Can a "Statement of Values" Benefit Your Organization?

Picture: The Kemetic (ancient Egyptian) Goddess Ma'at represents the oldest known system of values and principles.

Can a values statement benefit your organization? If so, how? Find out in this short blog post.

Values like “communication”, “respect”, “integrity”, and “excellence” sound great for an organization, right? They may even resemble your organization’s values. If so, you may need a revision because these are the corporate values of Enron, as stated in their 2000 annual report. Luckily, you are in the right place to create or recreate values for your organization that are sincere and not just a hollow list of words that sound good.  

As we all know, Enron did not embody any of these values. Like Enron, many companies fail to develop a set of values that are honest, meaningful, and a true representative of their organization. A lot of time is spent brainstorming, developing, and revising values that do not speak to the organization’s culture or how they operate. As a values-centered organization, it is crucial that your values align with your organization’s cultural perspectives.  
  
So what is a value statement? An organization’s values, or their value statement, is the very essence in what the organization believes is important. It is the guiding principles that dictate how the organization treats the people involved within the organization and how they treat their clients. When the whole organization believes in its values and those values are implemented and embedded in the culture, the organization is bound for success.    

To develop such a set of values or a values statement, an organization should follow these simple guidelines:

• Five to seven values. As a guideline your values list should not exceed seven. The objective is to create a list of your organization’s core values.
• More than one word. To avoid just listing a hollow set of values, it is best for your organization to create a statement that explains the value. For example, an organization may say they value respect. A statement of how and who the organization respects would be more meaningful.
• Shared ideas. The entire staff of your organization should be involved in the process of creating the values statement. Everyone has different values that they live by. Your organization should be a set of shared values that everyone can agree upon and follow.  

Check out Ujamaa Solutions core values to see an example of a values statement.
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Once your value statement is constructed, it is important that it is used. Don’t create values for your organization just to check it off the to-do list as something every organization is supposed to do. Values shouldn’t just sit on a shelf somewhere collecting dust. Owners and management should communicate the importance of the organization’s values through training, reinforcement, and rewards or consequences. 

An organization’s values and principles are meant to guide the behavior of the organization and align with the decisions it makes. Empty words on the wall or on the organization’s website are boring and difficult to embed into the culture of the organization. They don’t give any specific direction. As a values-centered organization, an authentic set of values that are in harmony with your culture may give you a competitive advantage over companies that are only superficial at their core. 

Does your organization have a values statement? Why? Let us know in the comments.

Contact us if you are interested in creating a values statement for your organization.

Author

Cera Ridley is a Partner/Business Engineer at Ujamaa Solutions LLC and is committed to helping clients build sustainable Pan-Afrikan organizations through strategy and organization design.​ cera@ujamaasolutions.com