In a nutshell, core values are the things you think are most important in your company's culture. It's the list you want people to go down when they need to make a decision without you being there. The reason I talk about core values and not simply "values" is because they are the core of your identity. They define your priorities, what you do (and how you do it), your relationships, who you will hire and which clients you will turn away. Defining your core values for the company a must!

Examples

If you know what your core values are, you can take them into account even when hiring people. People who fit your core values feel a common denominator with each other. At VIE People, we have the core values of "make better, do it together and sincerely direct. Each core value describes what we mean by it. For us, for example, that is that we want people to think: Am I making it better with what I am thinking or doing now, am we doing it together and am I being sincerely direct in what I am proposing or deciding now?

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Why do I need to define core values for my business?

You use the core values you define for your company not only to select who can work for you, but also to determine if a client is a good fit for you or to know who the best performers are. Without the core values, you might call someone the best performer at your company because that person brought in the most sales. 

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But what if this person is also gossiping, stabbing other people in the back, taking sales appointments from other people at the moment it looks successful? If this person sells things you can't deliver or drives away colleagues who are just as smart or maybe even smarter? If this person makes others not want to work at your company? Do you want to reward that behavior? Is it something that moves your company forward into the future or does it only provide short-term returns? 

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The dream you're working on and why you think it's so important is what you really want to find each other on.

With these 3 exercises, supported by instructional videos, determine what your core values are for your business!

Wondering how our client made successful growth through the right core values? Check out the business case.

Still have questions or need help? Feel free to contact us!