Weldaloy Specialty Forgings
Stewardship versus ownership. It’s a belief that informs Rick Warren’s leadership, business operations, and worldview. As President of Weldaloy Specialty Forgings, Rick’s powerful testimony reminds us how faith and business can align to serve a greater purpose.
Grove9 Founder Justin Eklund shares from his book, Brand for Impact, highlighting part of the conversation with Rick. Faced with opportunities to sell his company, Rick chose obedience over profit, boldly declaring his business belongs to God. His vision is to glorify God as a faithful steward while demonstrating Christ’s love in all ways.
Justin: What is a book that has greatly influenced your professional life?
Rick: Believe it or not, a little-known book entitled God Owns My Business by Stanley Tam. The book had a major impact on me. So much so, I decided my business wasn’t mine. It was God’s. Over the years, we’ve had multiple opportunities to sell the business, where my family could have been pretty comfortable for the rest
of our lives. The private equity people and the strategic buyers cannot believe I have no interest in selling.
In 2002, God made it clear to me that He wanted me to take over this business. I didn’t want to. My background was in professional services, not in forging. I had no metallurgical background, I had no engineering background, but God made it extraordinarily clear to me that this is what He wanted me to do. And so, I don’t feel like I can sell this business because it’s God’s business, and I care deeply about the vision.
Justin: How did you implement your faith-forward vision statement in your company?
Rick: Our vision is “To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us. To demonstrate the love of Christ Jesus to everyone we encounter.”
We communicate this everywhere. It’s on the wall in our front office. It’s even on the back of our business cards. Initially, we got lots of pushback from upper management, the sales team, and our consultants on this. Finally, we all agreed. Instead of it being our mission statement, we would call it the owner’s vision. That way, when they got in front of clients, they didn’t have to own it as theirs if they didn’t choose to. Everyone was much more
comfortable with this.
Justin: What benefits or challenges have resulted from being faith-driven?
Rick: God placed me in businesses, and I try desperately to live out my life as a Christian in a way that honors God. I never put it together that this would give us a competitive advantage, nor was that ever my motivation. In fact, I’ve often had sales people and marketing people say to me, “You know, this probably hurts us.” I always tell them, “I don’t know if it hurts or helps, but I know this is what God has placed on my heart, and we need to be bold.”
Interestingly, we hired an HR firm to help us with recruiting, and they interviewed all of our employees. Before they started, they told my CEO and me our vision statement was really going to hurt us as far as recruiting. It would not be helpful because it was too exclusive. They went out, and he interviewed every one of our one hundred employees. And when the results came back they were totally shocked. He said, “I talked to every employee and even the employees that are not Christians. They love the vision of the company. They love our core values. They feel like they’re working for a company that has a purpose and that treats people well.”
We’ve never done it because we thought it gave us a business advantage. We did it because we really believe that we’re here to glorify God. And He has entrusted us with some things, whether it’s as equipment or buildings or, more importantly, people, and He wants us to be faithful stewards. He wants us to demonstrate the love of Christ.”
Rick Warren serves as an inspiring example of what it means to lead a business with faith at its foundation. By boldly declaring, “God owns my business” and aligning every decision with their vision to glorify God, Rick, and Weldaloy demonstrate the power of leading by conviction. Whether you’re a Christian business leader or someone exploring the intersection of faith and leadership, the principles here invite you to reflect on how your values can shape your professional path. Take a step today toward infusing purpose and stewardship into your own leadership—because lasting impact begins with a clear vision.
For a closer glimpse at the Weldaloy team and their leadership, read this Press Release.
