The saying “Time is money” means that as time passes the value of assets and liabilities
change [ CITATION Wil \l 1033 ]. This is very true as to how the world around us operates. The
Bible is replete of money concepts and wisdom.
In Nehemiah 2:17, Nehemiah takes the lead to explain the need to build the wall. In
Proverbs 29:18 it says, “Without vision the people perish” [ CITATION Mey17 \l 1033 ]. As a
leader, the way one articulates a vision establishes a set objective. No one person can do it
alone. Rather, it takes the enlistment of others that amalgamate together to accomplish what
needs being accomplished. Even when others stood in opposition, such as Sanballat the
Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem the Arab, the leader, in this instance Nehemiah,
exhibits the fortitude needed to secure the mission.
Secondly, provision – Nehemiah provided weapons in order to protect the people from
enemies (4:13). Nehemiah recognized a threat and responded appropriately. He allocated tools
needed to keep the people safe. Nehemiah implemented contingency plans and mitigated the
risk of by equipping workers with weapons for protection.
Lastly, Nehemiah organized the workers by family and established shift to complete the
project (4:16). Half of the people would work, and the other half would maintain security both
night and day (24 hours a day). Instances like this, and throughout the completion of the wall,
heuristics is being used.
Current Business Practices:
Heuristics is the approach to problem solving, learning or discovery that employs a
practical method, not guaranteed to be optimal, perfect, logical, or rational, but instead sufficient
for reaching an immediate goal. Heuristics is even more important when it comes to diverse
teams and groups, especially at large corporations. As teams collaborate on a project using
different methods and techniques, it is important that heuristics be taken into consideration in
order to manage the project until it is achieved. Nehemiah offering a works of encouragement to
diverse groups furthermore exemplifies his leadership capability. In Nehemiah 4:14 he spoke
with nobles, leasers, and the rest of the children of Israel. In today’s society computer
automation helps tremendously with heuristics as opposed to biblical times. Hyper-heuristics
have recently emerged to automate the design of heuristics using a powerful approach (Branke,
Su, Pickardt, & Zhang, 2015). Makes one think what the production scheduling through
heuristics automation would have consisted of for Nehemiah. Hopefully it would have improved
the overall efficiency of the project.
Analysis:
In Nehemiah’s day, computers were not available. The monumental task to rebuild the
wall with available resources required wisdom to guide the decisions to be made. Was it always
the optimal decision? Most likely not. But it kept the project moving forward.
References:
Meyers, R. (2017). e-sword. Franklin, Tennesee, United States of America. Retrieved from www.e-
sword.net
Wild, J. J., & Shaw, K. W. (n.d.). Managerial Accounting (6th ed.). New York, New York: McGraw-Hill
Education.
Branke, J., Su, N., Pickardt, C. W., & Zhang, M. (2015). Automated Design of Production Scheduling
Heuristics: A Review. IEEE Computational Intelligence Society, 110-124.
doi:10.1109/TEVC.2015.2429314
