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Company Values Template
A structured template to define, articulate, and operationalise company values — with the behaviours, anti-patterns, and rollout that make them stick.
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What you get
- A clear format for each value: name, meaning, and behaviours
- Do/don't examples so values guide real decisions
- A facilitation guide for drafting values with your team
- A rollout plan to embed values in hiring, reviews, and recognition
Template preview
A preview of the structure. Download the PDF or CSV for the complete, ready-to-use version.
How to use this template
Aim for four to six values. Fewer is more memorable; vague is worse than none.
Value entry (repeat per value)
- Value name— short and memorable
- What it means— one or two sentences in plain language
- Behaviours we want to see— 3–4 observable actions
- Anti-patterns we won't accept— what this value is NOT
Worked example
Value: Default to transparency. What it means: we share context early and openly, even when it's uncomfortable. Behaviours: write decisions down, surface bad news fast, give direct feedback. Anti-patterns: hoarding information, sugar-coating, deciding in private. Example: we publish our roadmap and the reasons behind cuts to the whole company.
Drafting workshop (facilitation guide)
- 1.Ask the team: who are our best people and what do they do differently?
- 2.Cluster the behaviours into themes and name each one
- 3.Write the meaning, behaviours, and anti-patterns for each candidate value
- 4.Pressure-test: would this value ever make us turn down talent or money? If not, cut it
Quality check for each value
- It is specific and behavioural, not a generic noun
- It describes how we actually behave, not how we wish we did
- It has clear anti-patterns we would push back on
- It could guide a genuinely hard decision
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How to use this template
- 1
Draft from reality
Start from how your best people already behave, not from aspirational buzzwords nobody recognises.
- 2
Make them behavioural
For each value, write the observable behaviours and the anti-patterns so it guides actual decisions.
- 3
Pressure-test them
Ask whether each value would ever cause you to make a hard or unpopular call — if not, it's a platitude.
- 4
Embed everywhere
Wire values into hiring, onboarding, reviews, and recognition so they live in systems, not just on a wall.
Frequently asked questions
How many company values should we have?
Four to six is the sweet spot. Fewer than that is hard to cover the culture; more than six and nobody can remember or apply them. Memorable beats comprehensive.
What makes a value actually useful?
It is behavioural and would guide a hard decision. If a value never causes you to turn down talent, money, or a shortcut, it is a platitude rather than a real value.
How do we make values stick after launch?
Embed them in systems: hiring scorecards, onboarding, performance reviews, and recognition. Values live in repeated decisions and rituals, not on a poster.