Owning our Superpowers

It’s a new year, and we have a new CEO. Importantly, though – and I can’t stress this enough – The Olinger Group is the same as we were this time last year. Only better. Much, much better.

During the past few years, we took a good, hard look at ourselves and redefined who we are, what we want, and where we are going. It wasn’t always easy, but it was definitely worth the effort. We grew from a generalist market research firm to an industry leader with our Live Well™ focus. We also developed an amazing team of strong, passionate, and authentic people.

We needed new core values to reflect our new identity.

Selecting our Core Values

We have had the same basic set of core values since 2008. We tweaked them occasionally, but I always wondered if they really resonated or if they were just nice words that looked good on our website.

We follow the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), which revolves around our core values. We realized at our annual planning meeting that we needed to identify core values that truly reflect who we are, our superpowers.

We decided to clean the slate and start over. It seemed daunting until we asked the question: ‘What aspects of our culture, our mindset, and our employees are we really proud of?’ Those answers were so incredibly easy and consistent that the normally arduous process took us only 30 minutes to complete.

The new core values felt right, but we needed to be sure. So, we used the values as a measuring stick, and held them up against each individual employee. They fit! Every one of our employees inherently aligns with those values.

Our new core values are not lofty aspirations. They are a genuine reflection of who we are and how we work, both as individuals and as a team.

Announcing TOG Core Values 

Our core values are:

1. Positively Passionate
   
   We are proud to be here, in this field, in market research. Our tagline says it all - We want to support brands that help others live well. That’s our common goal. Our battle cry if you will.

2. Authentic & Transparent
   
   Authenticity is owning who you are and not doubting yourself. It is showing up, being real, and knowing where you stand. We know our individual superpowers, and we bring them to the table.

3. Accountable
   
   We are all self-starters who take ownership of our roles and deliver to the team and our clients.

4. Growth Mindset
   
   With a Growth Mindset, we stay open to possibilities. There is a starting point, but there is never a finish line. There are always opportunities to grow, learn, improve, and discover.

As a team, we appreciate, admire, and celebrate these values.

As individuals who have the official approval to lean into our authenticity and our superpowers, we are most definitely leaning in.

And as a partner in market research projects, we use these values to guarantee our high level of service. Not only do we retain smart, skilled, and experienced people, but those people naturally come to the table with our core values.