Main Idea
Have you considered what your core values are for you and for your business? What would be the core value for a “Wall Street” firm? What would it be for your church? What would it be for the St. Louis Rams? Is this even important?
Expansion of the Idea
You cannot turn on the television, look at the internet, or read a paper without reading about the financial crisis and how it is George Bush’s problem and how he created it. This is garbage. Yes, government could have done some things differently. However, the real problem is the culture of the Wall Street firms. The movie Wall Street was filmed 20 years ago and the film clearly pointed out the underlying concept of Wall Street. Obviously, greed has been and will probably be a fixture there. It is a core value whether they want it or not. Risk management is given lip service but they obviously do not give it the same level of respect as greed.
Core values are the boundaries that define our businesses. They are who we are. They may or may not be who we want to be. Problems occur when our core values are not aligned with our customer or team member expectations. Problems also occur when we stray from the core values. George Merck said “Medicine is for people, and not for profits. If you remember that, profits will follow.” What has happened in the last 10 years is that Merck started managing the business for profits. They strayed from their core and have created a lot of problems.
Identifying core values is not just for minimizing problems. Once they are identified, clearly expressed and all systems are aligned, then the business can run full steam ahead. Core values can be a lot of things. They can be innovative service delivery. They could be integrity in products and services. Others could be service, teamwork, respect, technological innovations. There are no right or wrong answers. My core values may not work for you. But it is critical that you identify them and own them.
Action Items
Make a list of what you think are your core values
Ask your team to make a list.
Ask some customers what your core values are.
Follow up on differences.