Core Values are more than just words!
In my line of consulting, my team and I get the great opportunity to visit with all kinds of companies, in a wide variety of industries and diverse cultures. It’s interesting how a discussion of “Mission / Vision / Values” will frequently spark a fierce debate about what they are and why a company even needs them. Simply stated, the Mission explains why a company exists and Vision helps people see what the successful organization will look like in the future. But what are Core Values and how do you know if you have the right ones?
In the simplest of terms, Core Values are the guiding principles that employees use to make decisions on a daily basis. Determining if your organization has the “right” Core Values is pretty simple – watch how your team makes decisions. If people in your organization make a concerted effort not to print documents, use re-fillable water bottles and turn off lights when rooms are not in use – that’s a pretty good indication that you’re an “Environmentally Conscious” group of people. If your sales organization isn’t always forthright in their sales practices, you probably can’t say that “Honesty and Integrity” are one of your Core Values. The single most important thing when evaluating or deciding on your Core Values is to BE HONEST about the organization and existing culture. Don’t try to make your Core Values fit your organization just because they sound good – they have to reflect who you really are and how you want your people to act.
Why do you even need Core Values? Well… actually… they’re pretty important. As mentioned above, the Core Values are necessary because they provide people direction when making decisions on a daily basis. From the Customer Service department, to Finance to IT or Project Management, when confronted with a question on what to do in a particular situation every division of the company and any employee should be able to look to the Core Values for guidance.
For example – if “We put our customers first” is one of your Core Values, it tells every member of the team when confronting a decision about what is right, we should prioritize the benefit to the customer before all else. “But Brian… we can’t put the customer first all of the time. What if that means that we have to recall 100,000 hoverboards because they may explode? That is going to cost us a TON of money!” The answer is simple – either A) put the customer first and recall the product – or – B) be honest and recognize that “Customer First” isn’t really your core value. I’m not judging your decision either way – but above all, be honest about who you are.
Notice how I said the answer is “Simple” and I didn’t say it was “Easy” – that is an entirely different challenge. Look for my next post – “Living your Core Values… Especially when its hard” to examine the challenges we face when confronted with a difficult choice.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Brian Thomas is the Founder of RoundTable.Solutions, a firm 100% dedicated to creating success by helping companies develop and execute on the right strategies. Brian has an undergraduate degree in Communications, an MBA in Strategy and Operations with multiple certificates from the University of Notre Dame in Advanced Negotiations and Conflict Resolution. Contact RoundTable.Solutions to see how they can help your company create success.