Why Company Values Are A Serious Business
Having been part of trivago for 5 years and watching the company grow from 150 people to over 1,000, I can proudly say I have been blessed enough to experience a company that truly embodies its culture and the values they have in place.
During my time there, we underwent multiple organizational, departmental and SCRUM team changes and there comes a moment when you realize how critical it is to have such a strong culture that will lead you through the waves… because it did. Really!
In this article, I’ll focus on the importance of the company values and their impact in shaping a healthy organization if done properly.
What Are Company Values?
You may come across company values also as corporate or core values. Think of them as the core pillars of your identity upon which your business and its behavior are based, strengthening further your vision and shaping the way you conduct business.
They are the guiding principles that will support you in decision making processes both when managing operations internally within the organization and externally with your customers.
The company values are the Alpha and Omega in your business, the backbone holding it all together
It’s important to remember that company values are not simply a trend or a piece of paper that is done once and dusted. They are values through which the company culture is born and lived. This is how culture ambassadors are generated, spreading your culture vibe all around.
Why Bother?
1. Feeling of Purpose
I bet you would love to ensure each and every one of your employees, from top leadership to entry-level, newbies or veterans, are working towards the same common goal, and share a bigger purpose, right? Well, the good news is having core company values can foster this.
What’s important about purpose is that it’s undoubtedly critical for employee fulfillment. An Imperative survey of LinkedIn members revealed 73% of purpose-oriented members being satisfied in their jobs, compared to 64% who are not purpose-oriented.
Additionally, 58% of companies with a clearly articulated purpose experienced growth of over 10%, compared to 42% of companies that don’t place purpose in the heart of their operations.
Core values are of crucial importance if you want to create an everlasting, fruitful, and motivating place to work
According to a study by Fidelity, millennials would be willing to cut down on their income for a healthier work-life balance, a superior company culture, a promising career development, or a more meaningful job.
2. Brand Identity
A strong set of company values also gives your company direction and assists in building a robust reputation. They set the tone for how your business relates with customers, markets its products, and makes critical decisions. If you take them sincerely, your core values will help you form a solid brand identity and a cohesive business plan.
73% of purpose-oriented members being satisfied in their jobs, compared to 64% who are not purpose-oriented.
3. Profitability
Company values not only form the identity of your organization but act as a guiding light for your employees. A study of more than 1,000 firms in the Great Places to Work database indicated a strong correlation between financial performance and the degree to which employees trusted their company’s values were being exercised.
“You can have all the right strategy in the world; if you don’t have the right culture, you’re dead.”
— Patrick Whitesell, co-CEO of WME
trivago’s Core Values
Finish what you start, generate learnings quickly, and iterate accordingly.
In an attempt to highlight the importance of company values, I would like to elaborate more on trivago’s core values and illustrate how they affect the day-to-day work.
1. Trust
This is always the foundation of everything. You can also see that it lies at the very bottom of the core value house. Without trust, nothing else moves. Trust is brought into everyone’s competencies, intentions as well as actions that are preached.
2. Authenticity
Another crucial part of a strong culture: respecting that everyone is unique in their own way. This fosters diversity in the environment and enables everyone to be their true selves.
3. Entrepreneurial Passion
Passion sits at the very heart of everything you do. It is what sparks motivation for both you and the people around you, trying together to create an impact.
4. Power of Proof
Quoting W. Edwards Deming, without data, you’re just another person with an opinion. It does not matter if it you base your argumentation on qualitative or quantitative data. But you need something to kick things off. This helps you to build your hypothesis for any change you want to try out.
5. Unwavering Focus
In today’s evolving industries, with so much input from users and practices from other companies, it’s really easy to get excited and start something new every single day. Finish what you start, generate learnings quickly, and iterate accordingly.
6. Fanatic Learning
This is my ultimate favorite: No matter your seniority level, age, position etc, having a mindset of learning something new every day and treating every occasion as an opportunity is key. Otherwise you simply don’t develop in any direction except backwards.
Additional Examples
- Google: User-centricity: Focus on the user, and all else will follow
- Google: Culture: You can be serious without a suit
- Coca Cola: Leadership: The courage to shape a better future
- Uber: Autonomy: Value ideas over hierarchy
- IKEA: Dare To Be Different: We question old solutions and, if we have a better idea, we are willing to change.
- Netflix: Inclusion: You collaborate effectively with people of diverse backgrounds and cultures. You nurture and embrace differing perspectives to make better decisions. You intervene if someone else is being marginalized.
- Zappos: Be Humble: Take nothing for granted. There’s always challenges that lie ahead and nothing in life is a certainty. It’s important to stay humble, carry ourselves with a quiet confidence, and treat others the same way that we want to be treated.
Side Effects
Just like pretty much everything, core values, when not set and lived in the right way can have a boomerang effect.
Fuzzy, trivial or ill-conceived values could lead to problems for your company culture. Looking back at Uber’s old set of core values, which included expressions like “Always be hustlin” and “Toe-steppin,” a disconnect between how management identified with the company and the day-to-day experiences of employees was observed resulted in a toxic company culture.
You need to be careful with the values you put in place and ensure there are no exceptions applied behind certain decisions or to certain people. Employees will notice if your company isn’t living up to its values statement, which can damage morale and we all know how things can go downhill from there.
Our belief is that if you get the culture right, most of the other stuff, like great customer service or building a great long-term brand, or empowering passionate employees and customers will happen on its own
— Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos
