How to promote core values in the workplace

Clear company values are pivotal to the success of any organisation.

But it’s not just about creating a list of company values and expecting success. Organisational values should be systemic, present and actioned. They are the standard for day-to-day execution, the guide for decision making and above all, the avenue for feeling fulfilled by one’s role with the company.

The challenge facing even the most engaged workforces is creating a culture where company values are lived by employees, not simply recited.

The following evidence-based solutions will provide your employees with a stronger connection between their personal values and those of the company.

In this article, we’ll cover:

• How to implement core values in the workplace

• How to promote core values in the workplace

• Why company values are important

• Examples of core values in the workplace

How to implement core values in the workplace

Typically, company values are exactly that, the values of the company.

And aside from perhaps the founder or executive team, it is rare to find an individual who completely aligns with all of the company’s values. 

To find clear alignment, team members must firstly understand their own set of values and then identify a connection with the company values at their individual level.

To do this, we need to ask, ‘who do you want to be?’.

The pertinent word here is ‘who’. At the core of who we are as individuals, both professionally and personally, who do we want to be? Not what, but who.

What do we value? What do we stand for? What are our morals? When people think and speak of us, what character and attributes do we want to be known for?

“By asking ourselves these questions, we can uncover the type of person we want to be.”

When done in a collaborative environment, this can make a great team exercise. Not only is it important to better help connect individuals to company values (which we will expand on below) but it also helps to build understanding, empathy and deeper connections within the workforce.

How to promote core values in the workplace

The key to promoting core values in the workplace is to pinpoint where company and personal values overlap.

In many instances, employees and people in general haven’t taken the time to step back and think about who they want to be, what their values are and the type of people they want to emulate. 

Some may have an idea in their head, but rarely have they proactively thought about it, discussed it and written it down.

This initiative in itself can be extremely enlightening for participants, as it provides perspective and highlights or reaffirms what’s important to them and their approach to life, both at work and at home.

For an organisation, your workforce gains benefit by highlighting the intersection between the company values and the employee’s individual values.

As the connection to personal values becomes more apparent you can start to build greater buy-in to the company values, and see increases in happiness, engagement and performance. 

Why are company values important?

At its simplest form, goals and results are much easier to set and obtain when we know our values.

Once we establish who we want to be as individuals, it provides us with a North Star to help guide our decision making.

Our individual values give us clarity to our internal desires and act as an internal motivator when they are linked to roles and day-to-day activities.

By uncovering the individual values of your staff, you’ll receive a 2-fold benefit - creating greater buy-in for your company values as well as creating a natural motivator for team members as they’re more aware of their own purpose and desires.

Examples of core values in the workplace

As we’ve stated, our core values (either individual, team or organisational) are important to help guide our decision-making process.

When the right values are followed, success will ensue.

A great example of this is the Sydney Swans AFL team.

After failing to win an AFL premiership for 70 years, in 2003 the club embarked on an initiative that became known as the Bloods Culture.

This saw the club establish player-driven values, in which the players started to look more critically at what they were doing and why they were doing it.

This was implemented in just about every facet of their lives, from training and recovery sessions, to what they did on a saturday night, their outlook on life and how they viewed themselves.

“That is probably the most important element of successful football club culture; not just the statistical measurements (of how well we play), but the character traits that you aspire to,” Luke Ablett, who played for the Swans at the time, wrote in an article on the Blood Culture for The Guardian. 

The players set their values, agreed to abide by them, and had to answer to their teammates for any misgivings. 

What ensued was a remarkable decade of football for the club, which included four Grand Final appearances - two of which they won.

Uncovering employees’ values key to deeper connection 

Understanding your employees’ individual values and pinpointing the overlap with your company values is key to building a more engaged workforce.

If you’re in search of more ideas for increasing employee happiness, engagement and output, we can help.  

Our specialist coaches perform as an extension of your team, and use researched, evidenced-based techniques to help create your own purpose-driven workforce.

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