While most companies outline their core values, our seven core values are more than words on a website. They’re principles that guide how we operate and make decisions.
Our core values provide a strong, reliable foundation to help us rise to the challenges our clients face and create innovative solutions. They are:
- Commit to delivery excellence
- Invest in exceptional culture
- Embrace integrity and openness
- Practice responsible stewardship
- Strive to innovate
- Ignite passion for the greater good
- Live a balanced life
We started this blog series by asking our CEO, Larry English, what Centric’s core values mean to him. Then, we asked employees three questions about what those values mean to them. Here’s what St. Louis Senior Consultant Kristina Bradshaw had to say about practicing responsible stewardship.
“Stewardship means being responsible for the company’s assets, but it also means remembering that individuals, groups, and cultures perceive and react to the world differently.”
What does responsible stewardship mean to you?
As Centric employees, we are stewards of all the company’s resources, from our dollars and IT resources to our client relationships and the company’s reputation. However, for me, I also think stewardship is being mindful of our collective needs and ensuring that everyone’s contributions are recognized and valued.
As a child, I was socially shy, and my struggle to make myself heard above the crowd made me frequently feel unnoticed. While I have improved as an adult, I am still more of a thinker than a speaker, and I sometimes wonder where I fit into the corporate world.
Over time, I’ve learned to allow myself the grace to contribute in the way that comes most naturally to me. As I became more accepting of myself, I learned to be a better steward of others. I appreciate that everyone has strong suits, everyone has insecurities, and everyone does the best they can with the resources they have.
So, for me, stewardship means being responsible for the company’s assets, but it also means remembering that individuals, groups, and cultures perceive and react to the world differently.
How do you display responsible stewardship in your work?
My values and motivations are intrinsically intertwined. For example, I value inclusivity and am motivated by it, because I want to make sure that everyone’s unique brilliance is seen in the workplace.
I remember a time when I reached out to someone on the application team for help. When we first met, I struggled to pronounce his last name. I told him that I wanted to learn how to pronounce it properly. He not only gave me the correct pronunciation but also shared his career journey and described the challenges he had faced when he first came to work in the States.
I also believe that we can be good stewards of each other just by giving colleagues space to talk. A client once shared with me that the father of a close friend of his had died. He said that it was such a relief just having the opportunity to talk about the loss and what people were doing to support his friend.
Finally, whether I am working on a project or connecting with people, I ensure that everyone is acknowledged and seen. It is important to me to be a good steward of my colleagues by celebrating them and letting them know that they are seen and acknowledged.
How do you display responsible stewardship in your life?
In my personal life, I also embrace and appreciate everyone, from those who have the strongest voice in the room to those who are the quietest. Each of us brings unique strengths to the table that should be honored, and that diversity in personalities and thoughts fuels collective success and enriches our work environments. I embrace helping other people, even if it’s just picking up groceries for someone or sharing a smile. This is how I foster stewardship.
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