100 | The Power of Authentic, Measurable & Sustained Organisational Values | Sandy Cross

Building Better Cultures

Are you ready to integrate a values-based component into your corporate ethos? It’s a big commitment, but one with tremendous ROI at every level. On this episode of Building Better Cultures, Scott talks with Sandy Cross, CPO in the Professional Golf Association of America (PGA).

But for it to work, the effort must be for real. Without buy-in from top leadership – a deep understanding and commitment to sustained change – don’t bother, says Sandy. The PGA’s working group based its program on feedback from up and down the organization, and leaders have deployed it without equivocation. Learn what elements are key to upping your DEI game and how your workplace culture’s frame of mind benefits when a clearly articulated corporate values set is kept front of mind.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Mission-driven to values-based: The PGA culture embraced its mission deeply but Sandy advocated for more attention to the “how” of executing that agenda.
• The PGA developed a playbook to support four people-centered pillar values – each of which includes visible, observable behaviours:
  • Have each other’s back.
  • Practice gratitude.
  • Get better every day.
  • Start with clarity.
• Sandy’s initiatives have bolstered retention by fostering the flexible, culturally connected hybrid workplace that Millennials (especially) demand.

• The PGA used a bottom-up approach to define values, based on the outcome of a working group of nine employees selected by peers.
• Keeping It Real: Sandy’s values-driven agenda emphasizes measurable, behaviors and actions.

• Having well-defined values gives a chance for difficult conversations because they provide a shared language, foundation and understanding.
• Committed Deployment: The PGA’s approach is holistic, using values as a lens starting at the hiring process through onboarding and annual values-based (as separate from performance-based) evaluations.
• Opportunity for Growth: Team members who “get it” can serve as coaches, mentoring and encouraging open communication among team members.
• Watch Out for Weaponization: There can be friction because values-based culture doesn’t promise that everyone gets what they want every time.
• Powerful Goal-Setting: Each PGA individual on an annual basis must identify one of the shared values they intend to prioritize for improvement and articulate what success would look like. What’s the desired behavior or outcome?

• The best first steps for organizations undertaking a “values journey”:
  • Talk to the leadership team. Are they ready on every level to embark on – and stay committed to – the journey?
  • Support and embody the mission throughout the enterprise.
  • The program has to be embedded across the full employee lifecycle.
  • If it’s not going to be a deep, sustained commitment, say Sandy, skip it. False starts, shallow or hollow efforts are definitively a step in the wrong direction.

ABOUT SCOTT MCINNES Learn more about Scott McInnes, your host and the Founder and Director of Inspiring Change, by clicking here.

ABOUT SANDY CROSS

As Chief People Officer for the PGA of American with responsibility for DEI, Sandy’s career journey has been about building purpose-driven, values-based and people-centric cultures. Learn more here:

• Website: www.pga.com
• Sandy @Twitter
• Sandy @LinkedIn

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