By Danae Johnson & Charles Holmes

“At BlueShore Financial, we check our behaviours and decision-making processes against our values, and use them as a foundation for how we do business. Putting our values into action is more than checking off a list. Our values are the essence of who we are, what makes us unique, and what makes BlueShore Financial such a great place to work.” – BlueShore Financial Strategy 2015 Booklet

BlueShore Financial (operating name North Shore Credit Union) is a successful credit union that underwent a re-branding exercise with the vision of becoming a boutique financial institution. In Part I of this feature series, we outlined the challenges faced. In Part II, we looked at the tools we employed in responding to those challenges. Here, we explore the impact and results of this work, both internally and externally.

How have values helped shape the organization’s culture as a means of helping to deliver the results they desired? Have values inspired a multi-generational workplace where everyone’s potential is being realized? Did values help increase employee satisfaction and performance results? BlueShore Financial understands there is always more work to be done. “Building and maintaining a positive corporate culture anchored by strong values is a continuous journey,” says Marni Johnson, VP of human resources and communications. “The values process was extremely beneficial for our organization. We have learned a lot about the importance of aligning personal values with corporate values and how this contributes to a highly engaged and productive work environment. We highly recommend this process to other organizations.”

It is clear that the values process has been an invaluable tool to aid BlueShore Financial’s vision to redefine and rebrand; they have moved from an organization where employees were not actively engaging with values to one where new values are truly shared in employees’ hearts and minds. The impact of BlueShore Financial’s commitment to placing values at the core of their organizational culture can be seen in both their performance record and levels of employee satisfaction.

As Johnson describes it: “Before we did the values work, employees couldn’t even name our values. They might get two or three out of six. They had lost their meaning in the organization. We are not in that place anymore. The values process has given us a different perspective on the organization, employee involvement, and the extent to which people really understand where we are going.”

Recognition
The organization’s attention to fostering a strong and healthy culture has garnered a number of accolades and awards including:

• Waterstone Human Capital’s “10 Most Admired Corporate Cultures” in 2012 (national winner) and 2011 (regional winner).
• Aon Hewitt’s “50 Best Small and Medium Employers in Canada” 2012, 2013 and 2014.
• HRMA Innovation Award Finalist, 2014
• Recognized as Achievers 50 Most Engaged Workplaces in Canada, 2014

By choosing to focus on culture and values and actively encouraging the participation of all employees, BlueShore Financial empowered its workforce and allowed all members to have their voices heard and potential realized. Making shifts in organizational culture takes a commitment on the part of all leaders within an organization – from supervisors and managers to the CEO, and from the board and through the Executive Suite – BlueShore Financial understood this commitment.

The Values Dialogues provided an open, positive, multi-generational environment for a focused exchange of ideas that allowed the Cultural Values Assessment results to be contextualized and more fully understood. The work allowed the re-branding to happen with maximum buy-in from all employees thereby ensuring long-term success.

The organization’s performance record and high levels of employee engagement illustrate the enduring power of a healthy organizational culture. They also underline the importance of change as a healthy part of creating a sustainable organization – change that is anchored in the indelible waters of culture rather than the ephemeral tides of trends.

Can values help an organization re-brand from the inside out, and make that shift from good to great? As witnessed at BlueShore Financial, the answer is a resounding ‘Yes’!

The original Case Study can be read online.

Danae Johnson is a leadership coach, engaging facilitator and culture transformation catalyst. She is the founder and principal of Thinking Partners, a consulting company committed to improving business results and leadership capacity through coaching, strategic human resource practices and values-based cultural transformation. She is based in Vancouver, BC. www.thinkingpartners.ca

Charles Holmes is a master convener, gifted facilitator, skilled educator and empathetic coach. He helped establish the Dalai Lama Center for Peace + Education in Vancouver and co-founded the Academy for Systemic Change, a global community for collective capacity building in business, education and community development. He is based in Vancouver, BC. www.ceholmesconsulting.com