Future of Work: Why Company Values Matter More Than Ever
Leaning On Our DNA to Lead the Way
Organizations put values in place to shape culture and inspire teams, to deliver customer success and foster innovation. Values are created with the goal they become akin to a body’s DNA – creating the underlying blueprint that will support a company through uncertain times, uniting it through a common language to help navigate changing conditions.
But a global pandemic? This was unprecedented territory for 21st century businesses.
I was recently asked what our secret was for successfully navigating the pandemic. Two words: our values. Pre-pandemic, Neustar’s five core values – accountability, collaboration, transparency, resilience, and respect – were the principles behind our company’s success, a foundation that helped our team solve complex problems that would drive sales and growth.
But in 2020 and beyond, our values have had to serve a much larger purpose. They’ve guided us on how to best help our customers and each other weather the extraordinary challenges that COVID-19 presented. They’ve helped our employees make the right decisions in their day-to-day jobs with a sense of confidence. And they’ve held us accountable for those decisions. These values have become our “North Star” during the pandemic, helping us not just to survive, but thrive.
Slowing Down to Recognize and Inspire
As a technology company, we are used to moving at lightning speed to keep pace with change and innovation. But the pandemic gave our leadership an important gift — a chance to pause, appreciate, and recognize how our extraordinary team here at Neustar embraces our five core values and keeps Neustar on a trajectory for continued success. Our employees who were spotlighted in 2020 embody all that it means to be TeamNeustar. They demonstrated day in and day out how to be accountable, collaborative, transparent, resilient, and respectful, and they did it during a trying and tumultuous time.
TeamNeustar's 2020 Employee Spotlight
To this day, each month we celebrate individuals and teams from all corners of our operations, and from our offices around the world. I am reinvigorated every month when I read about our Employee Spotlight and learn about the remarkable things our team is accomplishing — and I know this inspiration flows through the rest of the company. They say a rising tide lifts all boats and that is certainly the case at Neustar.
Maintaining a Strong Culture Through What’s to Come
Many organizations have struggled to charter a purposeful path during the pandemic. I’m proud that at Neustar, our values have kept us moving ahead as a strong unit. They’ve become the cornerstone that grounds and guides how we respond, rebound, and reinvigorate ourselves to grow stronger, together.
Researcher and author Dr. Brene Brown says that “living our values means that we do more than profess our values, we practice them.” At Neustar, our values aren’t just words on a wall or on company materials. Instead, Accountability. Collaboration. Transparency. Resilience. Respect show up in our everyday conversations and actions as we live our values.
Now, more than a year into the pandemic and facing new uncertainties with the Delta variant, we are doubling down on our company culture. It’s the only way forward. As we return to the office — when it is safe to so do — we will lead with our values.
In a hybrid work environment, my goal will be to create tangible ways for TeamNeustar to connect to and demonstrate those five attributes in our daily work. As we make decisions, we’ll ask ourselves: “Does this align with our values? Does it validate who we are? Does it help us be who we want to be?” Notice the focus on being, not doing. The important thing for companies everywhere now is to get in touch with who you are and allow that to fuel what you do. At Neustar, our values will continue to pave the way.
Interested in joining a team who puts values first? Check out our open positions.