The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army is a Christian Charity Organization with programs that include international aid, assistance to children and families and disaster relief. The mission statement reads,
“The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the Universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs without discrimination.”(the salvation army history, n.d.) In 1852 William Booth started his ministry career in London, England, taking the message of Jesus Christ to the people face to face. He left the church and the pulpit and began traveling as an independent evangelist. Booth became a well known religious leader with a dedication to fight for the souls of men and women. Some of his first and foremost converts to Christianity were thieves, prostitutes, gamblers and drunks. The converts became soldiers for Christ, known then and now as “Salvationists”. The Salvation Army moved into the United States in 1878 and began an evangelist crusade there. By 1886 the Salvation Army was located in 13 states across the United States. “The Salvation Army movement quickly expanded into Canada, Australia, France, Switzerland, India, South Africa, Iceland, and local neighborhood units.” (the salvation army history, n.d.) The Salvation Army is active in every corner of the world. The Salvation Army has a reputation for helping people in need of services that are given without any questions and a lot of solutions. From helping with drug and alcohol rehabilitation, to assisting special needs children with finding work. The Salvation Army has thrift stores for bargain shopping in every community. Looking at the structure of the Salvation Army the task and general environment have been pretty much the same throughout the years. First the task environment, which Jones & George explain as, “is the set of forces and conditions that originate with suppliers, distributors, customers and competitors; these forces and conditions affect an organization’s ability to obtain inputs and dispose of its outputs.”(p.139) The suppliers, Jones & George state, “are the individuals and companies that provide an organization with the input resources.” (p.140) The Salvation Army has many different suppliers and companies which provide then with clothing, materials for healthcare and articles to help families when they have been through a natural disaster. All of the supplies that the Salvation Army uses are donated by individuals and companies at no cost to the organization. The donations have been taken since the Salvation Army has been around and it never stops. At the thrift stores the organization receives donations six days a week; everyone is always willing to give to the Salvation Army. This brings me to the competitors of the Salvation Army organization. There are many resale shops and other charities that are well known in the world today, but none quite as reputable as the Salvation Army. So many people know the name of the Salvation Army; they would rather give to the well known company. The final task environment that has any affect on the Salvation Army is the customer. The customers come from all walks of life, some good and some really bad, but all in need of some help. With the economy in such bad shape, everybody needs some help…be it a free meal and a place for shelter, to an inexpensive article of clothing. The door is always open to the customers of the Salvation Army, and there is always a soldier to help in whatever way he or she can. The general environment as explained by Jones & George, “includes the wide-range economic, technological, sociocultural, demographic, political and legal and global forces that affect the organization and its task environment.”(p.139) “The economic forces affect the general health and well-being of a country or world region”, explains Jones & George.(p.149) Our country is one of the worst economic states it has been in, in a very long time. Citizens are losing homes, jobs, and money, things that matter to us very much. The way this affects the task environment is it helps, most people can’t afford to buy brand new items (which new items are donated everyday also), but still need things so they come to the Salvation Army. They feel safe buying from the Salvation Army, because we back all of our items, or will give a customer something else if something goes wrong. The sociocultural forces don’t hinder the work of the Salvation Army, because the organization has been in almost every country in the world for over 100 years. What better place to put your trust in, a lifelong friend as well as a Christian organization. There are no demographic forces standing in the way of the Salvation Army either. It doesn’t matter if you’re one or one hundred years of age, there is something there for you. The Salvation Army fits everyone’s needs. In conclusion, The Salvation Army has been around for a very long time, and will continue to be available to help anyone who needs it. The economy is bad, but it can only get better, and I see the Salvation Army helping out with any and all things until it does. When your down and out and need a helping hand the Salvation Army Christian Charity Organization, will be there to hold it.

References
Jones, Garth R., & George, Jennifer M., (2007) Essentials of contemporary management, Boston: McGraw Hill.
The Salvation Army History (2008) (http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/usn/www_usn_2.nsf/vw- local/About-us)