A core values workshop helps an organisation define, refresh or live its values. Leadership teams clarify what each value means and what it rules out. All-staff cohorts translate values into observable behaviours, work through real dilemmas, practise speaking up and build team charters. Bodhih designs each workshop around your own values, culture data and growth stage.
- Recommended: 1 day for leadership teams (define or refresh), and a half day for all-staff cohorts (live the values)
- Level: All levels · In person · Live virtual · Blended
- Designed with the ADDIE model and customised to your context
- Offered by Bodhih since 2008 to 2,000+ organisations across 7 regions
Also known as: company values workshop, organisational values training, living our values workshop, values alignment workshop
Where and how: core values training as an in-person workshop in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Jaipur; as a live online course; or delivered overseas in Dubai, Singapore and across the Middle East, Asia and Africa.
Last reviewed · Bodhih Training, Bengaluru
Why values need work, not just words
Rapid hiring, mergers, new leadership and hybrid work can quietly stretch a culture until the stated values no longer match everyday experience. New joiners learn the real rules from what gets rewarded, tolerated and ignored, not from the induction deck.
In 2026, culture has moved up the HR agenda, and employees can tell the difference between values that are lived and values that are laminated. A core values workshop gives people shared language and concrete behaviours, so values guide decisions rather than decorate walls.
SHRM found 31% of CHROs emphasise workplace culture for 2026, up from 15% in 2025.
SHRM's 2026 research reports that 72% of HR leaders say workers have higher expectations of employers.
What participants will be able to do
Clarify meaning
Agree what each value means in your context, and just as importantly, what it does not mean.
Define observable behaviours
Write three to five specific, observable behaviours for each value at individual, manager and leader level.
Resolve values dilemmas
Work through realistic situations where values conflict with targets, deadlines or each other.
Speak up with confidence
Raise a concern respectfully when a value is breached, and respond constructively when someone raises one with you.
Embed values in people processes
Identify how values can shape hiring questions, onboarding, recognition and performance conversations.
Build a team charter
Create a team-level charter that links shared values to daily ways of working.
Who should attend
- Leadership teams defining values for the first time or refreshing them after growth
- Merged or acquired organisations bringing two cultures together
- People managers responsible for role-modelling and reinforcing values
- All-employee cohorts, including new joiners, as part of a culture rollout
- HR, culture and internal communication teams driving values initiatives
- Organisations responding to engagement or culture survey results
Program outline
Recommended design, customised to your context after a short needs analysis.
01Where our culture really is todayModule 1 · 60 min+
- Stated values versus lived values: a candid gap check
- What culture survey data and exit feedback are telling us
- Stories of moments when the values were visible, or missing
02Defining or refreshing the values (leadership variant)Module 2 · 2 hours+
- Testing values for distinctiveness, clarity and real trade-offs
- Merging, retiring or rewording values without losing heritage
- Writing a one-line meaning and a 'this means we will not' line
- Leadership commitments and role-modelling agreements
03From words to observable behavioursModule 3 · 90 min+
- Why abstract values fail without behavioural examples
- Drafting 'we do, we don't' statements for each value
- Adapting behaviours for frontline, specialist and manager roles
- Gallery review and voting on the clearest behaviours
04Values dilemmas at workModule 4 · 75 min+
- When a value clashes with a target or a customer demand
- When two values pull in different directions
- Small-group debates on realistic case scenarios
- Agreeing decision principles for grey areas
05Speaking up and responding wellModule 5 · 60 min+
- Raising a concern with a peer, a manager or a senior leader
- Receiving a concern without defensiveness
- Turning a raised concern into an agreed team change
06Values in hiring, recognition and team chartersModule 6 · 60 min+
- Values-based interview questions and onboarding moments
- Recognition that rewards how results were achieved
- Drafting a team charter and first 30-day commitments
Sample training plan: 1-day hands-on design
This one-day session takes a leadership team from values on a wall to values that shape decisions. Leaders compare stated and lived culture using survey themes and real stories, stress-test each value for clarity and trade-offs, and reword or retire what does not hold. They then write observable behaviours at three levels, debate dilemmas where values collide with targets, and rehearse speaking up. The day ends with leadership commitments, a team charter model and a rollout plan for all-staff cohorts.
The leadership team agrees clear values, observable behaviours and personal commitments, and plans how the whole organisation will live them.
- 09:30–10:00Values from memoryEnergiser
- 10:00–11:00Stated versus livedDiagnostic
- 11:15–12:30Stress-test the valuesDebate
- 13:15–14:15We do, we don'tBuild sprint
- 14:15–15:15When values collideFishbowl
- 15:30–16:15Speaking up, starting with usRole-play
- 16:15–17:30Commitments and rolloutAction planning
Every session’s activity, timings, outputs and materials, plus pre-work, a 90-day reinforcement plan and how impact is measured. Free, emailed to you instantly.
