Whatever the size of your business, there’s one thing you need to look after to sustain the smooth running of your usual processes and systems, and that’s your workforce. Implementing a strategy to enable workers to feel safe, happy and therefore remain loyal to the business, and produce a high standard of work is every HR department’s dream, but few really know where to start. Here we discuss how to implement core values in your workplace to ensure that your staff turnover remains low, and you produce a happy workforce.
When it comes to choosing the values on which your business is based, asking the board for their views is an absolute must. Core values cannot be decided by one person and handed down as gospel. Instead, discussing freely in an open forum is a great way to ensure all board members are committed to the same values and this gives your business a better chance of creating and implementing those values in your workforce.
Step one would be to discuss how values can affect your business, and this involves learning about the power shared values can have. Instead of pulling in different directions, having shared values means that everyone is pulling the same way and working towards the same goals so there is likely to be much less conflict. Once all of the business leaders have agreed, it’s time to go ahead with brainstorming the values to work by and how those values should be implemented.
Involving the business leaders in this process is also important. Starting at the top to create values that can then be handed down over time will create a business that is led from the front, and employees will be far more likely to believe those core values if senior figures in the business are seen to be adhering to those values.
When choosing values on which your business is based, discussing freely in an open forum is the best way to ensure all members are committed to the same values. Click To TweetBrainstorming the ideas should come from a free discussion as to what is important to each business leader personally. You can then come to know what values are shared by several members of the board. Things such as being able to fully trust your team are common goals that many businesses work to. However, these can differ depending on the board, the industry and the nature of the business. So you may have to have some discussion before common core values are agreed on.
Once you have the general values you want to implement, it’s time to expand on the general idea and fully define your core values one by one. You should have about 10. It may take some time to fully consolidate all the different views on the core values, so be prepared to take some time over this.
From there, you can then look at how this should be communicated company-wide and appeal to your workforce. Ensure that they are easy to understand and more importantly, explain why they should be adopted and what value that brings to the employees as well as the business. Don’t be afraid to step away from corporate-speak if your business is supposed to be young, hip and fun. Having common core values doesn’t mean they have to be complicated. Try using language that makes them easy to remember, and use simple goals to measure how the core values have been adopted.
Finally, it’s time to start to implement those values across the company. Having each person in the company attend a session to discuss and explain the core values as you see them is a good idea. These don’t have to be one-to-one sessions. If you have a large workforce, you may want to hold departmental sessions, whereas if you only have a small team then this could be done all in one go. It’s important for your HR professionals to communicate the ‘why’ behind the values so that employees can better receive and embody them.
Implementing core values in your company will ensure that everyone is accountable for their actions and that everyone understands the standard for their behaviour. This is a vital practice for your HR Department to provide and maintain a consistent and productive workplace culture. Start brainstorming today and you’ll have a happier workplace in no time.
