Change is inevitable in business. In recent months, we’ve seen everything from renewed debate about remote work to anxiety about the impact of generative AI and the ever-changing market landscape. But one truth remains: Resilience is more important than ever for organizations that want to succeed.
As leaders, we do our best to motivate our employees to do their best work, articulate our strategies and vision, and respond to market conditions. But ultimately, it’s your company’s core values—and the culture that brings them to life—that determine how well your organization is able to weather unexpected storms and stand tall through moments of rapid change.
Leaders, Be Change Champions
While values serve as the bedrock for an organization, a common misconception is that they are cast in stone, immutable in time. The reality is that as companies evolve, values—and the words that represent them—should evolve too. This ensures that they remain meaningful and are central to an organization’s ability to navigate the future and forge new paths. Of course, reimagining values should not be a process that is revisited often. Instead, ask yourself whether you are approaching a decisive turning point where rejuvenated values could help you propel your organization’s culture forward.
For us at Adobe, the signs were clear. We had our 40th anniversary on the horizon, and in the aftermath of the pandemic, we were ushering in a sizable influx of new employees who were unacquainted with what makes Adobe’s culture unique. In addition, we were expanding into new product categories and markets. As we looked to the future, a pivotal question emerged: Is what got us here enough to guide us through the next chapter?
In times of transformation, leaders must own their company values and be champions of change. They must have the courage to engage in candid conversations about the company’s present culture and its ideal future. And while consultants and facilitators can help shepherd the process, shaping values that drive impact is more than a wordsmithing project with deadlines—it’s a soul-searching leadership journey that must be nurtured through authentic dialogues.
Harness Employee Perspectives
To ensure that your new values are authentic to your organization, start with a curiosity for the truth outside the walls of the C-suite. Community is the cornerstone of culture, and the employees who actively shape the present are the ones best positioned to help you lay the foundation for the future. Surveys and reports can provide thematic insights, but there is no substitute for real talk.
As we began the journey of rewriting the company values, our executive team engaged in yearlong culture conversations with our most important asset: our employees. We spoke with people across tenures and levels, functions, and geographies. In structured roundtables and informal one-on-ones across the company, we asked two questions: What do you love about working at Adobe? And just as important, what do you wish we could change?
Creating a safe space for open discussions played a key role in allowing us to capture employee sentiments. The more conversations we had, the more common themes emerged. These perspectives underscored the elements that were central to our culture and the areas where we needed to do better.
Find Words to Inspire
Armed with insights from our culture conversations and many sessions spent pouring over whiteboards and flip charts to envision our transformation, we set out to put our aspirations for the company into words. This part of the process is rigorous—drafting values that are inspiring, can stand the test of time, and are worthy of gracing your walls (and screens), is a tall order. It requires striking the right balance between gathering and incorporating feedback while preserving the core ideas behind your values.
Our first draft was spot on . . . or so we thought. When each of us on the executive team workshopped the draft with our employees, feedback was mixed (to put it nicely). One example: The word dreamers in particular received varied responses. In our minds, we had thought it encapsulated innovation, creativity, an ability to look around the corner and think out of the box. But to some, dreamers invoked an organization with its head in the clouds, detached from realities of its customers and products.
This showed to us that every word matters. Take the time to test them with your employees and incorporate their feedback with care. Keep in mind that how you develop your values statement is in itself a statement of your values. It can make the difference in elevating your values from an inspiring poster to a road map for how you want your employees to show up every day.
Putting Values Into Action
Once you have found the right words, the real work begins. The unveiling of new values is just the first step in your journey to create familiarity, resonance, and ownership across the organization. Values come to life when leaders personalize them to their teams and motivate employees to embody their principles. They should be reflected in your people processes like hiring, goal setting, performance management, and more—and reinforced by a steady drumbeat of internal storytelling that showcases your values in action.
We rolled out our new values earlier this year and less than a year into our journey, the pace of change in the world has only accelerated. As our new touchstone, the values help us navigate uncertainty, enable a cohesive sense of trust that transcends the moment, and steer all our employees toward a shared objective.
In today’s ever-changing markets, businesses must be agile, and organizations must be resilient. A fresh look at your values can serve as a catalyst to ignite team engagement and lay the groundwork for your company’s future success.
Gloria Chen is chief people officer and executive vice president, employee experience at Adobe.