Cubiks Blog Is it really possible to assess values?

By Louise Faulkes, Cubiks UKThere's a common view (among many other interesting perceptions) that talking about values is a bit "fluffy".For such a lovely, cuddly topic, there are some really crucial questions to ask, such as: "Surely everyone has the same values?; Who defines the values of an organisation?; Aren't values impossible to measure?" There's so much to say on each of these questions but each of them feeds into the big question at stake: "How can we use values to select candidates with the best 'fit' to the organisation?" We've recently seen a huge rise in the number of clients picking our brains on measuring and exploring company values as part of their selection processes. Given the now pretty much standard features of online assessment solutions - marketing function and realistic job preview, it isn't a surprise that more and more organisations are wanting their tools to reflect, communicate and assess candidates' values. In a world where two-way selection is now the norm, candidates are more conscious than ever of how their choices reflect on the public identity that they project. Indeed, these values-based questions are highly relevant to us all: "What do we want to stand for in our working lives?"; "What does our organisation stand for?"; "Is there a strong level of 'fit' between our own and the organisation's values (and what might this mean if there isn't?)" I wonder how highly values feature in the list of priorities when choosing a future employer? For our clients, assessing values fit usually comes as an exploratory/self-sift phase at the very early stages of the selection process; perhaps in conjunction with other variables. Although the values sets of organisations often look similar, the detail and definitions behind these add granularity and uniqueness. What is a worry is whether the values as espoused by the organisation are really reflective of what's happening on the ground. Who is setting the company values and how do they feature as part of the organisation's daily life? Are they revisited and revised over the years or is a quick glance by employees walking down the corridor where they sit framed the only attention they get? In short, how alive and well are the values of the organisation? They should be well defined and an accurate reflection of the organisation to be a solid and appropriate foundation for assessment/development processes, which can be explored using a detailed process akin to job analysis.There's no question that in their pure state, values are tricky to measure directly. They sit within our broader identity and self-concept, with the 'value-action gap' illustrating how many other factors can sit between our values and our behaviour, i.e. personal attitudes can change values over time. Common opinion is that we cannot psychometrically pinpoint and measure values directly, given the necessary dependency on the individual's (the 'value-holder's) ability and willingness to self-reflect and report and the context and understanding of the 'value-observer'. However, through self-report measures and exploring values-driven behaviour, it seems that they have a very real part to play.Our role, as selection professionals, is supporting organisations in defining, assessing and maximising the impact of their values.More specifically, we need to make it easier to help our clients and candidates find the level of fit they're looking for - through rigorous job analysis to define values in a way that is as representative of the organisation as possible, setting concrete foundations for selection process design. It's certainly exciting to see values progressing further into everyday selection vocabulary and to see selection moving into a more holistic space. We look forward to working with our clients further in the values space and to exploring the benefits of this work for our clients and their candidates going forward.Follow this link to the Cubiks website for more information about assessing values.