What is Values-Based Leadership?

At Heart to Heart Communications, we believe values-based leadership is the most effective form of leadership. Values endure -- especially those which are centered in universal ethical principles, such as trustworthiness, respect, and caring. They are indisputable and recognized by all people. In today’s complex and unpredictable world, values provide us with a benchmark for our actions, our decisions, and how we treat people. Our values play an important role in the way we do business. When people connect with their deepest selves, they tap into their spiritual core and focus what matters most. Our ethical values are the fundamentals from which our capacity to lead ourselves and others is formed. We can evade our values for awhile, but eventually we will come back to an important, but simple, truth: The most effective way to run a business (and to run a life) is to do so by universal core values.

The following exerpt is from an article in Summer 2005 Strategy+Business magazine "...more companies are going well beyond simply displaying values statements.  They are engaging in values-driven management improvement efforts.  Among those efforts are training staff in values, appraising executives and staff on their adherence to values, and hiring organizational experts to help address how values affect corporate performance."

by Reggie Van Lee, Lisa Fabish, and Nancy McGaw.