Expert Advice

A. That's a good question and since you work for a creative agency yourself you will know that it's not an easy process but that the results always have a dramatic effect on the brand’s performance.

It would be impossible to explain our process here and I know from discussing this issue with our E3 agency partners there are many different processes you can use. It really is a case of finding a process that suits you. There are two quite distinct situations. The most common is defining values for an existing brand and the secodn involves creating values for a new brand or for a brand following a significant event like a merger or a take over.

The most important thing in the first case is that the values are based on truth and that they reflect the real culture of the business. It is possible to change the culture somewhat by identifying the current values and then developing a new set of values that define how you want the culture to be. However, culture is stubborn and you will only be able to move it a few degrees through evolved values.

The second situation where you are literally creating a ne culture is much freer but this does not mean that you have a clean slate. Ultimately the values lie in the hearts and minds of the business leaders and so they have to be uncovered with them.

Our approach usually involves a combination of observation, interviews and workshops and it is a process of defining and refining until we find values that are true, compelling and that give direction to the brand's behaviour and character.

If you are about to embark on the process for the first time then a few words of warning:

• People always look for values that define what they should be rather than what they are.
• People tend to err towards words that are not defining values but that are a requirement of a good business – how often have you seen the values of “Innovation”, “Trustworthy” etc?
• Rather than looking to have a spread of values that cover all bases it is more important to have a collection of values which together combine in a unique and compelling essence.