Building Purpose: 4 Steps for Curating Compelling Corporate Values, outlines a framework for shaping and maintaining meaningful corporate values. It emphasizes making values actionable, using real-world scenarios, incorporating vivid descriptions, and building a values-driven team. Together, these steps aim to foster a unified sense of purpose and enhance workplace culture and productivity, aligning organizational goals with employees' aspirations for self-actualization and long-term growth.

Building Purpose

Meta Wellness
November 12, 2024•3 min read

Building Purpose

4 Steps for Curating Compelling Corporate Values

By: Jocelyn Martin

Edited by: Justin Teeuwen

Growth can occur when confronting 'moral reckonings' – those hard moments when what we are doing confronts who we want to be. When faced with these challenges, we might try to look the other way or cast our personal values aside. Over time these personal sacrifices become difficult to maintain, causing us to look outside of our established careers to reaffirm our neglected moral values.¹

Breaking down values into different types can help us navigate what is immediately achievable, while also shaping longer-term goals. Core values should underscore all actions and are unique to each corporation. These values must be considered and maintained at every step.²

fun fact

Aspirational values on the other hand are sought after.² They remain situated on the horizon; out of immediate reach but not out of sight. Most employees ranked purpose higher than pay when asked what motivates their work and earns their loyalty.³ So, consider how you might

express each kind of value in a way that encapsulates both corporate goals and workers’ long-term desire for self-actualization. Use your values to “...show employees the impact your company aims to have on the world.” By fostering this shared sense of purpose within your corporate culture you can drive employees to maximize productivity.⁴

Creating a workplace culture with a collective sense of purpose can be very difficult.  Another survey reported that 38% of HR leaders felt that most of their employees do not remember their core corporate values, leading to poor implementation.⁵ So how might we shape the values in our workplaces for long-lasting fulfillment reaffirmed by an integrated sense of community? 

Here are four tips for curating the values you need to succeed: 

take action

  1. Ensure Values are Actionable. Rather than using vague norms to describe desired values, indicate specific actions that can be done to achieve them. "Move your culture from abstraction to action."⁶

real world

  1. Build your Values Around Real-World Scenarios. By identifying the dilemmas routinely faced by your employees, you can suggest how they might be resolved and more directly guide employee behavior towards your ideals.⁵

art

  1. Describe your Values Vividly. Include clear images and metaphors to enhance retention. The picture superiority effect (PSE) suggests that concepts are made more concrete through illustrating images then through abstract language.⁵

building

  1. Build your Driving Culture upon your Values. Build a team that embodies your values right from the beginning. Leverage personal interviews to gauge a good hiring candidate that already aligns with your company's culture.⁷

At Meta Excellence, we hire and work with clients that reflect our own values. One of our core values is Altruism – care deeply, support fully, and lift others up. We are willing to be vulnerable while growing and ask everyone we work with to be open to receiving the support that is offered. Through the meta tools of thinking, feeling, being, and doing we are dedicated to helping everyone exceed their goals.

Where do you need to focus to build a driven sense of purpose within your own team? Set up a free consultation with a Meta Coach to explore what resources could enhance your workplace culture and ultimately your performance!


 ¹ Reid, Eric, Lakshmi Ramarajan, and Brianna Barker Caza. “3 Ways to Live Out Your Values at Work.” Harvard Business Review, September 27, 2023.

² Lencioni, Patrick. “Make Your Values Mean Something.” Harvard Business Review, July 2002. https://hbr.org/2002/07/make-your-values-mean-something.

³ Gelber, Mack. “Here's what you need to know about Gen Z”. Monster.com, https://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/gen-z-boss-0816

⁴ Kralova, Ursula. “Millennial Managers Can Change Company Culture for the Better.” Harvard Business Review, October 14, 2024. https://hbr.org/2021/10/millennial-managers-can-change-company-culture-for-the-better. 

⁵ Pope, Shawn, and Arlid Wæraas. “How to Create Company Values That Actually Resonate.” Harvard Business Review, October 31, 2023. https://hbr.org/2023/10/how-to-create-company-values-that-actually-resonate?registration=success.

⁶ Meyer, Erin. “Build a Corporate Culture That Works.” Harvard Business Review, 2024. https://hbr.org/2024/07/build-a-corporate-culture-that-works. 
⁷ Deeb, George. “The Key Drivers of Company Culture.” Forbes, November 3, 2021. https://www.forbes.com/sites/georgedeeb/2021/11/03/the-key-drivers-of-company-culture/. 


Corporate valuesPurpose-driven cultureWorkplace cultureOrganizational valuesEmployee motivationValues in businessCompany core valuesEmployee loyaltyLeadership valuesValues alignmentWorkplace productivityCorporate purposeWorkplace well-beingValues-based leadershipSelf-actualization at workMeta ExcellenceActionable valuesCompany culture buildingEmployee engagementHiring for cultural fit
Jocelyn grew up locally in the Windsor-Essex area. After completing a double major in music and communications in 2023 she is now an MA candidate at the University of Windsor in the Communication and Social Justice program. Her research critically analyzes public figures and views communication as a means to negotiate power. This work tends to be highly interdisciplinary, with its core residing in political economy. Ultimately, she hopes to learn as much as possible so that she may better advocate for the needs of her community. She currently works at the University of Windsor as a research assistant and a graduate assistant. She has also worked numerous positions to help local businesses develop their brands and to reach their ideal audiences. Outside of academia and work Jocelyn enjoys spending time at nature conservations, painting, and gaming.

Jocelyn Martin

Jocelyn grew up locally in the Windsor-Essex area. After completing a double major in music and communications in 2023 she is now an MA candidate at the University of Windsor in the Communication and Social Justice program. Her research critically analyzes public figures and views communication as a means to negotiate power. This work tends to be highly interdisciplinary, with its core residing in political economy. Ultimately, she hopes to learn as much as possible so that she may better advocate for the needs of her community. She currently works at the University of Windsor as a research assistant and a graduate assistant. She has also worked numerous positions to help local businesses develop their brands and to reach their ideal audiences. Outside of academia and work Jocelyn enjoys spending time at nature conservations, painting, and gaming.

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