Values are Always Exclusive

The whole point of defining organizational Values, whether using that familiar terminology or something a little more organic and engaging; is to articulate what your behavioural standards and priorities will be.

If you really mean it, like really mean it; then you have to be consistently committed to holding everyone to those expectations. Rewarding those who do so in an exemplary manner, and correct those who transgress. Done well, your organization will eventually become an uncomfortable place for anyone who can’t align themselves with those values, at least during their work hours.

I’ve written before about the cost of values. The word itself implies that we are willing to lose out on otherwise appealing opportunities if they require us to compromise on these core convictions.

Even if the value in question is being inclusive; it requires you to confront anyone who is unwilling or unable to live that out. It has to matter.

Of course, being rigid, aggressive, or inhumane about it is almost certainly a sign of an unhealthy culture. But being too lax and lenient is also. Healthy organizations take their values seriously and provide constant reminders of what they are and why they matter. You can’t rely on people picking up on the “vibes”.

I’ve worked with several charities as they work to clearly define and demonstrate their values. Doing it right takes time. (This article by Patrick Lencioni is particularly insightful).

As with so many aspects of leadership, clarity and consistency are key. It’s not nearly enough to have a retreat or team day and announce the new organizational values. You need to involve people in a process of sharing their favourite stories of your organization at it’s very best, discerning the common threads that relate to the way people are treated, and find ways to express these essentials that are evocative to your stakeholders.

And then you need to do the hard part.

The hard part is to pay the price to make your values non-negotiable. To make adherence to them part of every performance review. To invest in advancing them and helping those who struggle with them to either progress into alignment or conclude that they would fit better somewhere else. To become exclusive about them.

Part of the challenge here is that we’ve seen values as only kind of important, helpful, but not absolute. We’ve let them be mushy and sometimes optional. We’ve been unwilling to have them cost us anything.

Trying to change this immediately is probably a bad idea. It’s generally unfair to impose new standards of ethics or interaction and demand complete alignment all at once. In fact, wise leaders will acknowledge that not taking values seriously has been a failure of leadership and accept responsibility for that failure. Then build trust around the renewed or revised values for a period of months while they become operational, and eventually intuitive.

So don’t rush the process of identifying your values or implementing them more fully. But don’t fail to do both in time. Well discerned values are the bedrock on which healthy organizations ultimately stand.

I can help you and your team figure this out. Just book some time for a free initial conversation.

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