Today, almost every company aims to be value-driven. Executives are pushing their organizations to create grand statements, often known as core values, guiding principles and aspirations.
Examples abound of high-performing organizations that have replaced stifling rules and policies with fundamental values supporting the culture they desire. Designing these lofty declarations is a good idea; nevertheless, many such exercises elicit snickers from the employees they are intended to inspire. Managers and front-line workers humor their bosses by placing their left hands over their hearts, raising their right hands, pledging commitment to the pretty words—and going back to work. In fact, one organization went through a value clarification, and the process became derisively known as kidney stone management. The employees’ attitude was: “It’s going to hurt for a while, but this too shall pass.”