How many organizations take a mirror and openly and honestly see what is taking place within? This action is not only about measuring outcomes; it is about listening to all of those impacted by you to know how your processes, systems, and policies are reflective of what you say you value. It is not necessarily about spending resources to train staff to transform their behaviour (fix them) to suit your needs; it is about your organization first and foremost taking an x-ray of itself.
It is about how you are living up to your explicit and or implicit values, the ones people feel, see, and hear. It is not about reading the values on the wall or what are our values! It is about where do they reside within the organization?
Once you know these, take the time to align your infrastructure, HR, decision-making, etc. to match “how you walk your talk.” Leadership demonstrates both courage and bravery. I have found that using values as a diagnostic and engagement tool, organizations can make the change for the better, and leadership perhaps can transform itself to increase performance, efficiency, and quality. What’s your experience? Can you provide the measures of lived values?
Martin Itzkow is a member of the Canadian Values Alliance Steering Committee and a Certified Barrett’s Values and Vision Consultant, Life Coach in Change and Organizational Development and a CBC Radio Columnist in Winnipeg.