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VALUES
— Do We “Walk the Talk”? —
Congratulations!
You've outlined your corporate values, vision and mission. Perhaps
these include concepts such as honesty, respect, integrity, outstanding
customer service or trust. Now you need to come to a clear understanding
of what conduct, behaviour and attitudes will clearly demonstrate
that the corporate values are being assimilated or absorbed into
the corporate culture.
Ensure
management and staff all understand what is expected of them.
Then, let them know how they are doing — the areas they are
excelling in and the areas that could use improvement. This will
reinforce the goals you have set in regards to the values you
want to be evident for your corporation.
Perhaps
you feel it will be difficult to measure a value; these tools
may assist you:
- InnerView
(and other personal evaluation tools) – one aspect of this
tool is it measures a person's core values or value alignment,
which can then be compared to corporate values.
- 360°
Feedback – this can be a excellent tool if it measures
the behaviour which reflects the value. This is a tool whereby
you get feedback from everyone you come in contact with —
executive, management, staff, even customers.
- Focus
Groups – this facilitated discussion can give you a
well-rounded view into your organization and the behaviours
exhibited.
- Surveys
– questionnaires to allow staff or customers to give feedback
about specific areas, as to whether your organization is living
up to the values espoused.
The
information you get from these tools will aid you in developing
your plan of action to further ingrain corporate values into the
organization and help everyone to “walk the talk”.
Of
course, you may need some assistance in using these tools and
developing your action plan. Many consultants are available to
provide just the help you need. Dimension 11 Ltd. is a leader
in providing this type of organizational development. Call us
at 306-586-2315 if you would like to discuss this further.
“Walking
the talk” when it comes to corporate values is essential.
It adds to your credibility and the value you have in your clients'
eyes, which will, in turn, add to your success.
Hiring
for Value
The
best time to ensure your organization is staffed with people who
share the corporate values is during the hiring process.
Often
times we focus just on the résumé, what education people have
and what work they have done in the past. While all of this is
important, it may not be the most important.
Values
are intrinsic to a person. You can train people on the computer
programs you use, you can teach them the processes they must use
to do the job, but you can't teach them values. If their values
do not mesh with the corporate values, there will not be a good
fit and neither you nor the person hired will be satisfied with
the results.
As
part of your hiring process, outline what would demonstrate to
you whether each person shares the corporate values. Look for
these qualities in the people you hire and everyone will be in
step, “walking the talk” together.
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UPCOMING
WORKSHOPS 
April
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Quote
of the Month
“On
a group of theories one can found a school; but on a group of
values one can found a culture, a civilization, a new way of living
together among men.”
—
Ignazio Silone —
To
read back issues of Knight Views, go to the archives.
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