Make them meaningful not meaningless

Most successful companies recognise the importance of having a clear vision and a set of values.

Vision – provides the direction and purpose of the company.

Values – shape the culture and identify behaviours and commitments to support the ‘How.’ (…)

They are the essence of the company’s identity – its guiding principles and beliefs, creating a sense of pride and ownership within the business with employees feeling a strong sense of belonging and engagement.

Throughout my career I have been part of many vision and values exercises and initiatives. They have all been different with some inspiring and impactful to its employees and the business and others just a paper exercise, paying lip service with no real meaning or commitment.

Make your vision and values mean something to your team.

Whether you are the CEO of the business or head up a small team within the organisation, it is essential that you make the vision and values come alive and, most importantly, for them to have real meaning. I would suggest that you cut through all the words of intent and explanations and filter the message down to two key points for your teams – 

• What are we trying to achieve?
• How do we go about achieving it?

Make the vision and values meaningful, not meaningless

Ensure that there is clarity, simplicity and that they are relevant to your team. I have seen too many top level initiatives that haven’t clearly been translated through the business in terms of:

‘what does this mean to me?’ or ‘what do I need to do differently?’

As a result nothing changes and the vision and values becomes almost irrelevant and are soon forgotten. Make them meaningful not meaningless and see the positive impact to employee engagement, retention and productivity.

To learn more about leadership & potential, sign up to my Udemy course below.