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Improve your cultural capital.

Article Excerpt
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

A cohesive culture based on values is rapidly becoming one of the most important criteria for business success. Why? Not just because it's the right thing to do. It's also the profitable way to behave. Before you commit to changing your culture make sure you know how to measure it so you can gauge your progress.

I am often asked "Why are values important?" My answer usually follows the following lines:

Every individual and every organization on this planet is involved in making decisions on a daily basis. The decisions individuals make are a reflection of their personal values--what they think is important. The decisions organizations make reflect the cultural values of the organization--what the leadership team or decision-making authority thinks is important.

In other words, the decisions we make are a reflection of our personal values (personality) and organizational values (culture).

When the values of an individual are the same as the values of their organization, values alignment exists. When the values of an individual are different from the values of their organization, values misalignment exists.

Research shows that companies that actively seek to align the values of the organization with the values of employees (and vice versa) are more successful because they are focused on the needs of employees and customers. Organizations that don't have this alignment tend to be more inward looking, bureaucratic, and stressful. They may be financially successful, but they find it difficult to hire and retain talented people.

Companies with good values alignment, on the other hand, have very few problems attracting and retaining talented people. They know what employees want and they know how to provide it.

The first step in creating values alignment is to carry out a culture assessment. Based on this information, organizations are able to choose core values that are meaningful to all employees. This is important not only because happy employees create happy customers but because the core values that an organization chooses provide employees with guidance in making decisions even when supervisors are not present.

A strong set of organizational core values allows organizations to remove layers of hierarchy because employees can be trusted to make good decisions--decisions that reflect the values of the organization.

For an organization to reap the benefits of a strong set of core values, the values must be lived by the senior people in the organization. They must become part of the organizational culture. For this to happen the values have to resonate with everyone and they must be measured on a regular basis. If core values are to be effective, they have to be...

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