CORE VALUES: Shaping Business
Doing both work and school together was something I learned when I was still in college. However, I didn’t have concrete vision for myself to where I was heading, having a number of thoughts and ideas on where to get my professional career. It was never in my list of priorities working in a banking industry merely because I wanted to hone my skills in critical thinking and speaking. By so doing, I only had the following options in mind, either becoming a lawyer, teacher, or journalist.
Lo and behold! I ended up working with then, the number one bank in the Philippines (in terms of company assets), Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company as a Customer Service Representative (CSR). Without any knowledge how it operates, its individual functions, its professional requirements, and most especially having the fear of handling bank transactions which would greatly require due diligence, I pursued to take the job. As newly-hired employee of the company, I was sent to Head Office, like most new ones, for an orientation. Yes, the company spends thousands of pesos to fly in their fresh hires all over the country to Head Office just for orientation and familiarization of what the company is about – its existence, its objectives, and the essence of engaging in such a business. Primarily, we were introduced to the mission and vision of the company and how we each can contribute in achieving that. The Human Resources Department injected the core values of customer care, teamwork, result-oriented and professionalism. Imagine the amount of resources invested by the company to its people just so it can create and deliver value to its clients in the midst of a very competitive industry.
YourDictionary.com defined Core values as fundamental beliefs of a person or organization. The core values are the guiding principles that dictate behavior and action. Core values can help people to know what is right from wrong; they can help companies to determine if they are on the right path and fulfilling their business goals; and they create an unwavering and unchanging guide. For corporations, core values can be manifested with their mission’s statements which are mostly published with their website or even within their premises.
An essential component of human capital management is managing a corporate discipline program. Corporate discipline requires appreciation of the work and moral standards and behavior set by the company and commitment to the company’s thrusts and undertakings. Indispensable to the company’s attainment of its objective to be the best institution is the quality of the employees who carry out its day-to-day operations. Their exemplary conduct, discipline and total commitment to doing business with integrity are the cornerstones of company’s success. The company’s long-term interests and the interests of everyone with a stake in the institution depend on its employees embracing the standards.
Accordingly, for any institution, the corporate discipline programs aim to instill among the employees a commitment and dedication to the virtues of honesty and integrity, together with a high sense of prudence, responsibility and efficiency in the conduct of duties. The problem arises on the observance of an employee with the set of corporate discipline, on how employee’s actions affects others, and is it imperative that all employees live by the values that their institution stands for and reflect these values in their behavior.
I remember then when I started my first professional career as bank employee, I had an immediate supervisor, a Bank Operations Officer for that matter, engaging in a personal activity that potentially compete with the bank’s business. Surely, these activities claim the employee’s time and attention during office hours. Among us newbies in the banking industry, we had questions in mind like, why is the branch manager allowing these activities? What if these situations may lead to conflict or potential conflicts between his personal interests and that of the bank? Is implementation of these programs are for the chosen few? If this corporate discipline program is not implemented, how can good conduct and corporate discipline be promoted in a culture of professionalism and maturity characterized by appropriate work ethics, socially acceptable behavior and high moral standards?
Along with the professional decorum expected for an employee, giving quality service and operational efficiency are vital and essential factors for business success. In the current workplace I am with, I transferred to another commercial bank by the way, it is a challenge for me to work with individuals in an environment where mediocrity is prevalent. It may seem undesirable to share, but there are individuals who cannot think outside the box, have questionable level of authority, lack level of trust, and where human interventions from superiors are commonly practiced. Furthermore, these observations have been strengthened with conversations among peers who recently joined the institution. We have noted that these can possibly come from the existing culture the institution has. Quite disturbing to point out, if such a culture continue to persist, how then can we promote the employee’s positive work attitude manifested with commitment and dedication to productivity and quality work output, and compliance with all policies in the performance of one’s duties?
Entrepreneur.com defined a mission statement as A sentence describing a company's function, markets and competitive advantages; a short written statement of your business goals and philosophies. Simply, it is what the organization hopes to achieve, the very reason for its existence. But backed by these objectives, are the people comprising it who should share the same goal as the company. Because needless to say, the mission will remain to be unfulfilled if its people tread a different path. Hence, employees should possess the ardent desire to achieve results through action and to rise quickly to challenges and opportunities. Employees should exhibit genuine and sincere concern to provide consistent quality service at all times and to maintain a working environment more conducive to enhanced work productivity.
“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” as Phil Jackson would put it on TEAMWORK. An institution acknowledges that its success does not depend only on individual effort but more importantly on teamwork. Teamwork is the demonstrated willingness to work with others in the organization toward the overall achievement of desired results or set goals. Teamwork works best when each team member is competent and skilled and possesses enhanced interpersonal abilities. Open and unhampered interpersonal relations are the key to teamwork. The further challenge then is to maintain and sustain cordial relationship in spite of differences and disagreements.
On my third year with Metrobank, I was moved to the “bread and butter” of any financial banking institution, the lending department. At the early stages of my stint, I came to a realization that granting and managing credit is not as easy as counting 1,2,3 but instead requires various credit documents, follows procedures for proper validation and expects coordination with other departments of the banking system. The latter having been the most challenging for me, having to deal with colleagues with different character, personalities and backgrounds. Indeed, it is a serious business. From the time then on to the present, disagreements and the unending debates on whose interest are we serving arises – the bank or the client. Each department would point out that in most cases than not, there are misrepresentations and serving of personal biases. Should employees therefore consistently promote a spirit of harmony and cooperation, and respect channels of communication and hierarchy within the organization? Should we expect to ensure that they follow valid, lawful and reasonable orders and instructions, which include full compliance with the bank’s existing rules and regulations to always protect bank’s collective interest? Again, we go back to the core values of the organization, and how it is imbued and lived by its people.
For any service-oriented industry, the adage, “SERVICE is our BUSINESS” can be a battle cry and customers are the driving force behind everything. However, do institutions continuously prioritize customers’ needs by consistently delivering on the promises, dependably and accurately? Do employees are knowledgeable and courteous in the delivery of services? How willing are employees of the service-oriented institutions ready to help and provide prompt service. At a glance, they are still instances where failure to attend promptly to clients’ requests/inquiries, and rumor-mongering, gossiping and character assassination of clients are among the examples of non-acceptable behavior under this standard of conduct.
As an individual, employed or being a business owner, to maintain the confidence of the public we serve, we must always strive to work by the highest ethical standards or at least maintain the core values of professionalism, result-oriented, teamwork and customer care. We may have many roles to play at a given time but these can be fully tested on how we respond to situations. On personal note, I am fortunate that at an early stage, I was able to learn and to manage different roles, professionally responding to every need and always striving for excellence in everything I do. We are then challenged to uphold a rigorous standard of integrity and instill in our everyday conduct these competencies and to comply with the ethical business standards.
In summary, if only employees refrain from engaging in any kind of activity inside or outside the institutions that might compromise the interest, then its ethical business practices are complied with. If only employees maintain the highest degree of integrity, fully aware that any misconduct or misdemeanor is a breach of the confidence that the institution has entrusted to them, then misrepresentation is avoided and defined. If only the “I” is contributed in a collective action, then it creates productivity. If only institutions promote care for their customers and with their stakeholders, then business is sustained. If only these core values are well defined and adapted, then it creates competitive advantage.