OMG!

April 1, 2015
“American Lube Fast (ALF) is one of the largest independent oil change and preventative maintenance companies in the United States. ALF currently operates lube centers in Georgia, Florida, Mississippi and Alabama. ALF is a Christian-focused business that has been giving world-class customer service since 1997 and has corporate chaplain programs for each store to serve our workers and help them develop in and out of their job. Our mission statement is, ‘To honor God in all we do. To help people develop.’ And it drives every employee to stand behind all their work and to foster a better community

“American Lube Fast (ALF) is one of the largest independent oil change and preventative maintenance companies in the United States. ALF currently operates lube centers in Georgia, Florida, Mississippi and Alabama. ALF is a Christian-focused business that has been giving world-class customer service since 1997 and has corporate chaplain programs for each store to serve our workers and help them develop in and out of their job. Our mission statement is, ‘To honor God in all we do. To help people develop.’ And it drives every employee to stand behind all their work and to foster a better community wherever we are located.”

Wow! There He is, right in the first line and right on their website (www. lubefast.com). Can you still do that? Evidently you can with conviction and strong core values. Now you don’t have to be a Christian to work there, you don’t even have to believe in God, but you do have to follow their core values. Let’s take a closer look at these and see if we can pick a fight on the audacity of it all:

10 Core Values:

Be Honorable

1.         Honest and truthful at all times

2.         Reliability — Do what you say you’ll do, keep your promises.

3.         Fair — Treat everyone the same.

Be Respectful

4.         Politeness — Speak with kindness, have manners.

5.         Friendly — Be positive and non-argumentative.

6.         Appreciative — Be grateful to people and take pride in our property.

Be Professional

7.         Know your products and services and how they can benefit your customers.

8.         Put your expert knowledge into action.

9.         Disciplined — Be well groomed, on time and work the system.

Our Mission

10.      Deliver the “wow!”

Well, they all seem pretty straightforward, even secular. No argument here. Follow these and your customers will be happier and loyal to your business. As Kay Kyser once sang, “Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition!”

You’d kind of expect this from a company that also has a chaplain program. Here’s what their website said about that:

“Our Chaplains provide a personal and proactive Employee Care Program to our business assigning an experienced, trained team of male and female chaplains to care for our most valuable asset — our employees and their family members. These dedicated caregivers are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, nationwide. On a neutral, voluntary and confidential basis, they extend care, concern and compassion to all our employees. We are proud to offer this program and appreciate any comments you may have.”

Do you have a creative mission statement? Next time I hope to share yours. If you don’t have one, how will your customers and employees know what to look for? As a wise man once told me, “You can tell a lot about a person by the images they see in the clouds, toast and chips.” Do you see Jesus, Elvis or SpongeBob? Hope you have a great Easter, Passover or Vernal Equinox, for my secular friends.

DAVID PRANGE is currently assistant to the chairman at Next Generation Mfg. He can be reached at 630.699.6813 or: [email protected]