How to embed values within your organisation

13 August, 2025

How to embed values within your organisation

Organisational values aren’t just words on a wall or on a website. They are the compass that guides behaviour, decisions and the overall culture of where you work. But too often, values are introduced with lots of enthusiasm only to fade into the background. This damages the credibility of the organisation and can create cynicism amongst employees. It also can lead to reputational damage in the eyes of not only your brand as an employer, but in the eyes of your customers too.

However, inculcating your organisational values within and across your business will truly influence your workplace culture and employee engagement will increase. This leads to improved productivity and levels of customer service.

So how do you embed values in a way that sticks and truly transforms your workplace culture? Here’s our strategic guide to embedding values across your organisation in a meaningful and sustainable way.

1. Start with leadership: walk the talk

If leaders don’t model the values, then no one else will. No ifs, no buts. Employees take their cues from how leaders act and behave, not just what they say but what they do. When leaders consistently demonstrate values such as integrity, fairness and empathy, they set a standard that others will follow. Incorporating values-based leadership into training and development programmes is essential to making them a daily reality. In short, there can be no 'say-do' gap.

2. Attract and recruit for values, not just skills and know-how

Your recruitment and onboarding process is a fabulous opportunity to integrate values to new joiners. However, it starts before then. Make sure that your job advertisements talk about the values and behaviours of your organisation. Make them clear on your website and other marketing collateral too. Then use values-based interview questions to assess a candidate's alignment early. Once on-board, new employees should hear and see your values throughout their induction sessions, training and mentoring. Expectations need to be set from day one. This works especially well if a senior leader can be present and take part in the induction event - in video content if not in-person.

3. Reward what you want to see

Don’t just reward performance. Instead reward how performance is achieved. Include values and behaviours in performance reviews and 1:1 meetings. Link promotions and recognition to how individuals embody your values. A number of our clients have regular vision and values award events when living the values is celebrated. Whether through formal awards or informal praise, make it clear that values and behaviours that matter. Look for people living the values and recognise them as doing so.

Of course, it's also necessary to call out negative behaviours too. Having those necessary conversations is important. Make sure that your managers are skilled and are confident in handling these situations.

4. Bake values into your policies and decision making

Organisational policies and everyday decision-making should reflect your values. For example, if fairness is a value, then your grievance and promotion policies should reflect this. Provide teams with easy to use frameworks that help them make decisions aligned with the organisation’s ethos and belief system. We encourage our clients to have values visible in meeting rooms to act as a reminder. Also create safe spaces for raising concerns for when actions contradict your organisation's values. Employee voice and psychological safety are key in any modern workplace culture.

5. Tell stories that inspire

Nothing brings values to life like real and practical examples. Use your internal communication channels e.g. newsletters, town hall meetings, videos etc. to share stories of employees who have demonstrated the organisation’s values. Encourage staff to nominate peers or teams who exemplify the culture you are building. This builds advocacy and challenges scepticism.

6. Empower values champions

Recruit a network of values champions across the business, and from different levels too. These ambassadors will need to model the desired behaviours, support colleagues and keep the values visible day-to-day. Train and support them so they can influence informally, building accountability across teams. Your values champions will help create and sustain the necessary advocacy. This will help avoid your organisational values as being seen as a 'management fad' that will quickly fade away or an HR initiative that is not owned across the business.

7. Educate through experience

Embedding values doesn’t mean just posters and screen savers. Properly embedding values means more and more practice. Include values and behaviours in all your learning and development programmes. Use real-life case studies, dilemmas, customer issues and skills practice sessions to help employees explore and practice values-led decision-making. This will help employees understand how values are brought to life and lived every day.

8. Measure and refine

Values are only effective if they’re lived. Use your engagement surveys, pulse checks and focus groups to understand how well values are embedded. Then use this quantitative and qualitative data to adjust and improve. Celebrate progress to motive and encourage, and be transparent about areas that need more work.

Summary

Embedding organisational values isn’t a one-off campaign. Instead, it’s an evolving journey. If you are serious abut embedding values across your organisation, you will need to be prepared to invest time, energy, effort and money in doing so.

But with consistent leadership, structured reinforcement and meaningful integration into every aspect of work, values can transform your workplace culture from the inside out. When values become the norm, not the exception, they unlock employee engagement which leads to business success.

Paul Beesley

Director & senior consultant, Beyond Theory