?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so I I have one, and it's actually of the Alzheimer's Association. I used as an example one time. And the thing I love about theirs is you would think, hearing those five P's, that your vision statement needs to be a paragraph. But it doesn't. And their vision statement, and I don't want to misquote it, but I think I'll get close, is simply a world without Alzheimer's and all other dementia. So, number one, it's written, it can be uh uh spread with consistency. Uh, number two, uh, it's personal to their organization. Like that's very specific about what they do, the disease that they treat. Um, it's practical. We can all understand exactly what they mean by that. It's purposeful because it inspires people who care about that outcome. So whenever you write a vision, it's not for everyone in the world to realize it. You're looking for a select group of people who can make action and take action towards that intended outcome. If you've ever experienced a family member who had that disease, if you've ever experienced it yourself, that's going to resonate with you because there's so much pain involved in it. You see that hope and inspiration. Like, I don't want to see a world that has to go through what I went through. And then lastly, it is a patient vision statement because that likely won't happen tomorrow, but we've seen in other cases, whether it be um other treatable diseases that we've seen a cure happen for. So there's still that level of inspiration for tomorrow, but also action for today. Maybe we're not working on the cure in every single moment, but we're still working on treatment. We're still working on care. So it can inspire for today and for a big outcome tomorrow. So that's just a simple statement that combines all of them with one sentence.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah, that's really good. So I assume that when you're teaching the five Ps of vision, you're talking to people that actually have the authority to write out a vision statement for a group of people to go and pursue, right?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Yeah, I work primarily with uh Christian business leaders. Right. So, and that could be managers, COOs, CEOs. Uh, sometimes, you know, we give COs a little bit too much credit. Sometimes COOs do a lot within organizations, but I'm looking for people who can actually go in and implement ideas and cause change to happen. Um, and that could literally, I mean, it could be a coach, it could be uh a superintendent, a principal, uh, but you have to have some level of authority within the organization to go in and say, hey, here's where we're headed.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. So I've noticed that a lot of Christ-centered companies, they have a mission statement that actually references God or the the Christian faith in a fairly explicit way. Is that is that necessary? I mean, if you're you're talking about culture with Christ, is it necessary to reference God in that vision statement?
SPEAKER_00So I think there's multiple ways you can do that. You can go ahead and state it and to where there's no uh confusion about what we're striving for, what we're aiming for. But especially when it comes to like a mission statement. So the way I teach the mission statement, which is kind of more of the today or operations, um, you want to combine what you do with how you do it. So what you do, let's say if you make clothes or something like that, that's very clear how you do it, your value proposition, and how you kind of those trade secrets, so to speak. Um, and then you want to combine why you do it with who you do it for and your values. So, for example, there are ways that you can. I'm I'm gonna talk to people who are kind of more in a public domain, and maybe they don't have the power to come out and state our school is about this, um, because that gets you in some hot water. Maybe you work for a government organization and you can't come out and say that. You can imply it by combining your core values. You can imply it by saying, hey, we're not, maybe we won't say Jesus in our statement, but maybe we'll talk about the attributes and the character of Christ. Um, so there are ways that you can do it without it being like turn to Genesis chapter one. Um, and and I I've um navigated both of those worlds to where organizations like, hey, this is who we are, we're private, take us, take us or levers, we don't care. This is who we are. And other organizations, whether it be a school or government organization that says, Hey, our team operates in this manner, we can't come out and state that. So, how do we communicate this without saying, you know, turn open your Bibles? So there's there's ways that you can do it in in either manner.
SPEAKER_02Um yeah, because you you can at least get clear in your own mind as a Christian working in an organization like that about if it's a if it's a really truly noble organization that has a cause that you believe in, or you probably hopefully wouldn't be working there, you can find some uh point of connection with God's values in that vision, in that vision statement, in those core values that you can talk to your people about and say, okay, um we're about integrity, we're about service. Like if you're looking for a an opportunity to kind of preach to your to your team, like those core talking about those core values is uh Absolutely. Uh uh Capella Hotels is a good example. They have like 24 in their Capella Canon, it's basically 24 um guiding um values that they have, which is which is a lot, but they're put more into action. Like it it'll it'll it'll focus on if a guest has a problem, you're the one that's responsible for going to solve that. And so they kind of like bake that that customer experience value into um into these statements that they go over at the beginning of every shift, um, which I think is is just a great opportunity to, and the person that wrote all those out is a very strong believer. He knew what he was doing, you know, even if the other people didn't.
