Shared and Agreed Values at the District Education Office

Back in November when we properly started the Organisation Assessment of the District Education Office, one of the first things to come to light was that there were in fact no shared and agreed values for working there. Having diagnosed the problem, everyone in the office was given a small piece of paper and requested to list their three key values. Some got terribly carried away and I had to suggest to the guy who had listed 17 values that perhaps he should stop there! These papers were then consolidated and read out at a whole office at the Monday morning meeting on 14th December. Everyone was amazed at the consensus. However, there were loads of values and it was agreed they should be limited to about seven. After the Christmas holiday I sat down with a member of GES staff and we grouped what was suggested and managed to come up with this list.

Agreed VALUES of this District Education office

All staff should support the GES Directorate in any way possible in order to raise its image and help to achieve its Mission.

• Be Professional – be smart in appearance and do an honest day’s work.
• Be regular and punctual – to work and meetings, also carry out assignments on time.
• Work as part of a team – with cooperation, respect and encouragement for one another.
• Be constructive in your communication – handling issues with objectivity and fairness.
• Share knowledge and experiences acquired at meetings and workshops for the good of all.
• Use resources efficiently and effectively.
• Fulfil your responsibilities – be disciplined and pay your dues regularly.

If an Organisation Development process goes well,
it never stops.
It becomes a way of life.
January 2010

I had to hang on a week or two until there was a slot in the Monday morning meeting agenda and then on Feb 8th the Assistant Director read them out to the staff. We asked that as a sign that they had been read, understood and people intended to comply with these values, they should sign the paper upon which they were mounted. I think the photos tell the story.

This week when the District Director arrived in the office and saw what had been done, he literally jumped for joy and immediately picked up a pen to sign. He has also suggested that we make wallet size versions for every member of staff to read before coming to the office each day. He says he will personally pay for them to be laminated. They will probably look like this

West Mamprugu DEO
Organisational Values
• Be Professional
• Be regular and punctual
• Work as part of a team
• Be constructive in your communication
• Share knowledge
• Use resources efficiently and effectively
• Fulfil your responsibilities

The clock that I bought for the office is also frequently referred to and our Monday meetings start on the dot of 8.30am (and usually finish about an hour later) . We have removed the 2004 calendars from the office walls and taken down out of date postings and extremely tatty posters.

So, small steps in the right direction!