A day hardly passes without some business news story mentioning an accounting scandal at a large public corporation, an executive going to jail, doing the ?perp walk? or testifying against former colleagues. There is probably some news on this very page of some business crime. I'll bet that every one of the companies mentioned in the news has a beautifully framed Values Statement hanging prominently in the lobby and proudly displayed in the Annual Report. But does anyone ever read it? Are the core values known throughout the rank and file of the company? Are they referred to when discussing policy or competitive strategic moves? Or are they just forgotten until it is time to dust the plaque or print the next Annual Report?

Don't get me wrong. Having a Values Statement is a very good thing. It is a starting point to building a respected, ethical company a company that treats its? customers, staff, and vendors with respect but it can be much more than that. It can be the basis for selecting new staff when adding to the workforce. It can make the training period easier and less stressful because, if new hires understand the core values, they will understand that those values are the basis for policy. It can make relationships with customers and vendors more cordial and less adversarial. It can even be used as a marketing message if the company actually follows (and can show they follow) their Values Statement ? giving foundational depth to the whole Customer Service issue.

Few companies have a written Values Statement and many of those that do have one, never use it so see if your company actually has one. If you do then ask yourself whether it is a living document ? one the company and the people within the company adhere to. If you find you don't have one, start the process of crafting one by asking, ?what core values should be the foundation for this company and how should we implement them??

Larry Galler coaches and consults with high-performance executives, professionals, and small businesses since 1993. He is the writer of the long-running (every Sunday since November 2001) business column, "Front Lines with Larry Galler" Sign up for his free newsletter at Questions??? Send an email to