Every company loves to talk about its values. You will find them on websites, onboarding decks, and employer branding campaigns, often expressed through words like integrity, innovation, and teamwork, all meant to define how people work together.
However, company values are frequently confused with company culture, even though the two play very different roles.
From our perspective as a recruitment agency, the real question is not whether companies should have values, but whether those values genuinely shape decisions.
So, do company values really make a difference?
Or are they simply corporate wallpaper, well intentioned, nicely designed, and quickly forgotten once real business pressure sets in?
Let’s explore both sides.
The Case For Company Values
They Build a Shared Identity
When values are clear and authentic, they create a shared identity that goes beyond job titles and organizational charts.
In our work as a recruitment company, we see how strong values help align leadership, managers, and new hires, especially within distributed teams and growing organizations.
They Guide Decision Making
In fast moving environments, values act as a compass. Indeed, they help teams make confident decisions and move forward without relying on constant guidance or escalation.
For candidates, this clarity often makes the difference between a trusted employer and a generic job agency.
They Attract and Keep the Right Talent
Today’s candidates do not just look for a role, they look for purpose. In competitive markets such as marketing and communications, corporate services, or IT recruitment, values play a key role in sourcing talent that truly fits.
As a talent acquisition partner, we consistently see that companies with lived values attract higher quality profiles and retain them longer, even in highly competitive markets.
They Reinforce Accountability
Values provide a reference point for feedback, recognition, and performance management. In organizations, values help ensure consistency across leadership, hiring managers, and external partners.
They make it easier to recognize behaviors that align with expectations, and to address actions that do not.
Group of businesspeople meeting in a coworking corporate company office
The Case Against Company Values
They Often Sound the Same
Integrity. Excellence. Innovation. Collaboration.
Scan enough company websites and you will see the same language repeated, particularly in recruitment and employer branding.
The issue is not the words themselves, but the lack of specificity. Without concrete examples, values quickly lose impact and become invisible.
They Can Become Empty Promises
When values are not reflected in leadership behavior, candidates notice almost immediately. A company that promotes transparency while hiding key decisions damages trust far more than if it had never articulated values at all.
Today, more than ever credibility is everything. Misalignment between stated values and real behavior is one of the fastest ways to lose top talent.
They Risk Being Weaponized
Values can sometimes be used to shut down debate or justify questionable decisions, for example by saying “this is not aligned with our values”. When this happens, values stop fostering alignment and start enforcing conformity, something we often hear during candidate interviews.
They Age Poorly Without Renewal
Markets evolve. Teams change. Business models shift.
Values defined years ago may no longer reflect reality. Without regular review, they risk becoming outdated or even holding progress back.
So, Should You Have Company Values?
Yes, absolutely, but only if you are prepared to live by them.
The most effective company values are not aspirational slogans or branding statements. They reflect how decisions are actually made, especially when trade offs are complex and pressure is high.
True values show up in everyday behavior. They are visible in how interviews are conducted, how leaders are selected, how success is defined, and how difficult decisions are handled across the organization.
Final Thought
Company values are neither a silver bullet nor a waste of time.
They are tools, powerful when lived authentically, and useless when treated as decoration.
Indeed, values can become a real and lasting competitive advantage when they genuinely shape everyday behavior and guide decision making at every level of the organization, especially when choices are difficult or uncomfortable.
If your values genuinely shape decisions and culture, they deserve to stay front and center.
If not, it may be time for a refresh, grounded not in what sounds good, but in who you actually are.
About mPlusOne
mPlusOne is a Swiss recruitment agency specialized in sourcing and selecting talent for SMEs, organizations, and multinationals in French speaking Switzerland.
We help employers build not just teams, but cultures that attract and retain exceptional talent.
Feel free to contact us for a personalized strategic session.
