Shaping our new Trust values: reflections on the journey by Hendrika Santer Bream

Deciding on new organisational values is a significant milestone. ?It’s the culmination of months of collaboration, engagement and hard work.? The values we have chosen are a true reflection of the collective spirit of our Trust.?I am happy to be sharing my thoughts on the steps that led us to such well-received values – the process itself was key to this, as you will see. ?

Why values matter

When the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust merged with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in 2021, we were bringing together two proud organisations with distinct histories, identities and values statements. Naturally, part of merging should involve shaping a shared organisational culture. And it is easy to forget – culture will form whether you guide it or not.

We chose to guide it, proactively and inclusively, by developing a new set of values. These values would articulate who we are, what we stand for, and how we behave. Shared values would not just unify us, they would shape how we deliver care, support each other, and innovate for the future.?They would support the Trust’s new strategy, which was developed and launched in parallel.

I often draw inspiration from Myron’s Maxims, particularly the idea that “the process you use to get to the future is the future you get.” To create values that people are truly engaged with, the process itself must be engaging. And as Patrick Lencioni reminds us, values must be meaningful and lived – or they’re not worth having at all. (“Make Your Values Mean Something, Harvard Business Review, 2002.)

?A four-step process

Developing these values was an iterative journey of conversation and collaboration.?

?1.? Discovering what matters. We began by asking staff, patients and stakeholders what inspires them to do their best work, the values they see in action, and what they’d like to see in the future. Through workshops, surveys, and interactive tools, nearly 1,500 people shared their insights. The themes emerging included: care, compassion, respect, inclusion, teamwork, innovation, and excellence.

2.????Analysing and co-creating. In the next phase, we analysed the feedback and engaged hundreds more staff in discussions about the data. What did they notice? What was missing? How could we ensure the values were authentic and practical? As well as learning more about the themes, we identified design principles to guide the development of our values. These principles ensured the final values would be both memorable and meaningful:

Format:

• Values should be short phrases rather than single words
• Starting with “We…” would foster a sense of belonging and unity
• Three to five values would strike the right balance – enough to be comprehensive but easy to recall

Feel:

• The values should support staff at all levels, from everyday interactions to senior decision-making
• They should create a sense of belonging and be meaningful for everyone
• Above all, they must feel authentic and specific to our Trust

Using these principles, proposals for values were co-created with staff, to be taken to our Trust Executive, and the new values were agreed: We are Caring | Ambitious | Inclusive.

3.?Enabling implementation It was crucial to consider how these values would be embedded into everyday practice. We asked staff and managers what resources – like workshops, tools, and frameworks – had helped in the past and what they’d find useful moving forward.

4.?Defining behaviours Finally, we worked with staff, educators and our networks to develop a behaviours framework to bring the values to life. This framework outlines examples at three levels: all staff, those who manage and support others, and those who lead. It provides practical examples of how the values can be lived every day.

What we achieved

We worked hard to engage with a wide cross section including staff from all hospital sites, all clinical and delivery groups and staff in the community, as well as patient members and governors – over 2000 people in total. Thanks to this iterative, inclusive process, our values resonate across the organisation. The design principles ensured they are clear, practical, and relevant to everyone. In roadshows and discussions, staff have told us the values feel meaningful, memorable and true to our organisation.

What’s next?

In the "Big Conversation," managers lead team discussions about the values and the Trust strategy and what they mean in practice. It’s an opportunity to celebrate how teams are already embodying these values and putting the strategy in action, and to plan how to bring them to life even more.

Final reflections

By involving so many voices and using clear design principles, we’ve created values that are not just words but a shared commitment to our patients and to each other.

Together with our new strategy, these values will guide us as we shape the future – always putting patients at the heart of what we do.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this journey, most especially colleagues in the communications and strategy teams, as well as staff across the Trust, patient advocates and our Foundation Trust members. Your involvement has ensured we have values which will endure.?

Read more about our strategy and values: https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/about-us/our-strategy-and-values/our-values