SPEAKER_00That's funny because you literally just named two of my organization's core values and integrity and service. But the way that I teach core values is it's the three D's of designing core values. Uh, in Galatians chapter five is the reference passage, but I say that values need to be decided, defined, and demonstrated. So deciding what your core values are, there are ways to figure out what your core values are. What do you admire most in your employees? What do you talk most passionately about? So, uh, what are kind of the non-negotiables and things you look for when you're hiring someone? So there's questions I use to lead people into uh determining what those core values are if they already haven't. But the second thing is they need to be defined. And what I mean by that is I want to define my core values for staff and team members so that there's no confusion about how we expect to see those things lived out. So, for example, uh my I like acronyms because they're easy to remember. So it spells out lives, and that's kind of a, I guess, a double entendre because that's essentially what I'm looking to change is the lives of people. Uh, but it's love, integrity, vision, excellence, and service. So that's my decision. And then I define those values. So love, we treat others as ourselves. Integrity, tell and live the truth, even if it hurts. Vision, live today like tomorrow matters. Uh, we have excellence, we give our all in all and service, be in convenience to help others. So now we have decided, we have defined, so now we know within the organization how we expect to see that lived out, kind of like the statements you mentioned. And then lastly, we have to demonstrate it because that's the feedback loop that shows this is important. I say that values become value statements that turn into value actions within the organization.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and you know, the culture is it's so powerful because uh people will come and go from that company, you know, eventually the owner is gonna go too. Yeah, absolutely. You know, try transfer it over to the next generation or sell the company or or whatever the employees are coming and going, but that culture is what is what remains. I've been thinking about this idea that culture makes disciples.
SPEAKER_01I like that.
SPEAKER_02What do you think about that? Because it it seems like discipleship has generally been thought of as just sort of a one-to-one uh process, but uh but what do you think about the idea of of culture really being at the at the center of making disciples?
SPEAKER_00I love that, and I actually teach that. So um two different passages that stand out to me, whether I'm talking about building your team and scaling your business. So, what often happens in organizations is that the vision dies with the visionary because it's not transferred effectively to someone else. Other people aren't empowered, other people don't take ownership of those the mission and the culture. So it dies when the person of influence moves on. So if you look at the model of Christ, this is exactly what he did. He told the disciples, I am I'm leaving. And for this to continue, I am going to give you the keys to the kingdom. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, whatever you lose on earth will be loosed in heaven. So basically, what what he's saying is in order for the mission to continue, I have to empower someone else to keep it going. So I'm going to allow you essentially in the business world to make decisions that impact my bottom line on heaven and earth. That's the level of uh influence that some of his disciples were left with. So if you look at that and equate it to our organizations, is if you're doing everything, and if everything goes through you, and if no one else has any power, it only works as long as you're around. I'll take that a step further. Exodus chapter 18. Jethro is observing Moses, his son-in-law, on I call it a bring your dad to work day. And he tells Moses, who is the lone judge for a large and expanding nation of Israel, he says, Moses, I've been watching you today, and what you are doing is all wrong. He begins to outline the problem. He says, You and the people who come to you are only going to wear yourselves out. And then he gives a solution. I'm going to give you some advice. He says, Teach them God's decrees and instructions. And then he tells them this select capable, God-fearing, trustworthy men who hate this honest game and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. So as you are looking to scale, as you are looking to grow, I call it the three C's of hiring. You know, I have a lot of little quirks with three C's, all of the D's, all that kinds of stuff to help people remember, but it's um competency, character capacity. There's other people, GWC, get it one and have the capacity for it. But what I'm saying is do they have the ability to do the job with excellence? Find capable men, God-fearing and trustworthy. Do they match your character and your values within an organization? And lastly, make sure that you appoint people to the right level of authority, thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, so making sure that you place people in the right position. Um, so I think that that culture and that scale and that discipleship are all intertwined because it's all about leaders, recreating leaders. I think it was John Maxwell who says that if you want to scale an organization and you want it to grow, number one, you do it. Number two, you do it and bring someone else with you. So now you're teaching and they're observing. Number three, have them do it. While you're with them, so now they're doing, and you're kind of there as an oversight. Number four, have them do it. So now you've empowered them with trust and autonomy. And then number five, and this is the key have them do it and bring someone else with them. So now you start to see that replication, leadership replication model within an organization. I'm doing it, I'm teaching, I'm oversight, you're doing it, you're teaching. And that's how leaders recreate leaders. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Because the culture is it's holistic. It's not, it's not just one thing or the other, but it's every uh every operation, every habit of the company really is shaping that that culture. Right. And and so I think it seems like this is where the church has kind of missed it that discipleship is just sort of like a one-to-one where you know you go have coffee with somebody and go through a book of the Bible, like and and we wonder why we're not we're losing the culture war, you know?
