Identifying Company Values
- Service Used Coaching
- Department Software Development
Assignment Background
This client was already benefitting from the Executive Coaching our consultants are offering and was familiar with our expertise. During the sessions with the C-Suite it became apparent that the company was going through a rapid expansion phase hiring a large number of software developers, QAs, BAs who were working mostly remotely from a widely spread out set of locations across time zones and continents. The management was expressing a desire to make the new joiners feel part of the existing and more established team as well as convey the company’s values and ethos to the new staff.
The Preparation Sessions
Getting everyone on to a video meeting, and explaining the importance of building connections in order to enable the human touch to prevail in spite of distance and time difference, the C-Suite kicked off the meeting with their cameras on. Especially in the tech sector there is a tendency to interview and hold meetings online while keeping the cameras off. This example encouraged but not forced the rest of the team to put their cameras on as well. The first session was one where the coaches introduced themselves and explained the aim of the meetings and why despite everyone in the company being always keen to get on with the job rather than have any video calls scheduled was crucial and asked for everyone’s buy in.
Company Values Identification
Through a series of interactive exercises which grouped staff members who would not normally get together across different departments and countries, the teams in break-out rooms came up with a set of ideal environment factors which they deemed essential to delivering their targets whilst enjoying their work. Examples of such suggestions were punctuality on deliverables, clear and honest communication if a project was being blocked or delayed and the reasons for it, collaboration across departments for example clear customer feedback from sales and customer support to BAs and the Product Team. A clear timeline and priorities from the product team to the developers.
Distilling the Information
Following the initial discussion, the teams got back together and presented their findings. Having identified the frustrations which can arise during work, everyone could see that a company which was clearly committed to a set of values which were officially chosen, supported and modelled by the CEO and the management would have the strengths to empower everyone to speak up and cooperate. The values which were clearly emerging were honesty, integrity, collaboration, clear communication and professionalism. These are words which many companies advertise in their marketing materials, social media or C-Suite interviews, but getting each member of staff to embrace and act accordingly would truly enhance the efficiency and profitability of a team over time.