I often see a disconnect between the corporate values posted on a company’s wall and the way these ideals are executed in real time.
Doing the right thing, delivering high quality work, providing excellent customer service, being a great place to work—these are empty promises if your employees don’t walk the talk.
The way employees approach their responsibilities—their sense of urgency and follow-through, their accountability or can-do attitude—has a great impact on the way customers perceive who you are. Aligning employee behavior with core values starts by identifying the behaviors you want to see.
The following will help reset your cultural norms:
- Recognize your employees when they demonstrate value-driven behavior, and intervene when they don’t;
- Model the behaviors you want your employees to emulate;
- Help employees understand and buy in to value-driven behavior;
- Ensure your principles and ideals translate to action; and
- Define and monitor behaviors associated with your core values.
Listening to your employees, respecting them and having an organized, ethical and positive work environment is crucial to your credibility. A good culture, where employees’ attitudes and actions embody your corporate values, will deliver competitive differentiation, is a great recruiting tool and will have a significant impact on your bottom line.
