The Power of Core Values

In the past, I was never a believer in committing core values to paper. I always knew they were important, and while we certainly abided by a set of core values in our heads and hearts before, I chalked up the actual "writing of them down" as corporate schlock and rhetoric. Did anyone really care? If any of you have seen Office Space, you know what I mean (i.e., big, grey company asking its people "Is this Good for the Company"?)

I have since parked my skepticism as I found the process of committing tried and true values to paper to be liberating. Someone once told me that you know you have nailed a core value when writing it down gives you goose bumps. I mean, it actually has to mean something in order for it to be that powerful. That changed my perspective immediately. What was it that was so exciting about this place when it was just an idea, 1 phone/desk and no clients? Why did the founder wake up one day and declare "I want to start a company". This is the magic that needs to be encapsulated in your value system (the magic elixir, as it were).

For a look at what guides us at Right Sleeve, click here.

I also found that as a business grows, the founder does not have the time they had before to manage individual staff and guide them through every process, customer issue, sales call etc. It is so much easier if everyone is on the same page from day one. The values of a company end up replacing the boss in many ways. If you ever have a question about how something should be done, don't ask the boss ... consult the values. This is so much more empowering for everyone. No one wants to hear the boss drone on more than he/she already does (I speak from experience)!

This also makes your recruiting process much easier. Not everyone is going to agree with your value structure. Fair enough - pass on these candidates, regardless of their skill set. We ask everyone of our job applicants to study our core values so they can draw upon experiences that show they will be the right fit. We have made many interview mistakes in the past ("can you tell me your greatest weakness?"), but we have found that the whole conversation shifts into reality when you hold up your value system to a candidate and ask them to respond. If they lied in the job interview, you will know within 1 week of them starting on the job (at which point they should be shown the door - for everyone's sake).

The same can be said when you pitch clients. While we always want new business, we make a conscious effort to evaluate our clients and measure them against our set of values. No one wants to work with a client that does not value what you stand for. The same goes for partnering with vendors as well.

All great teams have one thing in common - alignment around a common cause. Committing values to paper is a great process to go through (and I sheepishly apologize to anyone with whom I debated this subject in the past).