Today, I am writing to solicit your feedback on a topic as near and dear to me as I believe it is to you - values. Values are the "guideposts" that steer us in our personal and professional lives. We all have them. I want to work with you to develop a common set of values to guide us in our workplace.

I am committed to making Michigan the best place in the country to live, work, and raise a family. I want this state to be a magnet to attract people from all across America. Furthermore, I am committed to making our state government one of the best workplaces in the country. Working with a common set of values will help us achieve this vision faster and better.

The Importance of Shared Values

As I have traveled around the state meeting with thousands of employees, it is clear that values already guide your work. I am struck by how frequently you and your peers tell me about your commitment to service, your pursuit of creativity, and your dedication to honest, hard work. Now, I hope you'll join me in the process of establishing a set of shared values that can guide all of us. Whether it is business, government, or the non-profit sector, the very best organizations are those whose work is guided by a set of common values. The key word is "shared" values.

The process of arriving at our list of shared values may be quite a challenge itself as I hope to engage all 54,000 state employees in the dialogue. To begin with, at the end of this letter, I will be directing you to a feedback form that I hope you will take a moment to complete and return to me.

In the coming months, you will hear more about this process as we refine the methodology. Next week, we are convening a group of about 200 employee representatives from various state government departments in a pilot conversation about developing and communicating our shared values. Many departments have been through similar efforts to develop their own specific goals and mission statements, and this statewide process will not supercede or negate those efforts. Rather, when we're through, my hope is that we will have defined a shared set of values that build on, and complement, existing department values to guide the entire State of Michigan organization.

A Starting Point

As Governor, I have my own set of core values. I have promised you and the people of Michigan that I will use these values to lead our government. I've shared these values with my Cabinet and listened to them talk about their own core values. Working with the Cabinet and my executive staff, we have begun the process of refining my list of values. We have arrived at three, so far, that we plan to guide our leadership: Integrity, Inclusion, and Excellence.

Integrity is about honesty and so much more. It means we say what we will do, and we do what we say.

Inclusion means we reach out to give all citizens and employees the opportunity to be represented and involved in the important decisions that affect their lives and their work.

Excellence means we are not just about getting it done, but getting the work done in a way that gives us personal pride and is impressive to Michigan citizens. We employ best practices, and we get good results.

Clearly, to assure the value of inclusion is alive and well, the Cabinet and I could go no further without reaching out to seek the input of all state employees and engage you in this discussion. That's why I am hoping you will complete the feedback form at the end of this letter.

Your Next Step

The link below directs you to the Values Feedback Form that asks you to comment about these three values and seeks your input on additional values. I hope you will take a few minutes to let me know your thoughts. Feedback from employees will be used in a series of face-to-face conversations to take place over the coming months in which we talk about our common values, the behaviors that indicate they are alive and well, and the alignment of our actions with our values. The earliest responses will be tabulated in time to use them at our pilot session next week. All responses will be utilized to provide the starting point data that will fuel our ongoing discussion and action around our common core values.

Once we have shared values and a shared vision for the State of Michigan, we can truly work together on the noble mission of making Michigan a better place for all of our citizens.

Sincerely,
Jennifer M. Granholm
Governor