Corporate governance
Dead or alive? Corporate values in theory and practice.
From Sabine Walter
If you google the word "values", you will find various definitions. All of them are essentially about qualities, properties or characteristics that are inherent in people or things. If a company defines values for itself, these are - by definition - characteristics that describe the actions of the company in general and of each manager and each employee in concrete terms, both internally and externally.
These corporate values are often developed in workshops, published on the website and printed on glossy paper. But paper, as we all know, is patient. That is why it does not rebel when corporate values that have been written down are trampled underfoot.
At Volkswagen, for example, employees all over the world took part in numerous workshops last year to develop the six values that the brand would like to follow: Together, Courageous, Customer-oriented, Efficient, Mindful and Sincere. At Daimler, there is a values compass in which integrity is a component. At Deutsche Bank, integrity is also at the top of the list of corporate values. At Aldi Süd, it is fairness, trust and responsibility.
The list of fine-sounding compasses of values, ethics and principles of behaviour is long. Unfortunately, so is the list of examples that show that these values are hardly lived in everyday life or are even disregarded.
Why is it important in principle for an organisation to define values?
Values guide action. In an organisation, they define the basis for dealing with each other, with customers and business partners. Values define the guidelines for the development of products and services. They give direction to how the company wants to behave in the industry and in society.
Values help to find employees and business partners who fit the organisation. Therefore, values should play a role in job interviews as well as in the selection of service providers.
A common intersection allows trust to develop more quickly. A common set of values reduces the time to make decisions and minimises conflicts.
It should be noted that although there is an intersection of common values, not all values are congruent, otherwise there is a risk of "blindness".
How do you make values tangible?
To ensure that values are actually lived, it is important that they are translated into tangible behaviour: internally in the team, externally with customers and service providers.
Let's assume you have defined the following corporate values for yourself: INTEGRITY, SIMPLICITY, PRESENCE, INNOVATIVE STRENGTH. With the help of simple questions, you can transfer these abstract values into concrete actions, process and product characteristics. We have put together some selected questions for you from our values workshop:
- How do we notice among ourselves that we are living these values?
- What does integrity look like in our daily team life?
- How do our customers and business partners know that we have integrity?
- How do we notice that we are present in our communication?
- How do our customers notice that we are present?
- What does simplicity mean in dealing with our service providers and business partners?
- How exactly can we use our innovative power to make our products, processes and services even simpler?
Values determine the corporate culture. Therefore, it is of elementary importance that they are lived by everyone, but especially by top management and executives. Because role models are also needed here!
If you want to revive the value desert in your company, We are happy to accompany this process as an impulse generator, sparring partner and moderator.
