3. In our brief time together we’ll
• Reacquaint ourselves with what values are
• Touch on what values can do
• Explore how we can discover, develop, and test
our organizational values
• Consider how can we make our values deeper
• Discover how we make values real
12. So how can we discover, develop,
and test, our values?
13. Decision Time
• Call from a Board member
• Big donation
• Confidentiality vs.
Transparency
• Scheduling challenge
• Reports
• Do it right or do it quick?
• Fiscal prudence or
innovation?
14. • What behavior is rewarded?
Punished?
• Where are resources actually
spent?
• Which rules are followed?
• Which are ignored?
• What stories are legend?
• And what do they convey?
• When are people shamed?
• When is discomfort tolerated?
• When is it rejected?
15.
16. If you don’t stick to your values
when your being tested, they’re
not values; they’re hobbies.
Jon Stewart.
25. Are we a Values Driven Organization?
If you don’t stick to your values when your being
tested, they’re not values; they’re hobbies.
Jon Stewart.
• Can every staff member explain the organizational
values and relate it to their own work? Can they
identify leadership decisions or actions that also
incorporated or demonstrated these values?
• Do the experiences of your clients or other
stakeholders reflect your values?
• Do your communication strategies follow through
with your values?
26. Measure based on Stage
If you don’t stick to your values when your being
tested, they’re not values; they’re hobbies.
Jon Stewart.
Start small and measure communication and
understanding
• Number of values learning sessions, participation,
and outcomes
• Staff’s ability to identify and relate to the values
• The board’s ability to identify and relate to the
values
27. Measure based on Stage cont.
If you don’t stick to your values when your being
tested, they’re not values; they’re hobbies.
Jon Stewart.
Identify and measure concrete steps towards the integration
of your values. Ask each department to find one way to
integrate your values
• HR adds value exploration to onboarding
• Communications adds ‘values’ discussion to each newsletter
• Programming adds values related indicators to their client
surveys
• Management 360s include questions about performing
values
• Board members write blog posts explaining why they
became involved and their values connection with the
organization
28. Measure based on Stage cont.
If you don’t stick to your values when your being
tested, they’re not values; they’re hobbies.
Jon Stewart.
Measure organic demonstrations of your values in
staff and stakeholders.
• Do staff identify the values in their decision
making?
• Do clients mention your values in their feedback?
• Do donors report connection with your values as a
reason for giving?
• Does the public associate you with your values?
29. Measure based on Stage cont.
If you don’t stick to your values when your being
tested, they’re not values; they’re hobbies.
Jon Stewart.
• Is there a mechanism to report and rectify actions
that contradict your values?
• Is it used or ignored? (It’s a good sign when people
feel comfortable reporting!
• In fact, ask people on your engagement questions
what they observe when people are acting against
the organizational values.
30. If you don’t stick to your values when your being
tested, they’re not values; they’re hobbies.
Jon Stewart.
We don’t have to be perfect, just
engaged and committed to aligning
values with actions
Brene Brown.
31. More Questions?
Want to Stay in Touch?
You can reach me at:
juliapayson@gmail.com
jpayson@communityactioninitiative.ca
Twitter: @juliapayson
Editor's Notes
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We had this really amazing teacher in our high school. I hope you all had one similar. He’d been around forever, taught some of my friend’s parents. He hosted ‘philosophy club’ at his house every month where we got to argue about issues of the day while he sat back smoking a pipe and occasionally cackling. He made us think big. He expected a lot. And he made us write our values and create our own credo. Which was the first time I’d ever made explicit the beliefs that guided my actions. It was a gift
Today my credo hasn’t changed all that much. I believe in speaking what I know to be true as best I can. Which is why this is a different presentation than Mark had planned. I believe that I must work towards making my community and my world a better place, which is why I still haven’t made the switch to that supposedly lucrative private sector. My last 10 years has involved CAI, John Howard Society, and Medecins Sans Frontieres. And I believe in living a good life while doing good. Which is why you get a photo of my daughter and I earlier this month at the Victoria Half Marathon/ kids race. So there you have my first lesson in how values should influence action.
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Values are what differentiate us from super villains. Many of our visions could be accomplished through nefarious means. We all know that the ends do not justify the means, and part of what helps us define our means, is our values.
Let us quote the great Joss Whedon speaking through Dr. Horrible. ‘the status is not quo, the world is a mess, and I just need to rule it’
Many of us in this room know that the status is not quo, but our VALUES dictate that we won’t try to solve this using a freeze-ray.
Oxford has assisted us here. What are the
Whether or not you make them explicit, whether or not you acknowledge them, your organization has values. There may be competing values, and there are dominant values that affect how your organization functions.
I’ll talk a bit about how we can see them later, but it’s important to realize that they exist.
Organizational values help us make decisions, prioritize our choices, and chose our words. Values can engage and empower your human resources not only through a framework of decision making and trust that leadership will abide by it, but also, by giving them all the tools to make decisions and speak about the organization. Organizational values can also strengthen your mission when the are directly linked to the vision and mission of your work. Let’s talk about both the mission strengthening, and the decision making a bit more.
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Values should inform this entire process. Your vision may not be any different than the next supervillain, but how you’ll achieve that mission will reflect your values.
Now, has anyone every started working on this and suddenly found that a seemingly cohesive board and executive suddenly aren’t cohesive? One of the reason’s might be that values haven’t been made explicit, and this is when you realize that you all have different core values informing your work.
If you do this right, if your values are embedded, your staff should be able to make informed decisions. Your staff should not only see the strategic priorities, but understand the guiding values and principals that lead to those strategic decisions. This will lead to staff who will also make decisions that are aligned with the organizations values.
So what are your values. Think back to a juicy decision. A terrible one. The ones you had a lot of discussions about. Ones that cost you something.
Because values are also about recognizing that we have limitations. That we cannot be everything to everyone. Non of us in this room are out of ideas right? None of our boards are out of ideas. But we have to make tough choices, and we do that by referencing our values. So think back to one of these and write down one shared value that emerged.
Values go deep
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There is a very important message here, especially for many of us who work from a place of considerable privilege. Many of us are working on issues of critical importance to marginized populations. It is critical that if you lay claim to a value that professes this, whether it be anti-racism, inclusion, anti-colonialism etc, you must walk the walk.
There are some very common values that are included in core values, and while there’s nothing wrong with these values, and they are in fact likely to be integrated into your operations, they may be more reflective of ‘easy’ values, instead of the values that are really unique and indicative of your organization. Some of these are less values and more issues coded in human rights and employment law. While other things, they may in fact be hobbies.
And there is a lot of risk in saying that something is a value when your behavior indicates otherwise
How do we take our values deeper.
“They don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it. What you do is simply the proof of what you believe”
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MSF Case Study
We don’t have time
We don’t have the resources
We don’t have the cohesion
It’s not relevant.
