Leaders are trained to identify when revenues, EBITDA, number of new customers, and retention of customers are up or down. They are less likely to receive training in how to identify values conflicts.
Values conflicts can have a tremendous impact on employee engagement, employee retention, and alignment. They can take a toll on net profits and customer satisfaction, too.
Values conflicts happen when the employee behavior doesn’t match the organization’s values—either spoken or written. Let’s say your organization has a stated value of integrity, but people don’t show up to meetings on time, reports are turned in incomplete or done shoddily, and work is not properly credited. In other words, promises made are not kept. Do you think your employees are happy working in this environment? How long can you and they last working under these conditions?
If you want the culture to reflect the organization’s values, start recording values conflicts. Get a sense of how often and where these values conflicts tend to occur. Then share your findings. Make it known to everyone—not just the violators—that the organization’s values must be honored. Explain how everyone (the organization, leaders, employees, and customers) stands to benefit.