six value medals

In the values-based decision-making work that GMAC employees completed, a variety of real-world issues were addressed. Below is a sampling of these issues along with some of the thinking produced by using the Six Value Medals framework. In the interest of brevity—and confidentiality—only one focus is shown; however, many additional points were recorded and impacted conclusions.

Survey of GMAC Results Using Six Value Medals for Decision Making

Michael Campbell, Internal Change Management Consultant in Organizational Development for GMAC, hs been a Six Value Medal trainer since 2007.

ValueTriangle

silver

SILVER
Organisational Values

 gold

GOLD
Human Values

steel

STEEL
Quality Values

glass

GLASS
Creative Values

wood

WOOD
Environmental Values

brass

BRASS
Other People´s
Views Values

Focus #: All field reps must drive a hybrid vehicle

Conclusion: Based on the values, the project should continue. It is an overall positive value.

Plans for the Future: “I will use the Six Value Medals in the future whenever I’m making decisions – whether it be at home or at work. I tend to only look at Gold and Brass. This has now helped me broaden my mind to other factors that definitely play into decision making.” Dina Pember, (Internal Brand Manager)

After reviewing all of the data generated by participants applying the Six Values Medal framework back on the job, Michael makes these observations:

“People have a lot of aha moments as they use the framework and often I hear ‘I never thought of that’ or ‘I didn’t realize there were these points.’ They’re able to make much stronger decisions after using the framework. In groups, one key benefit is that the people involved are able to get everything out on the table at one time, both positive and negative, by going through each medal. People are more committed to the final decision since their ideas were considered and they helped review and prioritize all of the values that influenced the outcome.
“I’ve also learned that practical uses of the Six Value Medals go beyond work. Many people report either using or planning to use the tools to sort out family decisions, plan a job search, conduct discussions at church meetings, manage community affairs, and so on. People observe that they have more confidence in the decisions they make because there is less likelihood of running into unwanted consequences they haven’t anticipated.
“Before I learned about Six Value Medals, I certified to teach Lateral Thinking, Dr. de Bono’s tool set for generating innovative ideas, and this is what prompted me to explore the Six Value Medals. We needed a way to assess and prioritize the many ideas we’re now able to generate. We only have a finite ability to implement so SVM helps us make the best choices.”