Personal Values & Organisational Values

Personal Values

Values are defined in Organizational Behavior as the collective conceptions of what

is considered good, desirable, and proper or bad, undesirable, and improper in a
culture. Values are learned beliefs. Individuals learn them from their culture in
general and, more specifically, from their family, religion, peers, educators, and
experiences. Values are part of our personalities and cognitive systems; they direct
how we behave (react to stimuli) and what we think. Once a value is internalized, it
becomes a standard for guiding action or a criterion for selection of an action.

Values are evidenced by attitudes, and these vary by race, age, sex, religion,
income, and education. Values are formed through repeated experiences and
multiple exposures to your world. Your experiences help determine your attitude or
beliefs about what is valuable or good and what is not. The more positive the
encounters associated with any dimension, the more reinforced that dimension
comes as being valuable and good. Conversely, the more negative the encounters
the less reinforced the dimension becomes.

Personal values are “broad desirable goals that motivate people’s actions and serve
as guiding principles in their lives”. Personal values are desirable to an individual and
represent what is important to someone. The same value in different people can
elicit different behaviours, eg if someone values success one person may work very
hard to gain success in their career whereas someone else may take advantage of
others to climb the career ladder. Values help an individual to conduct himself/herself
effectively while interacting with other individuals and groups or confronting situation.

Spranger's Value Types

Eduard Spranger (1914), a German philosopher and psychologist, evaluated

personalities in terms of six ideals or value orientations; theoretical, economic,
aesthetic, social, political and religious "types" of personality traits. Other people also
have contributed to our understanding of how values influence behavior in
organizational settings. Allport and Vernon also identified six types of values-

Political. The political value is characterized by the pursuit of power. People at the
top levels of any organization probably were led there by their desire for power. The
political person recognizes the relationship between money and power and may
measure success in dollars; however, the ultimate goal is position.

Aesthetic. People who possess a high degree of the aesthetic value seek beauty,
symmetry, and harmony. They are interested in the artistic episodes of life. Style and
charm/may be more important to them than practicality. They believe in the dignity of
man and the nobility of the individual. Hence, they may be self-sufficient and

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individualistic. One need not be an artist to value art and culture. Taste, appearance,
and elegance are signs of refinement sought by the aesthete, and money is seen as
a necessary means to those ends.

Social. The social or humanitarian value indicates love of fellow beings. This does
not necessarily characterize people who are outgoing but reflects a humanitarian
concern for the welfare of others. A social person tends to be kind, sympathetic,
warm, and giving; such a person values charity, unselfishness, arid the freedom of
.others and is apt to offer aid and assistance to others as well as understanding. To
be able to contribute to another's happiness and well-being is the altruistic goal of
the humanitarian.

Theoretical. Theoretical people value truth and knowledge above all else. To think,
to learn, to reason, to probe, to analyze, and to explain are important to them.
Because they are critical, logical, and empirical, they tend to value science,
research, information, and theory. Not only knowledge, but the organization and
cataloging of knowledge are important to them. They tend to be detached and
unemotional as they seek to solve problems, develop theories, and form questions;
and their critical natures may cause them to be regarded negatively by some
members of the organization. A theoretical person may become frustrated at the
failure of others to realize the value of knowledge and theory but also may fail to
recognize the need for more practical solutions.

Economic. Practicality and usefulness are important to the economic person. Unlike
the theoretical person, the economic type has no use for knowledge that is not
immediately applicable to pragmatic achievement, to the production of something
tangible and useful. Efficiency and effectiveness are measured by profit and
prosperity. Because these people value efficiency, they tend to be parsimonious and
may be perceived by aesthetic and social individuals as stingy or selfish. The
economic practice of conserving resources stems from the feeling that life is a
struggle and that self-preservation requires that resources be used wisely. The
economic individual also may judge the value of others by their wealth or income as
well as their ability to produce. In pursuing goals or achievements, the economic
individual tends to take risks in order to minimize input.

