Core values are not relative, they are fixed. They are not goals.

Values or Culture – which comes first? It’s a “Chicken or Egg” question.

All organizations have a unique culture and company culture can affect
the success, or failure, of a business.

So how do you change the culture of your business to support long
term success?

If Culture is the “chicken” in this story, then Values is the
“egg”.

Culture is driven, to a large extent, by the Values you embrace
in the day-to-day activities in your business.

Culture is often described as a “feeling” we get when we work with
certain organizations. We may not be consciously aware of the values
of these companies, but if we pay close attention, they are observable
in the behaviours and appearance of the employees and the physical
appearance of the premises.

The values you practice in your business can attract, or repel, three
important audiences: Customers, Employees, and Business Partners
(your suppliers and/or distributors).

We prefer to do business and work with people or companies we trust,
who enquire about and understand our needs, who are reliable and do
what they say they will do.

Creating company values has traditionally been a top-down exercise.
This makes the task of creating a Values document relatively easy and
quick. However, getting widespread buy-in by the employees is difficult
and time consuming and often falls by the wayside. The Company
Values poster is placed on the wall in the lunchroom, the entry lobby,
and web site, but the underlying behaviours are not practiced in any
meaningful way.

A better way to get early buy-in and widespread support is through
employee participation in creating the values statement.

It takes a little longer at the front end, but the return on the investment
is in earlier and more sustainable buy-in. In many organizations the values of the founder and current leadership are already “baked-in” to the culture of the company. It is important to capture and retain these attributes as a starting point then build on this
base information through collaboration with your employees.

Below are a few questions to open the discussion with your staff about
the idea and importance of personal and company values. The intent is
to expand and clarify a draft Values statement so that it is complete and
understandable for everyone in the company.

These questions will generate a list of desired behaviours,
physical attributes, and general beliefs that you can later organize
into a coherent document for final review and revision.

  • What behaviours and attributes do you value in a team member?
  • What are the positive things our team members do to make
    this a better place to work?
  • Think about your best manager. What are the characteristics
    about that person that sets him/her apart?
  • When you have a tough problem to solve, what are the things
    that are helpful to the process?
  • What do you value in companies and organizations that you do business with as a customer? (desired behaviours, physical appearance or general beliefs that you have observed)
  • What are the positive things we do to bring value to our customers?
  • What do you value in your best busines partners? (suppliers/distributors)
  • What are the positive things your best business partners do that sets them apart?

Once you have a list, find someone on your team who is good at
synthesizing information to organize into categories and tidy up the
language.

Here’s an example:

Stated Value – key attribute
observable behaviours that illustrate the attribute

Reliability and courtesy – (sample) At ABC we work hard at being reliable and courteous in all things we do.

Definition: observable behaviours that illustrate the attribute

Which means that:

  • We show up on time.
  • We do what we say.
  • We finish what we start.
  • We say please and thank you.

When your whole team is engaged in designing this document, you
should soon see individuals at all levels of the company start to hold
each other accountable to behaviour standards they had a hand in
creating.

In larger companies you may experience sub-cultures within
departments or work groups. This collaborative approach to clarifying
desired behaviours throughout the company will help identify these
anomalies and lead to corrective action.

Once you are satisfied with your first draft of Company Values, put it in
your Plan Genie Busines Plan, Part 2, for future reference and revision.
For more tips and advice on documenting your working business plan
please visit plangenie.com

Acknowledgement – Special thanks to Tom Foster for initiating some of
the ideas expressed in this post.

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How To Clarify Statements About Your Values?

Start with a statement about the value, then clarify the value by adding the words, “which means that …” and add details about specific behaviours or attitudes that people can understand. Think in terms of behaviours that are observable. Describing values in terms of specific behaviours allows you to easily acknowledge and encourage employees who demonstrate behaviour that is in the company’s interest and to reprimand those that don’t meet your standards. Clarity of your values will dramatically improve your hiring and selection of future employees.

Here are a couple of examples.

A value statement may look something like this:

AT ABC company our focus is on our customers, or, we are a customer focused company.

This statement in it’s own doesn’t mean much. Here’s how you might add clarity:

At ABC company our focus is continually on our customers.

