When it comes to structuring our company values, we must define and develop them in a manner that verifies their actual potential to be embodied by members of your workforce. What’s the point in a value or virtue that cannot be represented on a daily basis, or as an actual part of your client servicing, after all? Paying lip service to this kind of approach will only lead staff to feel unable to meet the standards set by your vision statement, and it can leave customers or clients feeling disappointed from then on.
For this reason, it’s not only important to think through all angles of your company values, but in how practical and sustainable they are to apply. For instance, you may have ‘honesty’ as one of your core values. But what does that mean? Does it translate to pricing measures, such as no hidden fees, as well as being clear about when you’re over-capacity and cannot accept work from new clients? Does it mean being clear about offered salaries when recruiting staff? Asking these questions can help you understand how values define your everyday, and how they can make you a better firm.
In this post, we’ll discuss the importance of asserting and affirming such an approach in the best possible way. With that in mind, please consider:
Defining Your Values To Start With
Before we can follow any values or do the work necessary to promote them to our team, we must focus on what they are in the first place. After all, it can sound good to have every company value as part of a well-wishing campaign. For instance, being ‘honest’ and ‘capable’ and ‘confidential for clients,’ and more is all well and good, and perhaps you’ll use those exact three.
But what values actually work for your business, and are applicable to it right now? For instance, maybe you wish to be sustainability-focused as in your industry, this is less than the norm. That’s a good value because it’s specific, something you can measure, and a practice you can invest in and make progress towards.
If you curate your values like this, you’ll be in a better place to actualize them within your brand. When you write your staff and company policies, you’ll also be able to keep these values in mind as your orientation point. This way, they embody everything in your brand. A good and obvious example to use is that of Swiss bank accounts, famed worldwide for their professional courtesy, privacy, and pro-client approach. Think of how they structure their services to make their utmost dedication to privacy a hallmark of how they accept clients, how they give them time to deposit their goods, and how their legal protections allow for this. It’s quite a unique example, but one that shows a value being performed at every level.
Proper & Careful Training
Ultimately, staff cannot be expected to keep up with your values if they are not thoroughly trained in how to practice and manage them on a daily basis. Perhaps you run a relatively well-organized restaurant and bar. In order to be seen as upmarket, you need to ensure you achieve full marks when the health inspectors come to visit and award you a score. Anything less threatens to harm the good image of your business.
So, giving proper training, using private auditors to come in and exact higher standards in their mock test, and allowing staff the time to properly clean can all make a big difference here. Investing in our staff capabilities also provides them the inclination and skills to perform those values, such as by training your support staff to be welcoming and affable over the phone as opposed to only following a strict script.
Sensible Enforcement Of Values
While training and capable flexibility allows staff the chance to apply your company values, it’s also sometimes appropriate to make sure that these values are enforced via the threat of disciplinary measures or even letting go of staff in egregious examples.
For instance, perhaps you manage drivers that engage with the general public or your clients on a regular basis. If a driver is rude, drives dangerously, turns up to the job in a non-roadworthy condition, or fails to deliver on time, then it’s safe to say that your company values are not only being ignored, but are actively being worked against.
That kind of driver may need letting go or experience a thorough suspension until you can investigate what happened. A company that is able to do this is able to enact high standards that clients expect.
More Than Just Copy
It’s important to think about the wider emphasis your values have on your company, its image, its staff, the industry its part of, and the expectations that may come in the future thanks to this.
For instance, perhaps your company values involve making sure that education and accessibility are at the forefront of your otherwise complex product or service. This way, you can allow people who may not otherwise be able to onboard with such a service do so capably – such as credit building for beginners, or teaching newcomers to code within your framework.
It’s important to remember that this sets a standard, and that means the approach is much than just a good idea as far as copy is concerned – but an influence that will effect all your decision-making from then on.
Live Up To These Values Internally
It’s important to live up to your values both internally as well as externally. You need to prove this worth to your staff more than anyone else. For instance, employee recognition software can be a great way of celebrating your staff and showing them that you appreciate them, as you continually say so in your weekly team meetings.
If you live up to your values within and without, you’ll be on a better track to both assert and affirm them daily. With advice like this, you’ll see just how possible this can be, and the effort an approach like this requires over time.