
Core Values
Core Values are the non-negotiables that define how your company thinks, acts, and grows. They guide behavior, shape culture, and reinforce accountability.
Core Values are more than nice words on a wall. In The 90 Way, they are operating standards—a practical, visible, and daily part of how great companies hire, fire, coach, celebrate, and lead.
When defined and reinforced properly, Core Values clarify how your team should behave when no one is watching. They create internal consistency across decisions, systems, and relationships—especially as your company grows. When neglected, Core Values become vague ideals. When activated, they become your company’s immune system and culture compass.
In high-trust, high-growth organizations, Core Values aren’t just remembered—they’re lived.
Overview
Without Core Values, companies experience:
- Cultural drift, especially as the company grows or hires quickly
- Inconsistent decision-making, especially across departments
- Toxic behaviors, going unchecked due to unclear standards
- Misaligned hiring, resulting in poor team fit and low retention
- Erosion of accountability, with no behavior baseline
- Confusion around priorities, when values aren't used to filter decisions
Strong Core Values solve these by:
- Defining what “right fit” means across hiring and team behavior
- Providing a shared framework for recognition, feedback, and leadership
- Anchoring company identity during growth, change, or transition
- Reinforcing accountability through agreed-upon standards
- Supporting a resilient, values-based culture people trust and want to be part of
Core Values are the culture scaffolding you build everything else on.
What Stage of Development is your business currently in?
Learn More about the Stages:
Key Resources & Tools
The 90 Way provides structured tools to define, reinforce, and operationalize Core Values across your company.
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Blog
Read Time: 5 Minutes3 Levels of Organizational Culture: Aligning Core Values with Actual Practice
Discover the Yerkes-Dodson Law, a psychological principle that explores the link between stress and … -
Blog
Read Time: 13 MinutesGrow or Die #6: Culture Matters
Commit to shared Core Values and a strong, agreements-based culture to keep your organization growin…
Next Steps
Education Journey:
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Deeper Dive: Vision