Drive High-Performance Teams by Making Core Values More Than Wall Art
When John Ratliff took over Appletree Answers, he faced a swirling mix of cultures from 24 merged companies and turnover rates near 200%. Instead of plastering vague platitudes on posters, his leadership team brought their true core values to life—through stories, videos, and celebrations. Employees recognized each other’s acts of 'spirited fun' or moments where someone 'took care of each other.' The most touching? A staffer who went out of her way to respond to a customer call at 3 a.m., saving a life—a moment that became a legend in the company’s values hall of fame.
When values became part of daily feedback and decision-making—from hiring to firing to daily praise—turnover plummeted and profitability soared. Ratliff noticed managers and staff alike could articulate what the company stood for and judged their own actions against clear guidelines.
Research supports this: 'living' values that are present in real stories drive high engagement, loyalty, and aligned performance. Values must be reinforced with routines, not just declarations.
Work with your team to surface stories that capture your real shared values, and use these as yardsticks for all decisions and recognition. Be explicit in interviews and reviews—don't assume everyone 'knows' the values. Bring them alive through rituals and repeated language, and watch as your culture grows into a powerful engine for retention and growth.
What You'll Achieve
Expect deeper engagement, stronger culture, and lower turnover as people see values triggering real rewards and accountability. Internally, confidence and belonging rise; externally, customers and recruits notice the difference.
Make Core Values Part of Daily Decisions
Discover and test your organization's core values.
Don’t just create a wish-list—identify the real, living values that drive behavior. Test new values over a year to see if they show up in daily stories and decisions.
Use values in hiring, feedback, and recognition.
Design interview questions that probe for value alignment, and reference values when giving praise or constructive criticism. Recognize people publicly when they exemplify a value.
Build routines to reinforce values.
Use regular meetings, onboarding, newsletters, and handbooks to share stories and examples of values in action. Rotate value spotlights and collect employee-created content.
Reflection Questions
- Do your team’s values show up in daily stories—or just in a manual somewhere?
- How could you use a value to resolve a current conflict?
- What recognition system would truly reinforce what you want to see?
Personalization Tips
- A teacher’s classroom motto ('Help Others Rise') becomes a weekly focus for peer recognition.
- A sports team’s value of 'Never Quit' is celebrated with awards when players persist through tough drills.
- A family adds 'Respect Everyone' to their fridge, using it as a guide for decisions and discussions.
Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It...and Why the Rest Don't (Rockefeller Habits 2.0 Revised Edition)
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