Joy at Work

PRAISE FOR JOY AT WORK This is not your everyday leadership book about how to survive in the corporate jungle, or how to outfox the competition to build a bigger bank account. Dennis Bakke knows that business is not just about the bottom line. It's about something much more important. "Work," as Bakke explains, "is one of the ways we honor or 'glorify' God." Today, joy and work are rarely used in the same sentence. But God really does intend for us to find joy in our work. Is this possible? Can this be accomplished in a fallen world? Dennis Bakke, a graduate of the Harvard Business School, wrestled with these questions when he cofounded AES, a worldwide energy giant, in 1981. Shaped by his faith, Bakke sets off on a quest to create the most fun workplace ever-using principles established in the Garden. In Joy At Work, Bakke describes how he empowered people to use their God-given talents free of needles bureaucracy, obliterated management, eliminated job descriptions, and pushed decision-making responsibility down to the plant floor. These principles extend beyond the walls of business, and can be applied to nonprofit organizations, churches and even your family. "The idea of creating a workplace in which everyone maximized his or her God-given potential and serves the community is a strong biblical principle. This book provides valuable ideas for leaders who wish to build or strengthen organizations using sound spiritual principles: service, integrity, and social responsibility. Dennis Bakke knows firsthand what it is to put these truths to work." -Chuck Colson, Founder, Prison Fellowship Ministries

DENNIS W. BAKKE was raised in Saxon, Washington, and graduated from the University of Puget Sound, Harvard Business School, and the National War College. He co-founded The AES Corporation in 1981 and served as its president and CEO from 1994 to 2002. He is now president and CEO of Imagine Schools, a company that operates elementary and secondary (K-12) charter schools. He and his wife, Eileen, live in Arlington, Virginia.