Inside the Box
Leading With Corporate Values to Drive Sustained Business Success
Published on 29. April 2009
320 pages
978-0-470-15762-6 (ISBN)
Description
How to turn company values into competitive advantage
We are inclined, for whatever reason, to treat values like worksof art. We view them as nice to hang on the wall, and beautiful tolook at, but we don't act as though they truly mean much tous in the real world. In fact, the opposite is true. The bestorganizations understand their values, articulate them clearly, andhold them higher than any short-term concerns or short-cut methods.This does not put these companies at a competitive disadvantage. Itis the source of their competitive advantage.
If there's no clarity at the top about what values really mean,then there's no consistency at the management level or further downthe organization. This means that there's no way to measure, coach,assess, promote or fire people in line with those values. Anyorganization that does not articulate its values concretelyfunctions like a modern Tower of Babel. No one can be quite surethat they are speaking the same language at different levels ordifferent locations within the organization. Decisions don't alwaysmake sense or feel right. Confusion reigns. No matter howcompelling and inspirational the organization's vision may be, itsaspirations fall far short in reality.
Values are about achieving results in a way that is consistentwith what an organization stands for. They provide a directconnection between the CEO, the factory worker and everyone inbetween; and form the basis of the organization's "brand" asunderstood by employees, customers, suppliers and evenshareholders. When the work is done right, values provide anorganizing principle, a directional compass that helpsorganizations succeed; they become a source of energy for anorganization's vision, strategy and day-to-day efforts. Vision,strategy, market share, reputation and profits are all veryimportant - but having a clear and consistent set of valuesis far more critical in predicting whether an organization willcontinue to succeed and grow as its people, markets, competitivelandscape and technology change. People must make theircontributions to an organization willingly and independently tobring passion, commitment, creativity and energy to a job. But theywill do so only so long as they believe that what they are doing isauthentic and meaningful, and is part of a code of commitmentshared by the organization as a whole.
Inside the Box focuses on values in a clear and practicalway to understand what they are, where they come from and how theyare transmitted from employee generation to generation. Insidethe Box provides a roadmap for any leader or manager on how toidentify the values that make an organization, department, team, orindividual unique. It also shows how to measure whether anorganization or individual is operating according to those values,and how managers can use values as the basis for all of theirpeople decisions and drive superior performance as a result.
Reviews / Votes
Praise for Inside the Box "Corporate values drive passion in employees. DavidCohen has captured in this book what every corporate executiveneeds to understand about corporate values. The theory isconcise while the practical, real world examples clearly illustratethe 'how to' for every company to besuccessful." --Robin Wohnsigl, President and COO, Airbus NorthAmerica Customer Services, Inc. "Almost every company has stated values--farfewer live their values. Inside the Box is avery personal and readable guide to making it happen, explainingwhy values matter, and how to make corporate values an importantpart of employee's lives. Read this book and don't justhave values - live values!" --Marshall Goldsmith, Professor, Alliant InternationalUniversity's Marshall Goldsmith School of Management; Authoror co-editor of 22 books, including The Leader of the Future(a Business Week best-seller) and What Got You HereWon't Get You There; Recognized by The Wall StreetJournal as one of the top ten executive educators, byForbes as one of five most-respected executivecoaches, and by The Economist as one of the most crediblethought leaders in the new era of business. "Page after page, story after story, you learn theimportance of values driving sustained business success. This bookis representative of who Cohen is and what he is about--anintellectual business leader whose values and life lessons providethe content for a fascinating inside look at the issues thatleaders face every day." --Jo Lynn Williams, Human Resources Executive,Citigroup "Organizations operate with business strategies but peoplebehave based on values. This book provides both visionary andpractical information on the importance of integrating valuesthrough stories, policies and practices." --Bernadette Kenny, Senior Vice President, HumanResources, Adecco Group North America More Praise for Inside the Box "Inside the Box addresses one of the mostover-hyped but under-valued issues in business today: corporatevalues. There are so many examples of companies pursuingessentially the same strategy and positioning with vastly differentbusiness performance. I am convinced that it's the quality ofthe leadership that is the source of the difference in performance,and without strong values that leadership is elusive. Companieswith strong enduring values are companies that endure." --Martha Clark, Global Human Resources Director, AXARosenberg "Inside the Box, Inside Corporate Headquarters, Inside theLocker Room...the game plan for success is spelled out clearlyby David Cohen. The values formula is wonderfully articulated andso applicable in all of our worlds." --David Poulin, Athletics Development, the Universityof Notre Dame; 13-year NHL career, 3-time NHL All-Star, playing forthe Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins, and Washington Capitals;10-year Notre Dame Head Hockey Coach "Reading David's new book underscored theappreciation I have for the importance of values in my organizationand in my life." --Paul Bottero, President, Computer Horizons CanadaMore details
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
11/2006
1st Edition
Wiley
€32.90
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Person
Dr. David S. Cohen is founder of, and senior consultant in,the Strategic Action Group Ltd., a consulting firm specializing inorganizational behavior and leadership development. His work withcorporations helps create a link between the people and thebusiness plan. His focus is on management and leadershipdevelopment; behavior-based selection and performance management;helping corporations to articulate their values and develop astrategic vision; and creating high-performance, results-focusedorganizations.
Cohen's background spans both corporate consulting andeducation. He has consulted with a diverse group of clients in theUnited States, Canada and South America, as well as in Europe,South East Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, assisting companies tocreate integrated human resources processes that are aligned withthe business plan, vision and values of individual clients.
He is a sought-after speaker on business values, leadership andhuman resource issues and has presented frequently for groups suchas Linkage, IQPC, the US Conference Board, Intelligence BusinessNetworks (IBN), Malaysia and the Human Resources ProfessionalAssociation of Ontario Annual Conference. He is also called upon asa keynote speaker at a variety of corporate programs.
Dr. Cohen holds a doctorate in Education from Boston University. Heis the author of The Talent Edge: A Behavioral Approach toHiring, Developing, and Keeping Top Performers (Wiley, 2001).
Content
Acknowledgements.
Introduction: Daring to Think Inside the Box.
Chapter One: What's Inside the Box? How Values Work.
Chapter Two: Reinforcing the Box: Making Values MeaningfulThroughout the Organization.
Chapter Three: the Discipline of Working Inside the Box.
Chapter Four: Inside-the-Box Management Tool.
Chapter Five: Selecting Inside-the-Box Leaders.
Chapter Six: Does One Box Fit Forever? Organizational Growth:New Strategic Directions are Pursued but do the Values EverChange?
Chapter Seven: Measuring Inside-the-Box Success: the Meaning ofIntegrity, Business Results and Employee Brand.
Bibliography.
Index.
