Book description
How to turn company values into competitive advantage
We are inclined, for whatever reason, to treat values like works of
art. We view them as nice to hang on the wall, and beautiful to look
at, but we don't act as though they truly mean much to us in the real
world. In fact, the opposite is true. The best organizations
understand their values, articulate them clearly, and hold them higher
than any short-term concerns or short-cut methods. This does not put
these companies at a competitive disadvantage. It is the source of
their competitive advantage.
If there's no clarity at the top about what values really mean, then
there's no consistency at the management level or further down the
organization. This means that there's no way to measure, coach,
assess, promote or fire people in line with those values. Any
organization that does not articulate its values concretely functions
like a modern Tower of Babel. No one can be quite sure that they are
speaking the same language at different levels or different locations
within the organization. Decisions don't always make sense or feel
right. Confusion reigns. No matter how compelling and inspirational
the organization's vision may be, its aspirations fall far short in reality.
Values are about achieving results in a way that is consistent with
what an organization stands for. They provide a direct connection
between the CEO, the factory worker and everyone in between; and form
the basis of the organization's "brand" as understood by
employees, customers, suppliers and even shareholders. When the work
is done right, values provide an organizing principle, a directional
compass that helps organizations succeed; they become a source of
energy for an organization's vision, strategy and day-to-day efforts.
Vision, strategy, market share, reputation and profits are all very
important - but having a clear and consistent set of values is far
more critical in predicting whether an organization will continue to
succeed and grow as its people, markets, competitive landscape and
technology change. People must make their contributions to an
organization willingly and independently to bring passion, commitment,
creativity and energy to a job. But they will do so only so long as
they believe that what they are doing is authentic and meaningful, and
is part of a code of commitment shared by the organization as a whole.
Inside the Box focuses on values in a clear and practical way
to understand what they are, where they come from and how they are
transmitted from employee generation to generation. Inside the
Box provides a roadmap for any leader or manager on how to
identify the values that make an organization, department, team, or
individual unique. It also shows how to measure whether an
organization or individual is operating according to those values, and
how managers can use values as the basis for all of their people
decisions and drive superior performance as a result.
Dr. David S. Cohen is founder of, and senior
consultant in, the Strategic Action Group Ltd., a consulting firm
specializing in organizational behavior and leadership development.
His work with corporations helps create a link between the people and
the business plan. His focus is on management and leadership
development; behavior-based selection and performance management;
helping corporations to articulate their values and develop a
strategic vision; and creating high-performance, results-focused
organizations.
Cohen's background spans both corporate consulting
and education. He has consulted with a diverse group of clients in the
United States, Canada and South America, as well as in Europe, South
East Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, assisting companies to create
integrated human resources processes that are aligned with the
business plan, vision and values of individual clients.
He is a
sought-after speaker on business values, leadership and human resource
issues and has presented frequently for groups such as Linkage, IQPC,
the US Conference Board, Intelligence Business Networks (IBN),
Malaysia and the Human Resources Professional Association of Ontario
Annual Conference. He is also called upon as a keynote speaker at a
variety of corporate programs.
Dr. Cohen holds a doctorate in
Education from Boston University. He is the author of The Talent
Edge: A Behavioral Approach to Hiring, Developing, and Keeping Top
Performers (Wiley, 2001).