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um because the culture is it, it's it's really all encompassing. It so I love what you're saying about um just the the power of culture. I mean, that that really is if you want to make disciples, focus on making a culture. And the culture will make the disciples, but absolutely we we make the culture through our, like you're saying, our beliefs, habits, and uh and the results.
SPEAKER_00That's the other aspect of culture you were talking about. So yeah, the the culture that you form leads to the results that you experience. Uh so people may ask, you know, why is it so important? Why do we want to listen to you talk about culture? Well, what's the point? The culture you form leads to the results that you experience. So if you are experiencing things that you are unhappy with, dissatisfied with, it's most likely there are other problems within organizations, but a lot of it, the foundation of it, the culture you form is kind of the results that you experience. So and that's kind of where you have to start. It's easy, you know. From my real estate background, everyone wants to pick decorations, everyone wants to pick interior finishes and and see the HGTV, but none of that happens without a sheer foundation. So it's like you can have the prettiest walls, the best paint color, the nicest fixtures. Let that foundation be messed up. All you start to see cracks. I think a lot of organizations are the same way. It's like we try to build on top of something that's not solid.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. I mean, I think aside from from Jesus, Moses is probably the greatest example of shaping a culture, like what an individual's contribution is to you know shaping a culture. And and you know, Jethro, his father-in-law plays into that. And it is interesting. I was noticing this that when Jethro says you need to go, you know, lay out the standards and and for the people there that really didn't exist at that time. It wasn't until the next chapter that Moses goes on the mountaintop. And it's just interesting how that advice that almost sounds like the type of advice a consultant would give to a business owner, um it kind of greases the wheels for Moses to to be ready to uh receive that impartation of the tablets in the law. Um and and you know, it's it's no wonder why Moses took things so seriously. Like when there was when there was sin in the camp, uh it it there wasn't an idea that oh, this is just sort of like a victimless crime. Like this is somebody that is trying to really derail this culture that's being established.
SPEAKER_00And and I mean, if we're trying to I've run up against those things before uh within the organization to where we had a culture that we we liked and we fixed issues, and then you uh I think it's Gary V said that hiring is guessing, firing is knowing, and you get the get that person in there that kind of slips through the cracks, you do everything that you're supposed to do in the interview, um, and then you get them in, and you're like, uh he's not one of us, she's not one of us, and you recognize it very early on, and then you have to make a decision. And whenever that happens, whenever there's you know sin in the camp, so to speak, what we what we uh the easy thing to do is ignore it. I kind of uh we call it the the pest, the small pest that it seems uh simple or uh not invasive. You just see that one little spider and you're like, you know what, I don't really have time for it. I don't want to deal with it. But what you don't see is the the big mama spider and the bunch of babies that are gonna take over your house.
SPEAKER_02Right.
