OUR MISSION
To be the leader in Christian communications meeting the needs of people with resources that glorify Jesus Christ and promote biblical principles.
OUR VALUES
Integrity — We maintain high ethical and moral standards in speech and in personal and professional conduct. “Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’” —Matthew 5:37
Initiative — We are willing and empowered to proactively contribute to the success of the company, its customers, and other employees. “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” —Ecclesiastes 9:10
Excellence — We give our personal best. “In everything set them an example by doing what is good.” —Titus 2:7
Innovation — We seek out new possibilities in every area and embrace ground-breaking change that adds value. “See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” —Isaiah 43:19
Respect — We have as much consideration for the personal and professional worth and dignity of others as we do for ourselves. “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” —Luke 6:31
Accountability — We are responsible for our own actions and answerable to others. "Each one should test his own actions.” —Galatians 6:4
OUR PUBLISHING PHILOSOPHY
Our eighty-year history as an evangelical Christian publisher is a trust we are committed to honor. Our Publishing Philosophy reflects this heritage and our desire to pursue excellence as we continue to serve the Church and seek to engage people outside the Church.
We believe in truth
God’s truth may be known from both God’s creation and his revelation in the Bible, and our publishing encompasses any area where this unity of truth is explored. Historically Christians have accepted the Bible as their absolute authority on those matters that it addresses. This has led them to believe in the Creator God revealed in the Bible, eternally existent in three Persons, the creation of all humankind made in the image of God, the Fall, the deity of Christ and his death in our place and his bodily resurrection, salvation by grace alone through faith alone, the literal return of Christ to the earth, and the final judgment of all people.
These biblical truths have been distorted by both liberal theology and neo-fundamentalism. Today, as evangelicals from different traditions seek to engage the culture and address the crucial and complex questions of the day, we want to be a broker of ideas within the context of our commitment to biblical authority and the historic doctrines of orthodox Christianity.
The Bible is central to all that we do, and we seek to express our commitment to God’s truth with a philosophy of acquisitions, writing, editing, developing, producing, selling, and marketing that is consistent with biblical faith, practice, and ethics.
We want to honor the triune God
Our intention is to deliver Christian content and resources that exalt God and see humanity in its proper perspective in relation to God as revealed in the Bible.
We want to serve people
We distribute our resources worldwide in all viable publishing formats via all effective distribution channels. Our goal is to serve those seeking a closer relationship with God.
Creativity is from God, and we prize and encourage innovation. Authors and other content providers are essential to our mission, and fresh voices are always welcomed. Our desire is to give them the security and courage to use their gifts, to distribute and market their works effectively, and to compensate them fairly for their labors.
We want to provide quality resources
Communication excellence includes credible and well-researched content, good writing and speaking style, careful and skillful editing, well-conceived design and illustration, the relevant technology, and quality production values in all publishing formats.
We seek to determine the content’s worth first by its contribution rather than by the identity of its author.
We are concerned about continuity
Truth is best understood by its continuity with the past. Resources by gifted authors of other eras are an important part of a good communications portfolio.
Our concern for continuity motivates us to publish within the historic evangelical tradition of Christian belief.
We believe in variety
Diversity, as much as unity, is a part of God and his creation.
As a global communications company we publish works from around the world that represent the various currents within the evangelical mainstream of Christian faith and practice.
We publish broadly in order to meet the needs of people at all ages and stages of social, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual development. Committed to using the most advanced technology in its communications, Zondervan makes its authors’ creations as widely available as possible in formats that include print, audio, video, and digital.
We publish not only potential bestsellers, but also resources with a more limited focus on specific needs and interests. Our publishing portfolio covers a wide breadth of subject categories and audiences.
We are committed to change
Our goal is not only to confirm the individual’s faith and understanding, but also to challenge and stretch them. We value resources that question unbiblical thinking, that penetrate and influence a person’s spiritual consciousness, and that call them to greater holiness, biblical faithfulness, and mission.
While we publish within the historic evangelical tradition, we seek to engage people outside of this tradition.
We want to have a healthy, profitable business
Fair remuneration for work well done is biblical. This applies to our authors, employees, and owners.
We publish resources for profit so that we can reinvest in other publishing projects and give a fair return on investment to our owners.
Although profit is important, it is not the only factor we consider in our publishing decisions. Need and contribution are always controlling factors. Editorial integrity is paramount.
We celebrate creativity
Quality Christian communication resources are a priority because we love great content and we celebrate artistic innovation.
