Values are psychological constructs that are internal to a person’s belief system, and they reflect our priorities and ultimately influence our behaviour. Values are beliefs about what is good or bad. Organizations do not have values, but values shape their cultures because they are composed of human beings. The values of persons shape organizational behaviour and the direction taken by organizations. Values are the enduring beliefs that a specific mode of conduct or end-state of existence is personally or socially preferable to an opposite mode of conduct, says Hultman and Gellermann.
Having strong values is essential in leadership roles because it makes a leader predictable and ultimately trustworthy. Values influence culture and its impact on leadership performance. McNaughton explains that values are conceptions about what is important in life, whether terminal or instrumental. Once they are embraced, they become part of one’s identity as a person. Meanwhile, organizational leaders can influence an organization’s culture through their value system, primarily through their behaviour. The leadership team is critical to its ability to become all it can be, achieve its strategic objectives, and unleash its people’s potentials.
Establishing clear organizational values helps to ensure that all members are working towards the same objectives. The core values support the organization’s vision and shape its culture. That is why every single business decision must be in alignment with these values. An organization without values is not ready for business. Having defined and shared organizational values helps build great teams, deliver excellent customer service, and foster innovation. Values are fundamental because they are the driving forces in human motivation and corporate culture, and balance among values is essential to a healthy workplace and long-term business success. They serve as a moral compass, influencing decision-making and setting ethical practices and standards for an organization.
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Understanding values requires us to understand their relationships to needs. For example, animals act on instinct. They are pre-programmed on how to respond by nature; people act on free will, choosing how to respond. Our choices are based on values, which are beliefs about what is important in life. A primary function of values is to meet needs and attempting to meet needs brings us face-to-face with the dilemma of choice. This dilemma places us between two sets of forces: those pulling toward safety and those pushing toward growth and development. Harrison described this as a struggle between the need for defences (security) and the need to know (growth). How people and organizations resolve this dilemma depends on their values. Therefore, values shape people’s preferred ways of satisfying their needs and, whether they are aware of it or not, every action is guided by one or more values.
Those who rise into leadership positions should be those whose personal values align with its core values and culture. For example, a company clearly states that it neither gives nor takes a bribe. To ensure an alignment with the organization’s values, those in leadership roles can be asked what choices they will make in specific scenarios. From this, we can deduce their values.
The scandals that have rocked most organizations in the last decade have shown that it is not enough for organizations to write beautiful vision, mission, and values statements. They must walk the talk. In assessing top management team members and other senior executives, the company should examine its record of compliance with rules and ethical codes. A non-compliance or misalignment between an organization’s values and individuals in an organization causes big problems. Such members of the organization will inevitably run afoul of the policies of the organization. Misalignment of values makes loyalty to the organization difficult, and it becomes tragic when such a misalignment is by a senior leader in the management team. Such instances provide a terrible example that misleads other employees.
Further, since business is all about creating value and values are shared among organizational members, this, in turn, forms a central component of organizational culture. So, culture then affects an organization’s capacity to attract and retain high-quality employees. It influences the dynamics of relationships between members of the organization and affects how they relate with customers. Most importantly, culture determines an organization’s flexibility and readiness for change, and it can either aid or hinder the achievement of an organization’s objectives. The core values shape the company’s culture and impact on its business strategy. They help create a purpose, improve team cohesion, and create a sense of commitment in the workplace.
To succeed, the organization’s leadership must truly honour its values in everything they do and set the right example for the employees. It is the only way the leadership team can build trust in the workplace. The leadership team must epitomize the values of the organization. So, imbibing a particular set of core values such as integrity, truth, trust, respect, justice, dignity, and love defines who the leadership truly is. The leadership team cannot compel employees to follow the organization’s values set for the business if they do not follow and integrate them into their daily work in the first place.
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