SPEAKER_00So that's the same way uh problems normally present themselves within organizations is that little snowflake at the top of the hill that is harmless, and then it gets to the bottom and it's a snowball and it takes out your house. Yeah. But it starts with being diligent. I think it's um in Proverbs it says, be diligent to know the state of your flock because riches are not forever and crowns don't endure to all generations. Babe Roof said that yesterday's home runs won't win today's game. So it's a it's a level of diligence about your business that you have to have when protecting the culture. If not, you'll go, hmm, it's okay. That's okay too. And the next thing you know, you have an organization that you don't recognize and it's gradual.
SPEAKER_02So yeah, I mean, and as as Christian business leaders, business influencers, uh are the companies, the organizations that we steward are are really subsets of the king that the broader kingdom culture. And and so if if what I'm stewarding is not reflecting that, then uh send in the camp, you know? Like and and that needs that needs to be dealt with, um, you know, certainly with with grace, um, with uh with wisdom and everything, but uh but it's gotta I mean we should take that more seriously than anybody because it's not just our it's not just the the livelihoods of the team members at work here, it's the overall reflection of who Christ is. If that's who we say we belong to.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Absolutely. It is a it's a like I said, it's a God-given responsibility, uh, kind of like Matthew chapter uh 25, the parable to talents. Essentially, my takeaway from that is what did you do with what I gave you? And you know, he he gifted them with two things, talent and time. I'm gonna give you something to do something with, and I'm gonna give you a time frame in which you are to do it. And that's all of our lives. We're here for a limited amount of time. We're given certain things, and we're going to have to give an account. How did you steward it? Your organizations, your marriage, your relationships, your children, how did you properly care for them?
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00So it's uh it's a serious, serious deal. Uh yeah, it's not it's nothing to take lightly.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, absolutely. Um, Alex, what are you working on now that you're excited about?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so a few things. Uh, number one being the the culture catalyst program. That was a way for me to package all of this information and get out to other people. Uh, I can't be everywhere at once, but uh so I went digital first. Uh, so organizations can find it at alexsear.com, S-E-Z-E-R is how I spell Caesar. Uh, you can thank my grandfather for that. Funny story, he actually spells his last name differently than his uh siblings because he found our cemetery um and realized that it used to be spelled differently. So alex Caesar S-E-Z-E-R.com culture catalyst. I'm looking to be the spark in organizations that uh the spark to a different culture and different results within organizations. So creating those uh workplace cultures that we all crave as leaders um and doing it from a biblical angle and perspective. Uh then the other thing is I'm in our schools talking to our babies, uh, sixth grade through university level. And um, so that's been an extreme honor to be able to go back and give back and be in the schools and uh inspire our teachers because sometimes our uh motivators need to be motivated. So um being able to travel and speak at uh different organizations, whether it be corporately with culture or um in the the school system. So that's what I'm very excited about and that's what I'm working on.
SPEAKER_02So yeah. Alex Caesar.com is the website that's again S-E-Z-E-R dot com. Um, Alex, as we wrap it up here, what's one action you'd want people to take as a result of what they've heard today?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, absolutely. So I would say to um be intentional about the culture that you form. Uh obviously, this is not a sales pitch if I can help reach out for sure. Um, but even on your own, like you have a powerful tool, a powerful resource, powerful truth as a child of God. Don't just let it sit on the shelf. Put those things into play, put those things into action. Um, because your yes could change someone's life. You going to that workplace and exemplifying Christ can change someone's life. Uh, as cliche as it may sound, you may be the only Jesus some people see. So just to make sure that you're intentional about the cultures that you form, um, the actions that you take, because it's a reflection of Christ.
SPEAKER_02Well said. Alex, thank you for sharing your your wisdom and and part of your journey with us today. We're all better for it.
SPEAKER_00Thank you so much, Darren. I appreciate it. Uh, looking forward to even more. So uh God bless you and all of the work that you're doing and uh all of your listeners. So I appreciate it.
SPEAKER_02We hope you've enjoyed this episode. And if so, we would greatly appreciate it if you'd leave us a quick rating and review for the Christianity and Business podcast on iTunes. You can get more information about HCU's Center for Christianity and Business and sign up to receive free access to all issues of the Christian Business Review Journal by visiting our website at Christianityandbusiness.com. Thanks for listening and remember to keep integrating biblical values into your business.