Why values matter in business

Whether we are aware of it or not, every aspect of our lives is underpinned by our values.  Nor are these values unchanging; we may have different values influencing different roles. 

For example, as a daughter, we may experience the values of loyalty, generosity and freedom most strongly, while fidelity, compassion and patience may the values that influence us most strongly in the role of best friend.

Increasingly, business owners are becoming aware of the benefit of having values at the forefront of their business.  There are many reasons why.  There are those who seeking new ways of doing business,  who are creating communities through their business, and those who want to bring greater meaning and purpose to their daily work. 

Values offer a route into our hearts.  They help us move beyond the rationale of the mind and the spreadsheet, and into deeper and more rewarding territory.   Having a shared set of values within any community - whether its a workplace, a family or a house share - helps create consistency and loyalty, while also deepening our trust and commitment.

So, how do we discern our business values?
To be most effective, it's worth involving everyone in the business in the selection process.  It can be as simple as asking people to nominate the value they believe to be most important at work in the staff-feedback box. 

Calling to mind the business people who most inspire us and the values they embodied is a quick way uncovering the values that most inspire us.  Developing that simple exercise into a group exercise can deepen the process, building trust and community.  Ideally, three values are most manageable.  One value can skew your perspective and any more than three can be unwielding.

And how do values work in business? 
Values provide a compass for decision making and community living.  They help businesses make directions that are consistent and logical, while also drawing on a deeper level of discernment than the bottom line. 

For example, if innovation, fun and leadership are your business values, when required to make a decision, consider this, "If 'Innovation' were to make this decision, what choice would it make?"  Then repeat the process for each fun and leadership.  The insights can be surprisingly rich and revealing, opening up creative ideas that would have lain dormant otherwise.

A final word...
Too many companies adopt values that reflect the owners' interests and then they blithely ignore them.  Like any change, to be meaningful, they have to be transparent and implemented in a meaningful way, in that way, they serve many purposes; from uncovering innovative solutions, to developing meaningful decision-making practices, to deepening community and commitment at work.