Religious. People who hold high religious values tend to forsake empiricism and
logic for faith in an unseen power. Spranger speaks of the religious person as a
mystic, a seeker of unity with the totality of nature. Life may be seen as a divine
creation, planned and executed by a higher, guiding order. Self-denial, prayer, and
meditation may be valued, or life itself may be the vehicle for achieving ultimate unity
through experience and expression.

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Although Spranger described six pure value types, he noted that any individual could
hold a combination of several types of values.

Combinations of Values

Some combinations of values appear to be congruent and mutually supportive and

others appear to conflict to varying degrees. For example, political and aesthetic
values might be found in one individual simultaneously, perhaps in combination with
theoretical values. Several combinations are described here to illustrate the diversity
of patterns and the conflicting nature of some combinations.

Political and Aesthetic. This sometimes pompous individual believes in the divine
right of rulers," especially himself or herself.They are likely to be individualistic,
express their belief freely, and resist any attempt to control their actions.

Political and Social. This benevolent ruler seeks power in order to oversee the
well-being of others. By developing paternalistic relationships with others, this person
serves them through strength, much as the Pope serves the Church.

Political and Theoretical. Knowledge is the source of power that provides

recognition, influence and control over others for this intellectual or scientific leader
who regards other people as objects to be analyzed and manipulated.

Political and Economic. The typical, successful, American businessperson, this

individual finds that the position of line, rather than staff, manager serves his or her
goals of success, power, and position.

Aesthetic and Social. This altruistic soul instinctively knows what is right for a
person artistically dramatizes emotion and concern for the welfare of others with lofty
prose.

Aesthetic and Theoretical. This may be the most conflicted combination of value.
Theoretically, such a person simultaneously would be searching for thorough logic
and explanations while relying on feelings and impressions to provide beauty.

Aesthetic and Economic. To be practical and efficient while possessing style and
beauty also may create conflict and the person who typifies this pattern is associated
with commerce only at the highest cultural levels.

Social and Theoretical. This individual is the professional who seeks to serve
others through knowledge. Even though others may find such a person’s critical
analyses of people to be cold, the person does strive to help others to become more
rational.

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Social and Economic. For this individual, the goals of productivity and satisfaction
are equally important and he or she encourages economic opportunity because it
benefits people.

Theoretical and Economic. Because this person is interested in practical

applications of knowledge he or she tends to be inventive. This pragmatic approach
to science produces an eclectic problem solver rather than a theoretician.

Organisational Value

Values give an identity to the group. Organisations are respected for the values
practised there. They encourage and create a culture where all members are
helped to internalise the core values of the organisation. Core values are the
deeply ingrained principles that guide a company’s action and practice: they serve
as its cultural cornerstone. Organizational values can be defined as beliefs about
socially or personally desirable end states or actions that are explicitly or implicitly
shared by members of an organization (e.g., Schwartz, 1992). Hence,
organizational values function as guides to what is seen as good and important in
the organization. Values statements of organisation list the core principles and
behaviours that guide and describe an organization’s culture.

SBI’s Vision, Mission and Value Statement-

“At SBI, we have always held ourselves to the highest standards of ethics in
everything that we do. We take pride in doing what is right and conduct ourselves
with professional integrity at all times. Our distinctive ethos and values have
surpassed the generations and geographies. This is a key reason why customers
choose to bank with us. It is not just about the quality of our products & services or
our extensive presence; it's also about how we do things and how our values guide
us to serve our customers with empathy. Our sustained success as the most
respected Bank in the country is built on this public confidence that we never
compromise on ethical conduct. This sets us apart from the rest.” Shri Rajnish
Kumar, Chairman, SBI

Vision- Be the Bank of Choice for a Transforming India

Mission- Committed to Providing Simple, Responsive and Innovative Financial

Solution.

Values- Service, Transparency, Ethics, Politeness, Sustainability (STEPS)

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