Your company’s values are the ones that can help you shape your company’s strategy. In fact, they can be a reflection of your vision and even help you to achieve it along with your mission. This is why every company has its own core values to walk by as they can be considered as a guide to encourage employees to achieve the company’s goal.
The importance of establishing your company’s values is clear, but the question here is how to define those core values.
Here are some steps that can help you define your company’s values.
1- What Is Your Business?
What type of business are you running? Based on the type, you can start defining your company’s values.
Every business provides a certain service to the community; ask yourself, “How is this service helping its customers?” The answer to this question will be the first lead to choosing your values. Your company’s core values have to represent your business and what it does, and how it is helping the consumer.
So, first of all, think about the business and then start thinking about your values.
2- What Is Your Company’s Purpose?
Your company’s purpose is the reason why it exists.
Your purpose represents the impact you want to have on society therefore your values are there to support it. So, before defining your values, you must first know your company’s purpose and what you want it to accomplish.
3- Make Them Unique
Your values should be unique and also meaningful.
When you choose your values, choose the ones that represent your beliefs and how you want your employees to behave. Your values are a reflection of your mindset and how you want to run your company and manage your employees.
Each business owner has their own thoughts and beliefs, this is what distinguishes them from the rest. This is why you should choose values that represent your own differences and how unique your business is.
Also Read ➤ Have you ever read about Apple’s core values?
4- Choose Values That Your Employees Can Relate To
The best way for your values to spread is to be understandable by your employees and whoever reads them.
When your employees relate to your company’s values, you will find them more encouraged and excited to walk by them. For example, some of IKEA’s values are Simplicity, Different with meaning, and togetherness; these 3 values represent what the brand provides, which is proof that IKEA’s employees can relate to these values.
5- Make Them Memorable
If they are unique and easy to understand, they will be memorable.
When the company’s values are memorable, you will find your company’s culture is being shaped the way you want.
Some business owners choose short and simple values; you’re free to choose what you want, what’s important is to always remember them and to make them memorable for your employees.
Your values are what you stand for.
6- Always Update Your Values
Your values now won’t be accurate 10 years later.
The market and society now are not the same as 10 years ago; this is why when your company evolves and improves, your values have to be updated to fit the surrounding circumstances.
For example, the society and market changed right after the spread of the Coronavirus, hence many business owners changed their mindset and beliefs, so you will find some companies changed their values based on the major shift that happened to the whole world.
You must revisit your values from time to time to see if they still reflect your beliefs and the market or not.
Share with us your most memorable values from your company or a brand you admire.
