Founder & President, Culture Spark, LLC. Helping leaders build culture as a competitive advantage and turning managers into leaders.
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In last month’s article, "Creating Your Core Values," I focused on how to identify and select your organization’s core values. I discussed how fully embracing your values fosters an engaged and involved team and offered suggestions on how to develop values that are unique and meaningful to your company.
I also advised that once you’ve selected your core values, not to make the mistake of thinking the job is over. This month, I describe how living your core values makes all the difference in your corporate culture and will show some examples of companies that are doing things right.
Bring the words to life.
When we say, “living your values,” what exactly does that mean? To give your organization’s core values real meaning, the words must permeate everyone and everything. These aren’t just random words on a poster in the employee break room. Your values must become the common thread, the standard applied to all, the common language for addressing issues, solving issues and exploring opportunities.
Core values live actively when woven into every communications process including:
• meeting agendas
• job candidate interviews
• rewards and recognition
• even terminations (for staff who are out of alignment with or willfully violate a core value)
By giving the words real meaning and incorporating them into every business function, your employees buy into the corporate vision and demonstrate desired behaviors.
Accountability is key.
In my experience, values have true meaning when everyone in the company lives by them. From the CEO to the interns, everyone should be held accountable to the standards represented in your organizational values. Values have no “teeth” if leadership lacks the courage to support and enforce them.
Some examples of lack of accountability I’ve seen over the years include:
• The value is “innovation,” yet management systematically stifles new ideas.
• The value is “honesty,” yet sales reps promise features not yet developed.
• The value is “teamwork,” yet the slackers let the hard workers carry the load.
If there are no consequences for failing to live your values, the words ring hollow, and employees will not invest discretionary effort in the company, but rather, simply go through the motions. Their indifference becomes apparent in every aspect of the business and eventually negatively affects your bottom line.
Remove the bad apples before they spoil the barrel.
Organizational culture is a shared way of doing things. Employees who refuse to live by your values ultimately hijack a culture you’ve worked so hard to create. And when leaders don’t address those who aren’t on board, it sends the wrong message to everyone who is. Their inaction undermines and devalues your positive messages.
If you want your core values to have real meaning, you have to set behavioral expectations and apply them to everyone equally. That means ridding your company of the people who fly in the face of your values, however difficult it may be. Your company will not reach its potential unless you consistently remove the “bad apples” to reinforce your values.
Otherwise, the good employees are left to believe, “if that person can get away with it, why do I try so hard?” The best employees will leave for greener pastures. In my experience, every time we made the difficult decision to terminate staff who did not live by our values, our team ended up stronger as a result. Quite often, the leader is thanked for making the tough call.
Companies That Live Their Values
Years ago, I worked with a Public Relations firm. Their company tagline, which reflected their core values, was “Passion and Expertise in Action.” Every quarter, teams in various cities would meet to present values awards. One staff member received the “Expertise Award,” and another the “Action Award,” both of which included a specific story to tie successes back to their values.
By including their values in employee rewards, leadership:
• Reinforced the importance of their values as more than just “words on a poster”
• Empowered and directed employees to reach the highest standards
• Proved that these were core values to live by and be rewarded for
This firm used core values to drive desired employee behavior both outwardly toward customers and inwardly toward one another. It was a key to their success in terms of driving results for their clients and creating a positive work environment.
Another example: One pest control company demonstrates how to truly live its values, with “adaptability” at its core. In this line of work, it’s critical to provide services on time without having to reschedule, as missed appointments mean lost (or at best, delayed) revenue. When a technician had a medical emergency and had to miss his afternoon appointments, the dispatcher asked if someone could take over his route to avoid rescheduling.
Another technician, who was 30 miles away, finished the appointments so his coworker could take care of his child without breaking the company’s promises to customers. The technician who took over the route received — you guessed it — the adaptability award at the next company meeting.
Remember: Actions that get recognized get repeated. In this case, adaptability was not just a random word chosen by the CEO. Senior management wove it into the very fabric of how they do business, and staff who lived by that value were rewarded.
Ultimately, uniquely meaningful core values infuse your organization with a shared sense of purpose. Everyone from the top down lives by the same set of values that are incorporated into every business process. It’s critical to hold all employees to the same standards and remove those who do not live core values. Most importantly, recognize, reward and reinforce demonstrations of your ideals, and let desired behaviors fuel positive change for your entire company.
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