Business Matters: Understanding the core values of your business

Bahaa Moukadam

Simple technique can vastly improve your business

Businesses, large and small, must operate within a certain framework which most of us refer to as rules. In the business world, we often refer to them as ‘core values,’ and many business owners would be surprised how much they can affect the everyday outcome of a business.

Even for mom and pop retail businesses, it is surprising how much of their success depends on having established core values. So, you may ask, what are core values and why should I have them?

Core values are simply a handful of rules that your business has established. These are the general ‘rules’ under which your business and your employees adhere to every day. The clearer and more deliberate you can be in defining your core values, the easier it will become for your employees to follow them.

Keep in mind that if your business has not established core values, your employees will be free to operate within a set of rules they define, not you.

Ok, so let’s look at an example of core values for an educational company I’ve worked with. Here are the core values they decided to establish. These have become the guiding principles to be followed each day:

Excellence: Get the best, and then make it better.

Cultivate every resource; pull weeds immediately.

Results-oriented work ethic.

Fair and generous relationships with our people and customers; expect the same in return.

Integrity. Period.

Obviously, each local business will have their own philosophy and will want to create a set of core values if a new business or discover them if an established business.

Owners should not only live their core values but should use them in hiring employees (for example, must exemplify them). Once done, however, owners will be amazed at how quickly they begin to see new value being created in their businesses as everyone involved will operate from the same set of ‘values.’

Once implemented, core values of your business will drive appropriate behaviors, attitudes, and decision-making throughout the organization. It will make the execution of your overall business plan much easier.

Also, be wary of contradictory behavior. If the owner is living quite differently from the rules that have been established, this is hypocrisy and will turn off team members and create a chasm of credibility between leadership and team members.

And finally, once you are able to slow down long enough to think about the definition and establishment of the core values of your small business, they must be defended at all costs.

For instance, you will likely have these choices test your core values? Would you fire a team member who consistently or blatantly violates one or more of your core values? Would your company/business be willing to take a financial hit (lose money) in order to maintain the integrity of a core value? Are your core values alive among your team today? If asked, can you easily identify the name of team members that are living out each of your Core Values in an energetic and obvious manner?

Always remember to discover, demonstrate, and defend your core values to ensure they are well and alive throughout your organization. Recruit and promote based on core values, values first and skills second and make sure to quickly remove employees who continue to violate one or more of the rules that have been established.

It’s amazing how many businesses do not utilize this simple technique to improve motivation, engagement, productivity and profit. Take time to establish core values and you should see a dramatic improvement in your overall operation.