Leadership
How to write values that hold under pressure
4 February 2026 · 7 min read
Short answer
A usable value set has an explicit hierarchy, is translated into concrete behaviour, states what the value costs, can be contradicted by another legitimate value, and specifies where it applies. Values without those five properties cannot drive decisions and therefore become decoration.
The rules
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1. Hierarchy over list
Five values in alphabetical order are five values with no guidance. Write down the order, and write that the order matters when two of them collide.
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2. Behaviour over adjective
"We are ambitious" cannot be observed. "We decline work we cannot deliver at the agreed quality" can. Every value must translate into something an outsider could see on an ordinary Wednesday.
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3. Name the cost
A value that costs nothing is not a value. Write explicitly what is given up: "thoroughness means we accept being later to market".
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4. Find the opposition
Test each value against the others: which other value can it conflict with? If none can be found, the value is too broad to govern anything.
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5. State the scope
Some values are absolute (patient safety, workplace safety). Others are trade-offs. Do not mix them in one list without marking the difference — otherwise the absolutes turn into slogans.
Test before rollout
Before a new value set is communicated, it can be tested cheaply: write three to five realistic dilemmas where two of the new values exclude each other, and have the leadership team answer individually. If leadership does not agree on what should happen, the rest of the organisation will not either.
Values only become real on the day they cost a decision.
Read on
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