Core values are meant to be lived, not written down and forgotten.

Nearly every organization totes core values, but how often do they actually live them in their day-to-day operations and the way they treat people? While it’s easy to put values up on a boardroom wall, putting them into action can be more challenging – especially when leadership perceives serving these values may not be in the best interest of their bottom line. But core values are essential to so many aspects of a business. From employee and customer satisfaction through to brand loyalty and sales, so let’s take a look at why organizations compromise their values and how we can hold ourselves accountable to upkeeping and championing our own.

Core values, why they matter and why we don’t live them

Core values are what should dictate how an organization behaves even when no one is looking. Read the last half of that sentence again, it’s the most important part. 

These values may include things like respect, compassion, sustainability and creativity. They should be collectively decided upon by your leadership team – even better if you can branch out beyond the big guys and incorporate a diverse representation of staff members. More importantly, they should be understood and adhered to by everyone in your company, and I mean everyone.

Core values are not designed solely for your customer-facing employees. 

While these spunky salespeople definitely need to be living the governing ideas of your company, they are not the only ones. It’s poor practice to hold only external relationship builders to your values, but this is often how companies work. Why is that? Because core values are employed with convenience, and it is convenient for a company to demand their client service people act with integrity and respect because their willingness to do so will directly benefit – and profit – the company. 

No one wants unhappy customers. They are bad for business and, therefore, living our core values to those outside our organization is frequently encouraged. But, where the values seem to hit a speed bump is our willingness to align with them in how we operate behind closed doors and how we engage with our employees and fellow team members. This is because it’s harder to live your core values when you want to get things done quickly, you are faced with conflict or you want to make hella moula. 

Sustainability & Respect: Great core values everyone talks about, but no one lives

I love coffee. People who don’t drink coffee are a different breed. I both respect and fear them. Speaking of coffee and sustainability (was that a smooth transition?), have you heard of the class action lawsuit against Nespresso? Like many other companies (I am looking at you Nestle) Nespresso told everybody they were living a core dedication to sustainability by maintaining a very strict recycling program. Newsflash: all those little capsules that were not supposed to end up in landfills did. Oops. 

This is a perfect example of a company failing to live their core values when they thought no one would catch them. When push came to shove, they thought it was going to hurt their bottom line to stick with what they apparently believed in. Unfortunately for Nespresso, their internal moral collapse was uncovered and now they are facing a lawsuit and much sadness. 

While, in previous years, maybe they could have gotten away with this, you cannot mess with millennials when it comes to corporate social responsibility. Plus, the Internet makes it nearly impossible to hide from the value barometer of your stakeholders. What Nespresso failed to realize is the upfront investment into living their core values would have actually saved them money and, more importantly, protected their brand and consumer loyalty. 

More than just monetary sanctions, there are professional development & wellness implications of living your core values

People want to work in places where they are respected and treated as such. Alignment with a company’s core values is a massive predictor of employee satisfaction and retention, so it goes without saying (I am going to say it anyway) if your employees perceive your organization has wonky values, they are not going to stick around to fake them. Ensuring your leadership team – and everyone else – internalizes your core values will support more positive conflict resolution, more authentic and invigorating collaborations and enhanced employee well-being. 

Happier employees are more productive for a number of reasons, including less sick days and less time spent complaining (just kidding about the second one, but honestly, it’s probably true). So, like the upfront investment in values that protect you from international backlash, living your core values is profitable in the ways it supports retention and staff motivation.

The next time your Board or leadership team gathers together, I would strongly encourage you to (re)visit your core values. See if people actually know what they are and if they can provide examples of how they are living them and encouraging their employees to follow suit. Have a safe and honest conversation about whether your core values make sense and what they contribute to the way you operate. To ensure this conversation bears meaningful and unbiased fruit, perhaps consider bringing in your friendly neighbourhood leadership mentor for some strategic support. You happen to already know a great one. Hint: you are currently reading her blog. 

By choosing and living core values that make sense for your business, you will attract the types of employees and customers you really want. It will protect your brand, bottom line and your ability to sleep soundly knowing you are doing the right thing(s). So, stop treating your core values like slogans on a bumper sticker and start living them always and in all ways.