Employer values are an often overlooked aspect of remote job searches. While you may have an idea of what organization you want to work for in terms of their products or compensation, a remote job search with employer values should drive your search. By understanding what employer values are and how they pertain to your working style, you can find a better fit within an organization.
How To Do Your Remote Job Search With Employer Values in Mind
However, finding a way to conduct your remote job search with employer values is no easy task. It follows a certain path:
- Learning what employer values are
- Discovering what your values are and how they align in the workplace or to a particular employer
- Finding employers that embody the same ideals as you
By no means is this an easy undertaking. However, with some hard work and a commitment to finding an employer that aligns with your beliefs and values, you can find a remote employer that enables you to become the best worker possible. Here’s a quick guide on where to start.
What Are Employer Values?
Employer values are a set of beliefs that dictate the behavior, social stewardship, corporate responsibility, and company culture. These beliefs vary in terms of scope, but in most cases, they’re ubiquitous throughout the company itself. However, identifying them isn’t as easy. Without actually working at a company, you can’t be 100% sure what their values are.
Some common types of employer values might include:
- Accountability
- Making a difference in the community with products or services
- Attention to detail
- Increasing the skills and abilities of their employees
- Allowing employees to grow both personally and professionally
- Honesty and reliability
- Positivity
- Respecting all types of individuals both inside and outside of the company
- Tolerance
- Equity, diversity, and inclusion
These are just a few of the many employer values exhibited throughout the remote business world. However, some inner searching on your part can help you develop the employer values that pertain to your own values. Only by doing this contemplation can you find an employer that will gel with your belief system and core values.
How To Discover Employer Values During Your Research
A great way to discover employer values is by exhausting several different avenues. Some options to start your remote search with employer values in mind is by using these methods:
- Connect with employees of a particular company on LinkedIn or other forms of social media. Use this connection to ask about company values, core values, and company culture itself. These individuals can shed some light on how well a company adheres to these values, and if they’re common in the everyday work environment of the organization.
- Check the company’s core values, vision statement, and mission statement. These three documents show what the company’s ideas of values are both internally and externally.
- Look for events, charities, and other projects that a particular company spearheads throughout the year. A company that’s involved in more events for the community or toward social responsibility is often indicative of a company with strong employer values.
What Are Your Values?
Now that you have a basic idea of employer values and where to find them, turn your search to your own value system. While this may seem easy at first, it can prove surprisingly difficult if you’ve never thought of it before. Start by thinking of your core values as they pertain to the definition:
According to psychologists Barb Markway and Celia Ampel, “values are the principles that give our lives meaning and allow us to persevere through adversity.”
Some common individual values might include:
- Enthusiasm
- Strong work ethic
- Independence
- Financial freedom
- Leadership
- Honesty
- Optimism
- Positivity
- Tolerance
- Respect for others
- Standing up for others
- Charity
- Healthy work-life balance
If you apply some of these concepts, as well as your own ideas to your brainstorming session, you should be able to come up with your values. If you’re still struggling, the best way to start is to follow this game plan:
- Write down 10 values using your own brainstorming or some of the examples above.
- Think about leaders, friends, or family members that you admire. Think about their qualities and what makes them admirable.
- Work with a job coach, counselor, or psychologist to help you determine your core values.
- Take a vested interest in yourself. Note your behavior, what makes you proud, and what you love about yourself. While this isn’t always easy, taking some time to meditate or reflect can shed some light on who you are as an individual.
- Focus on your past experiences. How did you react to joy, adversity, or other types of situations whether good or bad?
Aligning Employer Values With Your Job Search
Congratulations! You’ve done the hard part of researching employer values and coming up with ideas about how your values compare. The next step is to align your remote job search with employer values:
- Put together a list of 10 companies that align with your values.
- Search for remote jobs on Virtual Vocations. You can use either the jobs board or use the companies database.
- Learn more about the company itself. What size is the company? Do you want to work for a small business or a large corporation? Does the company stick to its vision, mission, and values?
- Start applying for positions you’re qualified for. If you notice that you’re missing some of the qualifications, figure out ways to improve your skill set or shore up your resume.
- Write a cover letter that explains why you’re so excited to work for a particular company. By illustrating your interest and admiration of a company’s core values, you can separate yourself from other candidates, and hopefully, put yourself on the fast track to an interview or particular job.
- If you get an invitation to interview, take your research to the next level. Learn more about what the company does to adhere to its core values. Think about questions you can ask the interviewer that give you a better idea of what the company’s values are and how they maintain them throughout the staff and the community.
Companies Known for Strong Employer Values
To expand your scope or give you a starting point of where to look for employers with lauded values, we’ve provided a list of renowned organizations. These companies not only have a dedication to their core values, but also their customers, employees, and the community as a whole. Here are some of the best.
Google is at the forefront of just about everything in the modern era. As a search engine, fintech company, and marketing organization, Google permeates every aspect of people’s lives around the globe. Plus, they have a strong mission and vision statement, as well as core values.
The Google philosophy includes:
- Focus on the user and all else will follow.
- It’s best to do one thing really, really well.
- Fast is better than slow.
- Democracy on the web works.
- You don’t need to be at your desk to need an answer.
- You can make money without doing evil.
- There’s always more information out there.
- The need for information crosses all borders.
- You can be serious without a suit.
- Great just isn’t good enough.
Starbucks
There’s a Starbucks on almost every corner, but it’s more than just their high-quality coffee and other unique beverages. It’s a commitment to corporate responsibility and its employees. The values of Starbucks include:
- Creating a culture of warmth and belonging, where everyone is welcome.
- Delivering our very best in all we do, holding ourselves accountable for results.
- Acting with courage, challenging the status quo and finding new ways to grow our company and each other.
- Being present, connecting with transparency, dignity and respect.
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is in a difficult market. People’s mistrust of banks has only heightened over time, especially as corruption and greed have run rampant. But JPMorgan has made a vested effort to make their values a welcomed anomaly in the world of banking. These values include:
- Exceptional client service
- A commitment to integrity, fairness and responsibility
- Operational excellence
- A great team and winning culture
Etsy
Developing a marketplace for skilled craftsmen and artists is no easy undertaking, but somehow, Etsy achieved it. Through its marketplace that links local artists with buyers, it’s created a place for artists to make a living when it may not have been possible in the past. On top of that, Etsy has developed a system of core values that make it more attractive to consumers and potential employees:
- We value craftsmanship in all we make.
- We are a mindful, transparent, and human business.
- We plan and build for the long term.
- We believe fun should be a part of everything we do.
- We keep it real, always.
How Virtual Vocations Can Help Your Remote Job Search With Employer Values
If you’re just starting your remote job search with employer values in mind, the workload can feel overwhelming. Of course, you’ll have to do some searching and legwork on your own. But once you’ve identified your values and beliefs and companies that have the same mindset, the final piece of the puzzle is just a step away thanks to Virtual Vocations.
As a 100% family-owned business that’s completely remote, Virtual Vocations understands how difficult transitioning into the remote workplace can feel. That’s why we offer both free and paid memberships to aid you in your quest for virtual employment. With Virtual Vocations, you get a number of perks and benefits, such as:
- Remote job board with tens of thousands of listings
- Companies database to conduct your remote job search with employer values in mind
- Career services
- Career center
- Blog with thousands of trending and important topics on the world of virtual employment
- Job coaching
With Virtual Vocations as your ally, you can find the next remote job that embodies your values, setting you on the right track for success. Sign up with Virtual Vocations today to realize your job potential.
What values do you look for in a company? Why are these values important to you? Connect with Virtual Vocations on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube to share your thoughts and tips. We’d love to hear from you!
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