Which means that:

  • In conversations with our customers, we seek first to understand, then be understood
  • We put our customer’s needs first: we will interrupt the task at hand to connect with a customer, and ensure their needs are being understood and addressed
  • We use an outside-in perspective – growth comes from looking at opportunity through the eyes of our cus- tomers, our partners and alliances
  • We see through the eyes of those whose lives we affect, identifying unmet needs and producing innovative and lasting solutions. We bring to this task all our experience and knowledge as the unique individuals we are

Your values don’t need to be complicated. Here’s a simpler version of a value statement:

At ABC company, we believe that Reliability is critical to our success both personally and professionally.

We do what we say we’re going to do. It’s about action, not talk We show up on time

We say please and thank you

Or you may have a value statement about teamwork. You can clarify the term “teamwork” by adding:

Which means that …

  • When confronted with a problem or new opportunity, our natural instinct is to collaborate with others whenever time and resources allow.
  • We support and respect one another
  • Team success means individual success

Or communication:

Which means that … we like clear conversations.

Here’s an interesting one I saw recently:

At ABC Co. we believe Success is a Choice. If you write 4-5 clarifying statements attached to this idea I think you would have a very powerful value statement for your business.

There are countless ways of writing your values. Start with a few that resonate with you that reflect how you expect others to behave in your company where these core behaviours will contribute to your long term vision for your company.

You could do a critical assessment of the core values that exist today in your company and think about the changes you would like to see in the future. Write your core values in terms of the new standard you want to see in the future.

Once you have a set of values that you are comfortable with, we suggest you review them from time to time. You will find that the descriptions you use will improve in clarity and understanding with each revision. Publishing a refreshed version from time to time will also keep this aspect of your business plan top-of-mind and relevant for all employees.

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What Are Value Statements?

Value Statements, we’ve all seen them, typically posted on the walls of the reception area, and elsewhere around the office or plant. Why do companies do this? What purpose do they serve? A friend of mine calls them the “Rules of the Village.” I like this analogy. We define values as firmly held thoughts and beliefs. As our thoughts and beliefs are reflected in our behaviour, it is necessary to clarify our values with a list of behaviours.

Value statements are most helpful when written in a form that describes key behaviours and attitudes that you require from all employees as a condition of their employment. They are important because they help everyone understand how to “behave” on a day to day basis under any circumstances and changing situations. Once these rules are clearly understood and supported throughout the company, all employees have a reference point to make independent decisions.

As your company evolves, these values influence the culture of the company and add to your overall brand. Unfortunately, most of these Values documents are written in terms that are vague, unclear, and open to wide interpretation, which is not at all helpful to your employees, and mean nothing to your customers. At best they are simply ignored or seen as irrelevant. At worst they can lead to conflict within your company, as each employee may have a different interpretation of what is expected of them.

The key to building a widely understood set of values is being crystal clear what they mean. I also suggest you start with a few, maybe three, that really matter to you, and add as needed over time. The “Values” section of Plan Genie will help you do this.

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Step 2: A Description Your Corporate Values

These are the specific behaviours, attitudes and beliefs that are necessary for success and make up the personal- ity and culture of your company. These are critically important and will pay dividends well into the future if they are clearly understood and practiced rigorously and consistently.

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Company Values

The CEO’s ethical standards give rise to the Corporate Culture. To state the reverse, the Organization’s Values and Ethical Standards reflect those of the CEO, an individual, but the one with the most authority and power in the organization.

Core values are not relative, they are fixed. They are not goals.

In writing your core values consider how those statements will be reflected in observable behaviors and actions taken over the long term. (eg. What behaviors get rewarded?)

Here’s a couple of examples borrowed from Groen Brothers Aviation:

Value: Do the right thing

Which means that: As a corporation and individual, “we will always do the right thing”. Doing the right thing isn’t always easy. It is easy, however, to know whether a course of action is right. If we ask ourselves, “is this right?” we already know the answer.

Value: We will listen

Which means that: We will listen to each other, our customers, our suppliers, and any other source of information and knowledge. We know we must continue to learn. We believe that knowledge is power. We will learn all we can about our industry and its needs. We will find out what our customers want and will give it to them.

