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KUTTIN WEALTH MANAGEMENT (Melville, NY) Mission Statement: Financial advice that brings you confidence, simplicity, and success
Core Values: Respect, integrity, loyalty, communication, open-mindedness
A collaborative spirit drove the process of identifying and implementing core values at
this financial services firm, according to senior partner Eric Szczurowski. Having experienced some “growing pains,” the company’s 28 employees gathered at an off-site retreat, seated in a horseshoe shape as they all shared their ideas for a mission statement and top values they could align themselves around. A long
list of values was whittled down first to 15,
then 10, and, finally, five values that everyone could agree upon. “We use them every day,” Szczurowski says of the firm’s mission and core values. “Everything was agreed upon by all of us; it wasn’t like I came into the room and said, ‘Listen, these are our core values.’ These are ours—not mine and not theirs.”
S&S CYCLE (Viola, WI) Core Value: Proven performance
“We live by this credo in everything we do and every product we make,” says David Zemla, Vice President of Marketing for S&S Cycle, which is celebrating 60 years in business
this year. For the 240 employees who work at the company, it’s the data that drives both employee motivation and customer loyalty. “In our world, performance is measured in
horsepower and torque on a dyno,” says Zemla. “The performance is proven and documented. We share this throughout the organization and in all of our customer-focused media.” “Proven performance” is also discussed in the standard employee handbook and is integrated into orientation tools as well, pervading the company culture from the day an employee begins work. S&S’s core values have a long history, originating with the family who still owns the company it founded six decades ago. “The Smith family fashioned the core values statement that we live by to this day,” says Zemla.
DC MOSQUITO SQUAD (Sterling, VA) Purpose: Connecting people in their
outdoor spaces
Mission: To perfect our system of delivery to dominate the DC outdoor pest control market with 18,000 customers by 2020
Core Values:
• We take the initiative.
• We innovate and constantly improve.
• Webelieveinmeetingallourcustomers’needs. • We value open and honest communication.
• We are consistent, accountable and transparent. • Wehave“Ican”attitudes.
• Webelieveinvestinginourbusinessis
investing in our people.
• Webelieveworkshouldbefun. • Wearedatadriven.
“Every company has a culture. You can either
be intentional with it or not, at which point culture just happens to you,” says owner Damien
Sanchez. Before he enlisted a consultant to lead his company through a process of identifying a purpose, mission, and values, Sanchez says his company had a single core value: “Get by.” But now that he and his eight full-time, year-round employees are clear on their mission, purpose, and values, they are united around a common language and aligned in their standards for success. In turn, this helps them better hire and train the 55 seasonal employees who perform the company’s pest management services. Sanchez says the process has enhanced his leadership skills. “I have to be the evangelist of our values,” he says, modeling them in his own behavior as well as citing them in daily conversations with employees. Three years after establishing this
set of principles, Sanchez is looking toward the future, planning on distinguishing between core values and “aspirational values” that he hopes will drive his business’s growth. n
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Effective core values statements are powerful tools that can unify employees, clarify shared purpose, and inspire peak performance.
GET STARTED IDENTIFYING YOUR BUSINESS’S CORE VALUES
The mind-set shift required to establish and implement core values in a way that stands the test of time can feel challenging to companies of any size, says Marissa Levin. She shares three tips for how to make a sustainable, meaningful core values statement your company’s true north.
Engage a Professional: Having
an experienced outsider guide the conversation with senior leaders and key stakeholders is crucial to setting up an honest, productive process of identifying and implementing core values. “It’s hard to see the picture when you’re in the frame,” says Levin. A professional can see the big picture from outside the frame.
Spread the Word: Communicating your core values on posters, screen savers, and company publications is one thing, says Levin. But truly “rolling out values” involves educating and informing employees about the process at a deeper level. “Explain to employees what their role is in living the values,” she says.
Identify Values-Based Behaviors:
Implementing values means bringing them to life in daily behaviors. For example, say your company has identified collaboration as a core value. Levin asks, “What does that mean from a behavior standpoint? How do you know when you’re being collaborative?” Analyze and communicate the ways employees can expect to see their values impacting their work days.