C-118 Part 4: Case Studies
For two hours I sat in front of the group, while the team
filled flip chart pages with comments about what they did
and didn’t like about my leadership. They then covered the
walls with all the pages. At this particular time, I found
the negative observations to be painful and I did not see
them as gifts but rather as attacks on me. There was a side
of me that was extremely upset and mad but I also knew
that I had to do something different. Upon returning to
Richmond, I talked with my father about this experience.
He asked me about the feedback and I told him it was the
same thing he had been telling me for the past nine years.
He then asked me what I was going to do about it and
I promised him that I was not going to quit and that
I was going to work as hard as I possibly could to be a
better leader for our company and for our people. This
was clearly a pivotal point that forced me to look in the
mirror and figure out how I could be a better leader at
Luck Companies.
After a year of these periodic meetings and Tools
Training, other Associates began to notice a difference
in the officers. At the end of this 18-month period the
values that would lead the company were agreed upon:
■■Commitment: Take personal responsibility for the
success of associates, customers, and communities
■■Integrity: Earn the trust and respect of others
■■Creativity: Have a passion for ideas and innovation
that add value
■■Leadership: Ignite Human PotentialThese values emphasize the importance of perfor-
mance, and go beyond that to describe the behaviors
required to do the right things. Charlie believed strongly
that a values-driven culture was a way to achieve even
better outcomes and performance. Examples of out-
comes include:
a. Improved customer loyalty and key account reten-
tion through integrity and commitment toward any-
one that the company came into contact with.
b. Increased product innovation by focusing and
embracing creativity throughout the company.
c. Better efficiency and safety through an unwavering
commitment to a best-in-class safety program.
d. Acquisition advantages by gaining respect as an
industry leader for operating with integrity as a core
value in everyday operations.
In 2004, after a year and a half of deciding what
values would define Luck Companies, Charlie and the
senior team decided it was time to unveil the Values
Journey and Vision 2010 to the entire company. A series
of departmental meetings were held where Charlie gave
the speech that would change the company forever. In
his speech, Charlie told the employees that he was no
longer worried about just making money but instead
how that money was being made. Many associates were
shocked at Charlie’s newfound Vision 2010, “To be the
Model of a Values-Based Organization.”
The next task was to embed this newfound vision
throughout the company. It was important that these
values did not become superficial posters merely hung
on a wall to collect dust. Charlie and the senior team
knew that in order to truly achieve the vision, the val-
ues would have to reach the deepest depths of the com-
pany and become ingrained in each and every associate.
Every associate would be held accountable to these val-
ues and through this accountability the vision would
ignite potential in the associates to not only become
better employees but better individuals holistically. To
assure that the values were adhered to and lived out
by every associate, a unique and intense process was
developed to make Vision 2010 operational. To ensure
the successful implementation of the vision, Luck
Companies invested thousands of working hours and
millions of dollars to embed it into the organization.
Below is an overview of the steps taken to drive the
vision:
■■The Monthly Values Program: A year long program
starting with top associates in groups of 40 to
undergo the same tools training as the officers.
■■Established the First Ritual: Any and every meeting
would start with 10 – 15 minutes of values stories.
■■Redid the annual associate performance reviews: The
APR’s were now built around values and behaviors,
and encompassed two sections; 1) what section and
2) how section.
■■Insights Study: Every employee down to the hourly
level took an insights study to learn about themselves.
■■New Values Curriculum: This new curriculum was
built around values, insights, and supporting tools.
■■Introduced Walking the Talk Awards: Associates sub-
mitted people acting out the values (top five received
a prize).
■■Hired and embedded sight specific HR Personnel:
Their job was to work out in the fields and teach and
train the new values.
■■Quarterly Values Program: Also was attended by
hourly associates.
■■Implemented a Mentoring Program: Officers began to
mentor 5 senior leaders at a time, and once senior lead-
ers went through the program for a year, they turned
around and mentored the associates beneath them.