Avoiding blah, blah, blah in writing value statements

It befalls HR to write value statements, aka mission statements. Is there a method to follow? Yes, according to an insightful article in the July/August 2024 issue of the Harvard Business Review, “Build a Corporate Culture That Works” by Erin Meyer. The key is providing actionable guidance, not barroom generalities.

Eschew abstraction, embrace action

The worst mission statements recite mindless abstractions: respect, excellence, integrity. Like sprinkle-covered doughnuts—tasty but full of useless calories. On my desk at the law school, I keep my Enron ethics cube, listing these as values (a gift from the Enron legal department, but that’s another story.) An ethically bankrupt culture saying the right words while performing the wrong actions.

Next up, but marginally better, is the well-meaning but useless aspirational value statement. Meyer gives the following example in her article:

It’s simple. How we work is just as important as the work we do. We help and respect each other.

What you do matters. We set out every day to do purposeful work. Our mission is a reminder of why we foster a culture where you can grow, make an impact, and are empowered to bring new ideas.

Pretty sounding, isn’t it? But Meyer asks, does it pass the “stress test”? No, it gets an “F.” Why? Because it doesn’t tell employees what to do when faced with a dilemma at work. What does?

Here’s an illustration from Amazon: “Have a back bone. Disagree and commit.”