A few years ago, Ron Lang was appointed chief executive officer of SunGard Higher Education, a company I have served for more than a decade. In my opinion, Ron possesses many positive characteristics of an effective leader. One thing in particular I found impressive was how, shortly after he assumed his new role, he established and publicized three key values to help guide the company. Those values have become familiar, not only to SunGard’s employees around the world, but also to many of its customers (I love it when they tell me what the values are). Here are five reasons I think his leadership in this instance has been particularly effective:

1)      Ron introduced three key values that were simple and easy to understand: the fact that SunGard Higher Education is one company (comprised of several solutions and services but speaking with one voice); an outside-in approach (primary focus on the needs of the customer); and speed (to market). A fourth value, operational excellence, was added later. Because these four values are simple and easy to comprehend, they can be readily communicated by anyone from corporate executives to maintenance workers.

2)      Ron is a good communicator. He holds town hall meetings, blogs and vlogs, visits the company’s many offices and engages in dialogue with employees, and of course, spends time visiting with customers. He uses every opportunity to talk about the four values and cites examples of how they are being implemented. Those examples might take the form of a comment from a customer or an employee who has made an exemplary contribution. The stories help reinforce the values’ importance and help employees understand how and why they are critical to the company’s success.

3)      By regularly providing examples of how these values are implemented, Ron helps employees understand how they can “adopt” and align them with their own individual roles and responsibilities. By connecting with the “why,” employees take ownership in the values and discover ways to contribute to their implementation.

4)      Every one of the company’s strategic objectives aligns with the key values. Most companies and institutions do some sort of strategic planning, but oftentimes those plans end up on a shelf. Continually drawing the connection between strategic objectives and a company’s values gives the plan “legs” and helps it remain focused on achieving results.

5)      And finally, under Ron’s leadership, the company uses its values as a benchmark for determining its progress in meeting the objectives. It serves as a vehicle for reminding people how far along the company is in meeting its goals, and the values remind them why the goals are critical to the company’s success. Continually reviewing the values adds up to increased accountability.

Has your institution documented its values? Does every person in your organization readily understand those values? Do they understand how to apply those values to their own roles and responsibilities in order to help ensure the organization achieves its goals? And does your institution regularly discuss and celebrate its values?

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