Focus on the values 100% or not at all!
Dec 9, 2024
When corporate values are mentioned, many people get defensive. This is a result of a combination of several causes. One of them is the distrust of employees, who often do not see the alignment between what the company declares as its values and what they actually experience in the company. Another cause may be management, which does not emphasize values or does not see a way to implement them. The result is that corporate values end up as just phrases on the website.
At Kogi, we see values as key principles that help the company achieve strategic goals and systematically manifest in the way of working, both at the collective and individual levels:
in decision-making, information sharing, prioritization, building products and services.
Underestimating the topic of values can come back to you like a boomerang
Most statements about values are actually vague, general, unverified, or even insincere. Values are not as harmless as some managers think – they can often be rather destructive. Empty words about values provoke cynicism and frustration among employees and undermine the credibility of managers at the same time. We have plenty of quotes from employees of companies, here is one of them:
“Our company presents itself as traditional, focused on quality, values, and a family approach. And that doesn't work. In reality, we are lagging behind the competition, and it doesn't help us succeed.”
Conversely, managers often perceive corporate values merely as a one-time marketing stunt, which they evaluate based on initial interest, rather than on content and long-term implementation. In practice, this topic tends to become a source of division rather than unification, and at best, it has no real impact.
However, there is a methodological approach that works
Everything we do for clients like Kogi CON starts with corporate strategy. That is, the definition of what the company wants to achieve. Subsequently, we collaboratively design what corporate culture will best help the company fulfill its strategy. Because a company in e-commerce will have a different corporate culture than a nuclear power plant. Only then do values or principles come into play, representing a “bridge” between the target culture and the behaviors that can be observed in the company. The final phase is the utilization of the concept of team
and individual habits as an implementation tool for those corporate values. For example, in Amazon, part of the recruitment process is a role called “Bar Raiser.” This person is tasked solely with assessing how the candidate meets the requirements
in terms of the 14 leadership principles that the company considers to be its key values.
We categorize values into:
Business-oriented values = values that drive the execution of the company’s strategy. They have a direct link to the decisions the company wants to make, what it wants to focus on, and how decisions are made.
Example of IKEA: one of their values is “cost-consciousness.” This means they want to achieve more
with fewer resources, without compromising on quality. Their goal is for as many people as possible to be able to afford their products.
Example of Amazon: the value “customer obsession” manifests itself, for example, in the Amazon Prime service, which offers fast delivery of goods within one day (or even the same day). That’s why the company built its own shipping network to minimize dependence on external carriers.
Hygiene-oriented values = these are values that are taken for granted. They do not automatically ensure that the company achieves its strategy and goals, nor do they need to differentiate it from the competition. However, their absence can lead to a loss of trust from customers, employees, or partners. They include trust, integrity, decency, openness, respect, and passion.
Example of Starbucks: The value “service to the community and responsibility” is reflected in investments in sustainable coffee supply chains and the possibility of fully funded higher education for employees.
Example of Airbnb: The value “respect for cultures” is reflected in the principle of non-discrimination. Both hosts and guests must agree to community standards upon registration, which include a commitment to respect others regardless of ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
With clients, we often encounter the issue that they primarily focus on defining “hygiene values.” However, these are often not translated into specific actions in practice. At the same time, they pay minimal attention to values that should have a real impact on business and support the company’s strategy.
If you want to build a healthy and effective corporate culture, it is essential to address both groups of values. It is necessary to create a solid foundation on which to build and simultaneously define principles that will support the company's success in business.
Summary of recommendations:
When starting discussions about values, make sure you know where you are heading. That is, you have created a clear strategy that states what you want to achieve and how you will achieve it.
Think about what culture will lead you to achieve your goals and what its specifics and characteristics are. For example, for an innovative culture, it may involve experimentation, doing things first, breaking the status quo, rapid failing, etc.
The specifics of your corporate culture should form the basis for creating values that will be truly unique to your company and not just a copy of what a thousand other companies have on their websites.
Utilize the concept of habits as an implementation tool for values throughout the organization on both a collective and an individual level. For example, for an innovative culture, it may be suitable to implement concepts such as Design sprints or Design thinking workshops for bringing new ideas.
I help companies set up and implement values so that they are integrated into corporate processes. Would you like to discuss informally how this could work for you? Contact me at michal.valko@kogi.cz or call +420 601 350 622