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Company core values shape how employees experience work every day. They guide decisions, influence behavior, and set the tone for your culture. But insights from Gallup tell us that only two in 10 employees feel connected to their company’s culture.
The reality is that values only stick when they’re lived out loud — when leaders model them, and when people get recognized for the behaviors that bring those values to life. Because what gets recognized, gets repeated — and that’s how you shape culture.
Let’s break down what makes a company’s core values meaningful, help you define the ones that reflect your business, and share real examples of companies that bring their values to life.
What are company core values?
Company core values are the principles and ethics that guide a company’s actions and decisions. They’re an important part of company culture and serve as a guiding philosophy for employees, leadership, and customers.
Core values shape how people work, interact, and make decisions — from everyday tasks to big-picture goals. Strong values influence leadership styles, guide how teams collaborate, and help set clear expectations. They also create a foundation for recognition by making it easy to call out and reward the behaviors that matter most.
Company core values: 25 examples to inspire your workplace
Company core values help shape culture and employee behavior, by acting as a north star. They create a shared mission that is embedded into everything the organization does, and they provide a framework for employees when they’re in the workplace. When employees are recognized and rewarded for living those values, it reinforces the behavior that’s essential to driving successful business outcomes.
Looking for inspiration? Here’s 25 examples of core company values to inspire and shape your workforce:
1. Integrity
Integrity means acting ethically and transparently in every part of the business. Doing the right thing — even when no one’s watching. It means being accountable and following through on decisions.
2. Innovation
Challenging the status quo with fresh ideas and curiosity. Innovation is testing new approaches, learning from wins and failures, and always pushing for better.
3. Accountability
Accountability is owning decisions and outcomes. It’s not just admitting mistakes but learning from them, because taking responsibility builds trust and boosts morale.
4. Honesty
Being open and upfront with information, insights, and actions. A culture of honesty helps teams face challenges together and strengthens connections inside and outside the company.
5. Respect
Respect means treating everyone — from employees to clients, customers, and stakeholders with dignity — regardless of their background, position, or opinions. It’s acknowledging everyone brings something unique to the table.
6. Passion
Passion motivates and drives employees to master their role, encouraging them to find purpose at work. It helps individuals face challenges or obstacles in the workplace head-on and with confidence.
7. Trust
Building trust means your employees benefit from a culture of honesty, psychological safety, and mutual respect. Trust is key to helping employees feel secure in their jobs, improving retention and engagement.
8. Teamwork
Bringing together different skills and perspectives that enrich an organization and make it better. Collaborating as a team drives innovation, team bonding, learning and development, and shared wins.
9. Creativity
Finding new ways of thinking, learning, and doing. Encouraging experimentation, even when it means failing. Creativity doesn’t just improve efficiency and productivity; it helps business stay competitive and stay ahead.
10. Compassion
Compassion means understanding and empathizing with others’ experiences and challenges without judgments or assumptions. It means creating a supportive environment, active listening, and celebrating successes together.
11. Courage
In the workplace, courage means standing up for what’s right, even when it’s difficult. It means taking risks, standing up for others, and staying true to your values — no matter the outcome.
12. Loyalty
A strong attachment to an organization and its mission, values, and vision. Loyalty means working hard not only for a paycheck but committing to see the company grow and succeed.
13. Adaptability
Adjusting behavior or strategy when the demands of the organization, market, or general circumstances change. Adaptability means staying flexible, bouncing back from setbacks, and finding new ways forward.
14. Dependability
Dependability is all about being trustworthy and reliable in the workplace. It means consistently showing integrity through actions, not just words, owning commitments and their outcomes, producing high-quality work, and staying accountable.
15. Excellence
Workplace excellence is about striving to go above and beyond every day. It’s pushing boundaries of what’s possible and never settling for less than the highest quality of work.
16. Happiness
Feeling fulfilled and engaged at work — in tasks, relationships, and the environment. A happy workforce boosts all aspects of the business including employee engagement, productivity, and lowers turnover.
17. Health
Focusing on both the physical and mental health of the organization. When employee well-being is prioritized, it improves morale and reduces healthcare costs for both employees and employers.
18. Humility
Knowing your strengths and weaknesses — and staying open to other perspectives. Humility helps people grow and keeps teams grounded and connected — realizing that all employees regardless of their role or experience contribute to the success of an organization.
19. Kindness
Acts of kindness are a powerful way to foster safety and build connections in the workplace. A culture of kindness is about understanding, empathy, support, and recognition — which helps strengthens morale, builds loyalty, and improves collaboration.
20. Knowledge
Sharing information so everyone can do their best work. Knowledge is more than facts — it’s applying what you know to drive results, from company policies and procedures to industry-specific trends and insights.
21. Leadership
Empowering and motivating others towards a shared goal. Leadership can take on many forms, from setting an inspiring vision and direction to offering guidance and support to leading by example.
22. Openness
Creating space at work for honest conversations, new ideas, opinions, and feedback without fear of judgement. Openness builds psychological safety, encourages honesty and transparency, and sparks creativity.
23. Commitment
Commitment means showing up to work every day ready to give your best. It means believing in the work you’re producing, how it contributes to the bigger picture, and going the extra mile to ensure the job gets done.
24. Community
More than just individual connections, community at work brings people together through common interests, goals, or experiences. It’s an investment in policies, programs, and activities that build a “one team” mentality helping employees feel a sense of belonging, connection, and shared purpose.
25. Diversity
Respecting and valuing the background, skills, and insights of all employees. A commitment to creating an environment where everybody has equal access to available opportunities. Diversity goes beyond demographics and includes accepting different work styles, personalities, and differences in how people think and learn.
How to define company core value statements
Defining core values starts with a clear look at your culture and vision. Your values should clearly outline what your company stands for and what they’re working to achieve. Consider these guidelines to help you get started:
- Keep it short: Make your values easy to remember and live by. Focus on simple, meaningful language that resonates with everyone — not lengthy statements filled with buzzwords.
- Stay specific: Avoid vague corporate speak. Tie your values directly to your company’s mission, culture, and work. The clearer your values are, the easier it is for employees and customers to connect with them.
- Address internal and external goals: Think beyond your employees — how do your values shape customer experiences and community impact? This balance builds trust and shows your company stands for more than profit.
- Make them unique: Your values should reflect what truly sets your organization apart. Avoid generic statements — focus on what makes your culture, mission, and people special to attract the right audience.
Make company core values a part of daily life
Company core values are more than buzzwords thrown onto a website or in an employee handbook. They’re the foundation for more engaged, productive, and robust workforces. Companies who don’t just talk the talk, but who walk the walk, are the companies who attract and retain the best talent and who see measurable success.
At Achievers, we understand first-hand why values are exactly that, valuable to organizations because we live ours every single day — It’s the people, Be bold, Own the outcome, One team, Win with customers. Our recognition platform offers a space for employers and employees to recognize the people at work who bring their company values to life — guaranteeing that what gets recognized, gets repeated.
Ready to turn your values into daily actions? With Achievers, you can recognize and reinforce the behaviors that shape your culture, drive engagement, and fuel business results — every single day.
Company core values FAQ
