Sigma Pro Engineering

[00:00:00] I love to work in my garden. I love to grow grapes. Plants don’t talk back. They get along with everybody. I hate conflict. I don’t like being around people. It’s stressful.

What else? Okay.

My name’s David Underwood. I’m president and CEO of Sigma Pro Manufacturing and Engineering LLC in Fort Worth, Texas. Sigma Pro is a custom manufacturer. We make plastic parts and assemblies for our customers. I became a Christian 40 years ago. I felt called to business. I wrestled with that calling early on.

Felt like I had to be in the full time ministry [00:01:00] to be valuable to God. I began to say, I have this deep desire to be used by you. And I always believed that God had a purpose for me that was bigger. I felt like the only way that I could Be productive in God’s kingdom was to have my business over here on this side of my life, run my business well, make a lot of money, and then bring that money over here on this side of my life, church and missionaries.

And I would give that money. And I felt like that was really the. The fulfillment of my calling. That was all that I saw that I could ever do. You know, I came into this office where my dad is, um, the highest authority in the land. Right. And, um, basically [00:02:00] I think at the core, I wanted to do things that, that helped the company, but more than that, I think I just wanted to do things that made me look good.

I was gathering around me people that could serve me well. I was very focused on what I could accomplish for myself and maybe a little bit for the business but definitely not for the people around me and certainly not for the people that reported to me. I really wanted for every employee and their families and customers and suppliers to be touched by the love of God.

I wanted people to go home from Sigma Pro happy, to a happy home, fulfilled, whole financially. spiritually and emotionally. I said, Lord, I [00:03:00] want this, but I have such a long way to go. So I believe God told me to do one thing and that is start doing one on ones with my, uh, direct staff. And that he would show me the next step after I did that one little thing.

And I began to implement that. And then I knew the next step. And then I began to see God move among the employees just out of all my obedience to do that. He began to do other things. I got to know Sergio on a more personal level. I knew him before, but I mean, we didn’t have like real, real conversations.

About, like, our personal lives. When we started to have them, it, yeah, it changed. I actually listened to him and started, you know, seeing his point of views. And I would tell him, well, this and this, why does this happen? And then we would just sit there and [00:04:00] have the whole conversation out. To the point to where, um, he actually prayed with me and I got saved.

Through one of our one-on-ones.

It’s literally like, I was meant to work here. I have a background going to church, just nothing was too strict. So it kind of like, you know, but when I started working here, Julie used to have, um, this video every Wednesday. You know, it was like they were talking to me and, um, everything that she was saying, she was always, if you need anything, let me know.

So one day I was like, you know what? I know what I’m miss. She talks about him all the time. So I want what she has. So I accepted Christ. And then she kind of led me through everything. So I’ve done all my growth here at Sigma Prom.[00:05:00]

When I embraced a spiritual calling to be the Be the kingdom leader that God wanted me to be here and that this was my ministry. I began to lead my managers and ask them to lead others and ask everybody to be led here at Sigma pro in a way. That they can experience God’s love and to know the care that comes from being in a kingdom organization.

I think the result of him implementing relational leadership style. Was just pushing me in a, in another direction, in a more relational direction. And so we drew back all of the, all of the chaos. Um, and we started to reinvigorate what was there with something [00:06:00] rich. That idea that people come in thinking, I’m excited to lose so that somebody else can win.

The best analogy. I can come up with is it’s April 25th. It’s the first time in the season that you’re going to go swimming. You want to swim, but you know, the water’s going to be cold. You know, it’s going to take your breath away. So you just go ahead and you just jump in within three or four minutes.

You’re happy. You’re swimming. Everything’s going fine. But those first few minutes. Man, they are tough. That’s just the way with starting relational leadership. But when you start to break that ice, jump into the cold water, you’re saying to them, it’s so important to me that I’m gonna start today. We’re gonna do this and we’re gonna do it right because The end is worth it because [00:07:00] God is worth it because you’re worth it.

They’re going to understand that you’re setting a new direction and a new course for your company and that God is going to be in control. God’s going to get what he wants. It’s not about us. It’s all about him now.