It’s World Values Day today, so we’re looking at what values are, and their impact, both internally and externally.
What are values?
Individual values refer to the beliefs we hold that guide our choices and behaviours. They can be seen as a moral compass, if you like.
Company values are similar; they act like a collective compass. Done well, values bind your team together and set you apart from your competitors. When values are embedded in the company culture, and believed by colleagues, organisations perform better and have higher levels of stakeholder engagement and satisfaction.
Finding the right values
This is where the Employer Value Proposition comes in. EVPs have been around for a long time, but they’re back in the spotlight as organisations strive to be known as a great place to work, offering a standout employee experience. An EVP outlines the values that a company gives someone, and the aligning of personal and company values plays an important part.
A lot of companies are re-evaluating their EVPs right now. They’re speaking to current colleagues, both frontline and senior, sending out surveys, and getting a sense of what matters to colleagues and how the organisation can meet their needs.
Finding the right fit
Your EVP and, by extension, your values, will help you find like-minded people for your organisation.
The Millennial workforce illustrate the importance of values. They want more from a company than their salary. They align themselves with organisations that stand for what they believe in, and who share their values.
Jobseekers research companies ahead of time, to see whether or not those companies hold the values they’re after, before applying for a role. So you need to shout about your values, and make them as appealing as possible. Then, internally, you need to include them in everything you do: your induction, your reward programme and your internal communications.
Doing the right thing
So what counts as appealing? In this day and age, colleagues and customer, want to see organisations going above and beyond. They want to see that your values include contributing to the community and the greater good.
Again, 76% of Millennials will research a company ahead of time to find out about their CSR agenda. So put it front and centre in your values. Empower your colleagues to take volunteering days in the local community, and have a national charity, which you fundraise for throughout the year.
So why value values?
Put simply, your values and your EVP play a huge part in both recruitment and retention. Work hard on them, and communicate them both internally and externally. Most importantly, live them – authenticity is the key to reaping the benefits through talent attraction and employee engagement.