Respect: One of Our Values
Of all the proven principles of human progress, these eight are the foundational values of our culture and thus are among the most important for all of us to exemplify daily. They are an essential aspect of our Virtue and Talents dimension. They define who we are as an organization and are necessary for the long-term success of Koch and each of us.
Have the courage to always act with integrity.
Act with proper regard for the rights of others, especially regarding safety and the environment. Comply with all laws and regulations. Stop, Think and Ask.
Create Virtuous Cycles of Mutual Benefit by becoming a preferred partner of customers, employees, suppliers, communities, and other core constituencies. Continually seek to identify and close the gaps between what you are and what you could be accomplishing if you were fully applying Principle Based Management.
Transform yourself and help the company and others to do the same. Develop the visions, strategies, capabilities, products, and services that will enable us to satisfy unmet needs and create superior value.
Seek and acquire the best knowledge from any and all sources that will enable you to innovate and improve results. Share your knowledge proactively. Provide and solicit challenges consistently and respectfully.
Be humble, intellectually honest, and deal with reality constructively. Develop an accurate sense of self-worth based on your strengths, limitations, and contributions. Hold yourself and others accountable to these standards.
Be all you can be. Identify, develop, and apply your gifts and passions so you can best contribute in ways that are most meaningful to you. Be a lifelong learner.
Principle in Brief
For most of human history, people have been valued or devalued based on their ethnicity, gender, religion, nationality, politics, and social or economic status. Judging people on as little as one characteristic has led to unequal rights. When this devolves into viewing a group as less than human, it often results in slavery, genocide, and other atrocities. Totalitarian regimes, such as the Nazis in Germany and Communists in the Soviet Union, typically began by demonizing and vilifying those who were different or were believed to be a threat. Unfortunately, there are still many examples where such people are being fired, silenced, belittled, or otherwise attacked and treated as enemies.
Wherever a paradigm of respecting each person as an individual is embraced, there are much greater levels of freedom, peace, civility, trust, and human progress. Treating everyone with dignity and respect not only leads to better outcomes, but it is the right thing to do. It is disrespectful to believe you can know everything about a person and to judge an individual — positively or negatively — based on group identity or other characteristics. It is natural and appropriate for people to be proud of their heritage and other personal attributes, but there is no excuse for an “I’m better than you” attitude.
We naturally want to associate with people who are like us in some way; however, we all need to make an effort to build relationships with people outside our normal circles or comfort zones. This expands our knowledge and perspective, enriches our experience, and enhances our ability to learn and contribute.
People are more likely to share their opinions and ideas and engage in effective challenge when a culture of Respect and trust is promoted. We leverage the power of diversity by seeking and embracing different perspectives, experiences, aptitudes, knowledge, and skills to innovate and capture opportunities. With more than a hundred thousand employees and a presence in dozens of countries around the world, we rely on diversity — and respect for differences — to better understand and relate to customers and all other constituencies.
Respect is more than treating others kindly. It includes being honest. We must be truthful and sincere, especially when dealing with challenging situations or having difficult conversations. We show Respect by believing others can handle the truth and providing feedback that will help them deal with reality and improve. Avoiding or sugarcoating a tough message is a disservice to the person and the company. It lacks integrity and usually leads to a bad outcome.
Understand It Better
Videos to Explore
Our Principle-Based Approach to Inclusion and Diversity
Leaders describe how our principle-based approach to inclusion and diversity is different.
Illustrating PBM: Respecting Each Individual
This lighthearted video explores the way we apply the principle of Respect.
Leveraging the Power of Diversity
This video clearly articulates Koch's principle-based approach to diversity and inclusion and its benefits.
Applying Mutual Benefit to Tough Situations
Hear leaders talk through how mutual benefit guides us even in tough times — like downsizing.
Which Would You Choose?
This video is part of an exercise in the Respect section of PBM Quick Start.
Respect Is More Than Being Nice
Hear leaders discuss the many facets of respect — and how sometimes it takes courage to be respectful.
Examples
Our Value of Respect guides everything from interpersonal interactions to how work is assigned. Here are some examples that illustrate the difference respect can make.
- Working with Others
- Reacting to a Mistake
- Providing Feedback
- Including Others
With Respect
Beth calls Myles and says, “I’ve noticed you’ve been running behind for the last few weeks — and it’s shortening the time I have to complete my work. This is unusual for you — is everything ok?”
Without Respect
Beth calls Myles and says, “Do you realize I’ve made two mistakes because of you? When you miss deadlines, I don’t have time to double-check my work. If you don’t improve, I’ll make sure your supervisor knows.”
With Respect
Binita made an error that resulted in unscheduled downtime on a production line. Teryl talks to Binita privately about what happened and asks if she would be willing to share what she learned with the team.
They work together to figure out how to talk to the crew. While uncomfortable, Binita is glad she can be part of helping the shift do better in the future.
Without Respect
During the shift meeting, Teryl explains that “someone” made a mistake and everyone should avoid this error in the future. Everyone keeps looking at Binita, and she feels terrible even when Teryl says things like, “It could have happened to anyone.” After the meeting the team keeps talking about how embarrassing the whole situation was — for Binita and for them.
With Respect
Nya asks Remi and Aaron if they want on-the-spot feedback (even if it means correcting them in front of others) or if each would prefer private feedback. Remi asks Nya to correct him even if others are present. Aaron asks for private feedback. She keeps this in mind as she interacts with them.
Without Respect
Nya read once that being respectful means always criticizing in private. Despite Remi’s request that she correct his English immediately, she keeps waiting until Nya can talk to him privately. This frustrates Remi because he finds it difficult to improve when he doesn’t get immediate feedback.
With Respect
Ross was asked to help a new team member, Shelia, get familiar with the team so he invites her to a discussion about a technical issue. Ross asks Shelia for her opinion, listens intently and asks her questions to get her perspective and ideas. Shelia leaves the meeting already feeling like a valued team member.
Without Respect
Ross was asked to help a new team member, Shelia, get familiar with the team so he invites her to a discussion about a technical issue. When Shelia asks a question, Ross says, “I don’t think you’ve been here long enough to really understand what we’re talking about here.” Shelia leaves the meeting feeling like an outsider.
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Connection to the Five Dimensions
The Respect principle is highlighted in the Virtue and Talents dimension because it is part of a set of principles which define our culture, called Our Values.
Give It a Try
The power of these principles happens through application. There’s no substitute for learning as you apply.
- Seek feedback from your supervisors and others about how your behavior is consistent with Our Value of Respect. What can you do to improve?
- Think about someone you find difficult or awkward to interact with. What can you do to better understand what is important to this person and/or how this person views things?
- When have you received feedback that was hard to hear but ultimately helped you? What made it helpful?
- Think of a time when someone made an extra effort to ensure you were treated with respect. How did their efforts make a difference to you? To others?
- What can you/your team do to create an inclusive environment that embraces different perspectives, experiences, aptitudes, knowledge and skills?
- Why is “honesty” included in Our Value of Respect?
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