Another theme that emerged from Communitelligence’s Employee Engagement conference in Chicago last week is what I would describe as “Moving from Process-centric to People-centric.”  It seems that every organization has a robust set of process-oriented programs in place such as Six Sigma and Balanced Scorecard.  These programs have helped organizations but people sense something’s still missing.  

The next steps in the evolution of organizations will be focused on people and their values rather than additional process improvements. Organizations had lost their way in some respects by focusing so much on processes.  By turning their attention to their core values, organizations were finding their way again, re-discovering their identities, who they are and what’s important to them.

Here are my observations from various presentations:

• Bridget Glavez, former VP of Communications at Servicemaster, presented on Servicemaster’s activities to raise awareness of its corporate values. Materials were developed that focused on front line employees who deliver the values to Servicemaster’s customers.  Stories of front line employees living the values were emphasized.  A year and a half into its efforts, 91 percent of Servicemaster’s employees were aware of its values. 
• Becca Martin, Senior Manager for Corporate System’s Communications at McDonald’s, spoke about McDonald’s “revitalization” from 2003 to 2006.  The company went back to the core values established by its founder Ray Kroc.  Materials including film clips were used to bring the values to life and touch people’s hearts.  Jim Skinner, McDonald’s CEO, was the driver of the effort that included management workshops.  It has now become an ongoing effort to capture stories that illustrate employees living out the values and to raise awareness of where potential conflicts exist.  
• Tory Neff, Director of Internal Communications and Employee Engagement at Aon Corporation, presented Aon’s efforts to reinforce it’s values.  The word “Aon” is a Celtic word that means “one.”  The idea of one, of Aon, is important to the company because it was formed from more than 400 acquisitions.  Pat Ryan, Aon’s former longtime president, wrote a book about Aon’s values entitled Lessons in Leadership.  Aon has disseminated materials throughout the company that include a diagram described as a “wheel” of values.  Under Greg Case, Aon’s new president, the company is consolidating websites, trying to increase employees face time with senior management, and capturing and disseminating people stories that reinforce Aon’s values. 

I was encouraged to hear these accounts.  By re-visiting their values and how they were living up to them, these companies were helping employees feel proud to be affiliated with their employers.   

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