Recommended: 1 day in person (09:30–17:30) for a leadership team to define or refresh values, followed by half-day 'live the values' cohorts for all staff, in person or live virtual. A sample design: every Bodhih program is customised after a short needs analysis.
How long is a core values workshop?
The recommended design is one full day for the leadership team to define or refresh values, followed by half-day cohorts for all staff to live them. Leadership sessions can also run as three live virtual sessions, and all-staff cohorts can run in person or online.
What activities are included in a core values workshop?
Leaders recall values from memory, map stated versus lived culture, debate whether to keep or retire each value, write observable behaviours at three levels, discuss dilemmas in a fishbowl, practise raising and receiving concerns and commit to visible actions and a rollout plan.
How we deliver it
Your values, your stories
We build every activity from your own value statements, survey themes and anonymised workplace incidents, so nothing feels generic.
Dilemma-based learning
Case debates and fishbowl discussions help people explore tensions honestly rather than reciting value definitions.
Leaders go first
Leadership teams take part before all-staff cohorts, so managers can speak about the values with conviction and consistency.
ADDIE from start to finish
Analysis includes a short culture review and stakeholder interviews, and the design includes toolkits for managers. Our ADDIE approach has shaped culture work across 2,000+ companies and more than 2,00,000 lives since 2008.
Tailored versions
Define or refresh (leadership teams)
A one-day facilitated session where leaders test, reword and commit to values and behaviours, with a rollout plan for the wider organisation.
Live the values (all staff)
A half-day, highly interactive session for large cohorts, run in person or live virtual, focused on behaviours, dilemmas and team charters.
Post-merger culture integration
Brings leaders from both organisations together to compare cultures, agree shared values and plan joint team sessions.
How we measure impact
We agree culture indicators with your HR team at the start, such as survey items on values and recognition patterns. Participants complete a short values-in-action pulse before and after the workshop, and managers run a team charter review as part of a 30-60-90 day follow-up. For manager cohorts, related competencies are assessed pre and post on AssessAll. Findings are summarised for leadership as part of the Evaluate stage of our ADDIE design.
Pair this program with AssessAll, Bodhih’s AI assessment platform, for pre- and post-program skill measurement.
Frequently asked questions
What is a core values workshop?
A core values workshop is a facilitated session that helps an organisation define, refresh or live its values. Leaders clarify what each value means and commit to it, while employees translate values into specific behaviours, discuss dilemmas and agree team charters. The aim is to connect values with everyday decisions and actions.
How do you run a core values workshop?
Start with a candid look at the current culture, using survey data and stories. Then clarify the meaning of each value, turn it into observable behaviours and test it against real dilemmas. Finish with commitments, such as a team charter. Leadership sessions usually come first, followed by all-staff cohorts.
How do you make company values real?
Define specific behaviours for each value, have leaders role-model them visibly and build them into hiring, onboarding, recognition and performance conversations. Encourage people to speak up when values are breached and respond fairly when they do. Values become real when they influence decisions, especially difficult ones.
How many core values should a company have?
There is no fixed rule, but most organisations find three to six values easier to remember and apply than long lists. Each value should be distinct and should guide real trade-offs. During the leadership session, we test each value against these criteria and help teams merge or retire values that overlap.
How do you get employees to live company values?
Involve them. When employees help define behaviours for their own roles and discuss real dilemmas, values feel owned rather than imposed. Managers then reinforce them in meetings, feedback and recognition. Our all-staff workshops focus on this participation and give managers a toolkit to keep the conversation going.
What are values-based behaviours?
Values-based behaviours are specific, observable actions that show a value in practice. For example, a value of 'ownership' might include 'I flag a risk as soon as I see it, even when it is not my area'. Clear behaviours make values easier to recognise, practise and discuss in feedback.
How do you get people to speak up when values are not being lived?
Make it safe and specific. Leaders should invite challenge openly, thank people who raise concerns and show what changed as a result. Give everyone simple language for naming a gap, such as describing the behaviour and linking it to the value. The workshop includes practice in raising a concern with a peer or manager and in receiving one without defensiveness.
Can a core values workshop run for large or distributed workforces?
Yes. We run the all-staff variant as repeated half-day cohorts, in person or live virtual, and can train internal facilitators to scale it further. Bodhih's master trainers travel from Bengaluru to deliver across India, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Africa and other regions.