Value-Based Management – Manager, Leader, Chief New times require a new managerial spirit. They also impose new obligations on business and its leaders. In our brave new world there is an increasing need to turn to values and the t ypes of management that utilise them to se t not only the goals, but also define the me thods used by leaders The issue of values is making a return to public discourse. The discussion about values is not only limited to human nature and the need we all share for self-actualisation, no matter who we are or what we do. Nowadays there is even talk about a return of values to both language and business, which translates into added value for not only companies but society as well. The consensus continues to grow that development should be sustainable, about corporate responsibility and corporate community involvement. The discourse is about social responsibility, environmental responsibility, and a whole host of other responsibilities. The reasons for companies’ openness to the idea of sustainable development take many different forms: we still talk of moral obligation, of the need to atone for the previous damage caused by business, about sustainability and meeting the needs of modern societies without compromising the needs of future generations, of entitlement, of con-
ducting business on the basis of limits set by the government or society, and, finally – the most common reason – concern for reputation, image, employee motivation and market value (this way of putting it owes much to Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer). The key element is the method for the implementation of CR into the overall business strategy, for the integration of the different societal, environmental and business goals. As with everything else, we have to work within a system of balances. Can we speak of responsibility without values? Not really. All the values of every organisation are shared at a certain common level. However, the values of individual companies are unique, as they stem from their corporate identities and traditions. Values are not created by companies; companies are created by their values. Research shows that many companies see the source of their success as residing in
the values that are shared and recognised throughout the organisation (among others: Siemens with its employee participation policy and strong focus on societal engagement and sustainable development; similarly, Henkel with its emphasis on sustainable development through the whole value chain; P&G, which creates products with both societal and environmental concerns in mind; ABB with its code of conduct, which serves as a GPS navigating the values of the organisation; etc.). Values internalised by the managerial staff increase the quality of leadership, the efficiency of management, motivation, the feeling of task ownership, and trust. In uncertain times, values may serve as a stabilising agent, a foundation that helps the company to get through change, transformation, crisis, or dynamic growth. The terror of transparency
Values are becoming a general topic of discussion on how to run a business – not so much when it comes to management,
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