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Recognizing The Purpose Of Company Values In Business Planning

In today’s segment I would like to talk about company Values, which is part 2 of your business plan.

Value Statements, we’ve all seen them, typically posted on the walls of the reception area, and elsewhere around the office or plant. So why do companies do this, what purpose do they serve?

A friend of mine calls them the “Rules of the Village”. I like this analogy.

Value statements are most helpful when written in a form that describes key behaviours and attitudes that you require from all employees as a condition of their employment. They are important because they help everyone understand how to “behave” on a day to day basis under any circumstances and changing situations.

As your company evolves, these values influence the culture of the company and add to your overall brand.

Unfortunately, most of these Values documents are written in terms that are vague, unclear, and open to wide interpretation, which is not at all helpful to your employees. And mean nothing to your customers.

At best they are simply ignored or seen as irrelevant. At worst they can lead to conflict within your company, as each employee may have a different interpretation of what is expected of them.

So the key to building a widely understood set of values is being crystal clear what they mean. I also suggest you start with a few, maybe three, that really matter to you, and add as needed over time.

The “Values” section of Plan Genie will help you do this.

Start with a statement about the value, then clarify the value by adding the words, “which means that…..” and  add details about specific behaviours or attitudes that people can understand. Think in terms of behaviours that are observable.

Describing values in terms of specific behaviours allows you to easily acknowledge and encourage employees who demonstrate behaviour that is in the company’s interest and to reprimand those that don’t meet your standards.

Here’s a couple of examples:

A value statement may look something like this

AT ABC company our focus is on our customers, or, we are a customer focused company

This statement in it’s own doesn’t mean much. Here’s how you might add clarity:

At ABC company our focus is continually on our customers

Which means that:

  • in conversations with our customers, we seek first to understand, then be understood
  • we put our customer’s needs first: we will interrupt the task at hand to connect with a customer, and ensure their needs are being understood and addressed
  • we use an outside-in perspective – growth comes from looking at opportunity through the eyes of our customers, our partners and alliances
  • we see through the eyes of those whose lives we affect, identifying unmet needs and producing innovative and lasting solutions. We bring to this task all our experience and knowledge as the unique individuals we are

Your values don’t need to be complicated. Here’s a simpler version of a value statement:

At ABC company:

  • We do what we say we’re going to do. It’s about action, not talk
  • We show up on time
  • We say please and thank you

Or you may have a value statement about teamwork. You can clarify the term “teamwork” by adding

Which means that:

  • When confronted with a problem or new opportunity, our natural instinct is to collaborate with others whenever time and resources allow.
  • we support and respect one another
  • team success means individual success

Or communication

Which means that :

  • we like clear conversations.

Here’s an interesting one I saw recently

AT ABC co we believe Success is a Choice. If you write 4-5 clarifying statements attached to this idea I think you would have a very powerful value statement for you business

There are countless ways of writing your values. Start with a few that resonate with you that reflect how you expect others to behave in your company where these core behaviours will contribute to your long term vision for your company.

Once you have a set of values that you are comfortable with, we suggest you review them from time to time. You will find that the descriptions you use will improve in clarity and understanding with each revision. Publishing a refreshed version from time to time will also keep this aspect of your business plan top-of-mind and relevant for all employees.

Thanks for listening. Please let us know if you have any questions about the Values section of your business plan.

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Why Company Values Are So Important When It Comes To Business Planning


The intention for this section of your business plan is to document the behaviours and attitudes that form the basis of your corporate culture. These are the “ Rules of the Village”, that everyone follows. Once these rules are clearly understood and supported throughout the company, all employees have a reference point to make independent decisions.

Your company values are another foundation piece of your business plan. All companies and organizations have a set of values, but they are rarely written in a format that is clear and easy for everyone to understand.

The most common flaw with Values Statements in business plans is they are too general, or ambiguous, and, therefore, open to wide interpretation.

To help make your values clear, we suggest for every value statement you make, you add  3-5 clarifying points, to move from the general to specific.

“Less is more” is a good rule of thumb here. 3 or 4 clearly articulated values are far more useful than a page of words that few people understand and therefore pay little attention to.

Now take a crack at writing a Values Page for your company- Again don’t be too concerned about getting it right the first time. This too will get clearer each time you review and update you plan

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