Organizational values serve as the foundation of a company’s culture, guiding behaviors, decision-making, and interactions at every level. They define what the organization stands for, shaping its identity and fostering a sense of purpose among employees.

Values are not just aspirational—they influence how the organization navigates challenges, treats its stakeholders, and achieves success

My Experience: serve as the foundation of a company’s culture, guiding behaviors, decision-making, and interactions at every level. They define what the organization stands for, shaping its identity and fostering a sense of purpose among employees.

Values are not just aspirational—they influence how the organization navigates challenges, treats its stakeholders, and achieves success

Example 1

  • A small tech start-up, primarily built through acquisitions, is seeking to transition from multiple, disparate value systems to a single, unified set of values that will provide a cohesive path forward and strengthen its organizational identity.

  • Collaborate with organizational leaders and key stakeholders to redefine the organization's core values, ensuring they are relevant, succinct, and reflective of the organization's mission, vision, and desired culture, while fostering alignment and engagement across all levels of the organization.

    • Conducted interviews and focus groups key stakeholders (leaders, employees, customers) to identify areas of misalignment or redundancy.

    • Review organizational artifacts (mission statement, vision, strategic goals, and branding) to ensure alignment with the refreshed values.

    • Lead collaborative workshops with diverse stakeholder groups to brainstorm, prioritize, and refine potential core values.

    • Use structured methodologies like Affinity Mapping to synthesize input into actionable themes.

    • Developed a concise set of proposed core values (3–5), each accompanied by clear definitions and examples of behaviors that demonstrate those values.

    • Shared the draft with stakeholders for feedback, refining based on input to achieve consensus.

    • Created a plan to embed the new values into organizational practices.

    • Developed a communication strategy to introduce and promote the refreshed values.

    • Cultural Alignment: Enhanced organizational cohesion as employees at all levels feel a deeper connection to a clear and shared set of values.

    • Engaged Workforce: Increased employee satisfaction and retention, as refreshed values resonate with their experiences.

    • Enhanced Brand Identity: A stronger, more authentic external brand presence, as customers and partners recognize and appreciate the alignment between the organization’s values and actions.

Example 2

  • A 6,000-employee business-to-consumer retail brand with 35 locations across the United States. At the time, had an overall employee engagement score of 68%.

  • Modernize the organization’s values by engaging employees at all levels through listening sessions to ensure inclusivity and alignment, and to design a creative and engaging deployment strategy that integrates the refreshed values into the organization’s culture and daily operations.

    • Facilitated multiple listening sessions with employees from diverse roles, levels, and locations to gather input on what the current values mean to them and what they believe should evolve.

    • Analyzed input from listening sessions to refine and modernize the organization’s values, ensuring they are clear, relevant, and reflective of the company’s mission and culture.

    • Collaborated with influential employee to finalize a concise set of values, accompanied by actionable definitions and examples of behaviors that demonstrate each value

    • Used interactive methods such as storytelling, brainstorming, and group exercises to uncover common themes and identify values that resonate.

    • Summarized findings and share key insights with leadership to ensure transparency and alignment.

    • Analyzed input from listening sessions to refine and modernize the organization’s values, ensuring they are clear, relevant, and reflective of the company’s mission and culture.

    • Collaborated with influential employees to finalize a concise set of values, accompanied by actionable definitions and examples of behaviors that demonstrate each value

    • Gamification: Launched challenges, quizzes, or team competitions centered around the values.

    • Visual Storytelling: Developed videos, posters, or infographics showcasing the values in action.

    • Interactive Events: Hosted a values-themed event, such as a town hall or scavenger hunt, to reinforce the message.

    • Created toolkits for managers and leaders to help them communicate and model the new values effectively.

    • Increased Employee Engagement: Employees felt heard and valued, leading to greater buy-in and enthusiasm for the refreshed values.

    • Stronger Organizational Alignment: The new values create a shared sense of purpose, fostering collaboration and consistency across teams.

    • Enhanced Workplace Culture: A modernized set of values strengthened the organization’s identity and promotes a positive, cohesive culture.

    • Improved Communication: The fun and interactive deployment strategies made the values memorable and actionable for employees.