reflecting on core values

It’s been a little over a week since I left my full time position with Payne & Tompkins. As I think about my time with the company there is something that so strong stands out to me: core values can mean something.

You might be thinking – duh, most companies have them. I totally agree with that. I don’t think I have come across a company that doesn’t have their core values listed on their website or around their office.

What I am saying is Payne & Tompkins knows how to live them and that is special. The core values there are so deeply ingrained in every decision and every interaction. Now nobody is perfect so of course emotions and passion can get the best of us, but at the end of the day, the important interactions are core value coded.

Why do those core values stand out? They weren’t just one word like “integrity” – what does that really mean? These are phrases of 6-8 words; a lot of them a call to action. The call to action helped us (the entire company) recognize the actions and behaviors that exemplified those behaviors. We called them out when we saw them and we celebrated team members for exemplifying them. You’d often hear people using them in their everyday conversations without even thinking about it.

The culture was ACTUALLY built around a common belief that if we lived those core values, we would accomplish something great. In my humble opinion, we did. We hired, fired, promoted, and worked with clients that connected with those core values.

Transitioning from 7 people in 2016 to over 50 people in 2024, the culture and core values served as a guidepost for all decisions. In the few years that I worked there, I saw the core values strengthen and develop within each person on the team. At the end of the day, the team is unstoppable, not because their conference rooms are named after their core values; but because their people inherently rally around their core values.