Your startup team is divided on core values. How can you align everyone to strengthen company culture?

To realign your startup team, begin by identifying the core issues causing division through open communication and honest reflection. Organize an inclusive meeting where everyone feels safe to express their views without fear of repercussions, ensuring active listening and empathy are prioritized. Encourage team members to share their concerns, probing deeper to understand the root causes of the dissonance, such as misalignment with the company’s mission or unclear values. Approach this process with an open mind, validating all perspectives, and document the key takeaways to ensure a unified understanding, setting the foundation for rebuilding core values that resonate with the entire team.

In a startup team, shifting focus from mandates to a shared story and future aspirations can make a significant difference when there is a clash in core values. Highlight and celebrate everyday behaviors that embody these values to create alignment. Aligning values with personal identity and making it fun are effective strategies. Ultimately, the aim is to transform abstract concepts into tangible, lived experiences that everyone can relate to and enjoy.

To align your startup team on core values, start by clearly identifying and communicating these values to everyone. Lead by example, demonstrating the values in your actions and decisions. Integrate them into daily practices such as hiring and performance reviews. Encourage open feedback and discussions to address concerns and ensure alignment. Recognize and reward behaviors that reflect the core values to reinforce their importance. Regularly revisit and discuss the values to maintain alignment and address any issues. This approach helps unify your team and strengthen your company culture effectively.

To address the issue and identify the root cause, you can begin with "Conducting One-on-One Meetings" I recently encountered this challenge while working as the Manager of Business Development at a startup specializing in AI, so I began by holding one-on-one meetings with each team member, approaching them as a supportive peer rather than an authority figure. If your team is large, consider meeting with departments, ensuring every team member is present. During these meetings, take detailed notes, particularly on the issues raised. Next, I grouped the problems mentioned in these meetings into categories. Organize similar issues together, and if possible, create a mind map to visualize these connections.

Once the issues are identified, the next step is to revisit and potentially redefine your startup's core values. This doesn't require starting from scratch but rather refining the existing values to better reflect the collective aspirations and beliefs of the team. Engage in a collaborative discussion where each team member is encouraged to share their thoughts on the values they believe the company should embody. The objective is to reach a consensus that aligns with the startup's mission while also resonating personally with each team member, ensuring the values are both meaningful and actionable.

After holding meetings and categorizing the problems, "Discuss Findings with Founders and Co-Founders". It's important to share your findings with the founders and co-founders, highlighting the challenges within the team. This discussion often revealed that many of the problems stemmed from misunderstandings and a lack of communication between the leadership and the rest of the team. This will create a path for "Creating or Revising Core Values". If your startup doesn’t have a set of core values, work with the founders to develop one. If core values already exist, review and revise them to ensure they align with the current direction of the company.

Fostering an inclusive environment is essential to making sure all team members feel valued and heard. Encourage diverse perspectives by creating a space where different ideas are not only welcomed but seen as vital to the company's growth. This inclusivity helps build a sense of ownership and commitment to the core values, as everyone will have had a hand in shaping them. Embracing diversity within your culture not only strengthens team cohesion but also drives innovation, resilience, and adaptability, all of which are crucial for the company’s long-term success.

In order to create an environment of diversity with unity, make sure you "Announce Core Values in All-Hands Meetings". It’s crucial that every team member understands the startup’s core values. Clearly communicating these values helps everyone move in the same direction, while announcing that we need your diverse ideas to grow.

Totally agree with importance of it, always say, nothing can be better than your own example. E.g. my person values are freedom, openness, respect to everyone. I recently met a group of people on networking event and on feedback question about me, one person said: “Olga is so open and friendly, I felt like I know her for a while”

To maintain alignment and ensure everyone is working towards shared goals, "Establish Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) for the team" with the presence of leaders and managers. OKRs serve as a constant reminder of the startup’s purpose and keep the team focused. Consider leaders reading the core values aloud at the start of each quarter to reinforce them and convincing everyone that leaders don't forget the core values.

Leadership sets the tone for company culture, and if you want your team to embody certain values, you must consistently demonstrate them through your actions. Leading by example involves making decisions that align with the core values and showing your team that these principles are non-negotiable. When leadership lives by the company's values, it sends a powerful message that these are not merely words on a wall but standards everyone is expected to uphold. This consistent demonstration of values reinforces their importance and encourages the entire team to follow suit.

Clear communication is crucial for aligning your team around core values. Make sure everyone understands not just what the values are, but also how they translate into daily actions and decision-making within the company. Provide concrete examples to illustrate how these values should influence behavior, and regularly reinforce them through company-wide communications. Integrate the values into every aspect of the business, including hiring practices, onboarding, and performance evaluations, to ensure they are consistently upheld and understood across the organization.

Continue to hold one-on-one and all-hands meetings regularly. Encouraging open dialogue helps prevent misunderstandings and ensures that everyone feels heard. "Fostering a Culture of Open and Honest Communication" is the key for avoiding any misunderstandings in the company that can lead to divided teams.

By giving them the space to think for them selves. It will enable anyone to think more clearly. Amd give them a task which they can solve together, it will definitely gather everyone together and they will learn to compromise to be able to get the desired output. It is never about forcing or influencing everyone to follow what you believe is right its always taking everyones values and glueing it together with your owns

Aligning your team around core values is an ongoing process, not a one-time event. Continuously engage your team by regularly discussing the values and seeking their feedback. Celebrate and highlight instances where team members exemplify these values, using these moments as learning opportunities for the entire company. This ongoing engagement helps keep the values front and center, ensuring they remain a vibrant and integral part of your startup's culture.

You can keep the team aligned by engaging with them regularly. When you appreciate a team member who demonstrates the core values, it can be very motivating. You can try to have a quarterly meeting where team members can talk about their understanding of the core values and how they’ve put them into practice.