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HR PRACTICES AND PROCESSES THAT MAKE SUSTAINABLE VALUES STICK 67

School of Management at Northwestern University), which has its monthly DMD ses-
sions (Directors and Managers Discussion) with family shareholders. And so on.
There is, however, a type of language resonating throughout the company that com-
prises part of its green glue, a type of language that has to do with deliberateness of
thought and action. Paradoxically, this aspect of the company culture happened some-
what by accident.
Martin and I were one day discussing the need to give a name to the management
team that would lead the way for the new Melaver, Inc. I opened a dictionary and
placed my hand on a word at random: Sanskrit. Wikipedia explains that the verbal
adjective samskrta- may be translated as “put together, well or completely formed,
refined, highly elaborated.” It is derived from the root sam(s)kar- “to put together,
compose, arrange, prepare” (sam- “together” and (s)kar- “do, make”). Sanskrit also is
the root language for all Indo-European languages, a basis upon which other cultures
built their own thoughts and dreams.
We both thought it appropriate for a team that would develop a new language for
who they will become to be named after the old language of Sanskrit. It stuck. Today,
the leadership team of Melaver is still called Sanskrit. Its staff is called Hrdaya, the
Sanskrit term for heart, center, core of something, essence. Other areas of the company
have Sanskrit-based names as well.
To many, perhaps, this might seem silly. But naming can be significant, and the
Melaver team began to take the naming of various activities and projects seriously. The
seriousness reflected a different kind of deliberateness rather than simply cobbling
together acronyms. As task forces were created (for company philanthropy, for person-
nel policies, etc.) and projects were developed, the question of naming provided the
team with a moment to pause and reflect upon the meaning behind a particular effort.
What are we trying to do? was a question immediately connected to the query, How do
we want to communicate what we are doing by the name we select for this activity?
Of course, behind the deliberate act of naming is the more fundamental language of
values itself. I do not mean the more concrete language of the company’s core values.
Instead, what I have in mind is the fact that a value system is itself a language.
Beginning in the mid-1990s (and continuing today), Melaver, Inc. began to speak a
language that was not recognizable to most outsiders, a language about a sustainable
ethos. Part of that language of sustainability focused on the uniqueness of place, and
it made references to things like the company’s environmental footprint, the triple bot-
tom line, LEED accredited professionals, LEED certified buildings, carbon emissions,
and the 2030 Challenge. Another part of that language of sustainability focused on
people, making reference to the personality types of colleagues, behavioral guidelines,
360-degree feedback, anti-triangulation policies, etc. This language of sustainability,
involving people and place, is another aspect of a holistic value system.
How you act, what you do, and the choices you make all speak volumes about what
you believe and who you are. Under promise and over deliver is a maxim I often hear
team members proclaim. Part of that orientation is a serious concern regarding “green-
wash,” an issue that is discussed in detail in Chapter 10. But the gist of this maxim has
to do with making sure that all staff members express their values primarily through