Recommendation 7: Resetting and embedding organisational values

Following a significant co-design process that involved around 2,350 AV employees and volunteers across 32 locations, the new AV Values of Care, Accountable, Respect and Excellence were developed.

Our new Values have been incorporated into AV’s Strategic Plan and will unite us around a common purpose and build a shared understanding of what we stand for. They will underpin the expectations of our behaviours in everything we do.

Our new Values were discussed with Senior Leaders on 8 August before being launched to all employees on 11 August 2023. Following that, a forum was conducted on 15 August, providing the opportunity for all employees and volunteers to hear directly from the Chief Executive and members of the Executive team, and to ask questions about the new Values.

A comprehensive plan to embed our Values across the employee lifecycle is being put in place and will be implemented across FY24. This will include integration within recruitment, induction, performance management, learning and development, leadership development, and peer recognition processes

A significant step towards building our safe, fair and inclusive workplace is to reset our organisational values. This involves thinking about the kind of values we want to see drive our behaviours and decisions, and in turn enable us to create a safe, fair and inclusive workplace for our people and deliver Best Care to our patients.

Our new values will unite us around a common purpose and build a shared understanding of what we stand for. They will underpin the expectations of our behaviours in everything we do.

For the new values to be effective, it is important they are shaped by people at all levels of the organisation.

AV has applied human-centred and co-design techniques to create our proposed new values, following agreed principles (engaged and inspiring; safe, fair and inclusive; co-designed; bold and brave; and aligned).

Round one of co-design engaged with the workforce and key partners to listen to their thoughts on the current values and future vision. Round two tested a draft set of values, reviewed and refined them based on feedback, and brought them to life by clarifying associated behaviours.

Co-design activities began on 20 February 2023 and concluded mid-April 2023. These activities included an online survey, a pulse survey, focus groups, virtual drop-in sessions, stakeholder interviews, site visits, and engagement during existing forums (e.g. staff forums), among other activities.

Over the two rounds of co-design, the project engaged around 2,350 people across 32 locations.

In May 2023, AV’s Board of Directors approved the new values. These values have since been incorporated into AV’s Strategic Plan, with the plan and values to be released jointly in mid-2023.

Alongside this work, we have been developing an implementation plan to embed the values effectively across the organisation. We are currently consulting on the draft implementation plan.

• On 20 February 2023, Ambulance Victoria took a significant step towards building our safe, fair and inclusive workplace by starting to co-design our new organisational values with our people. This co-design process provides an important opportunity for AV to redefine our values and for our workforce to share what AV means to them and what they believe AV’s purpose to be (why it exists), as well as the behaviours we expect of ourselves and each other.
• The workforce can shape the future values in many ways – co-design activities through branch and hospital visits, virtual and in person drop-in sessions and focus groups, online surveys and regular meetings and forums.

• AV commenced a co-design program with our people to reset AV’s organisational values from 20 February 2023. Over a period of two months, the workforce will be encouraged to contribute to shaping the new values by taking part in co-design activities through branch and hospital visits, virtual and in-person drop-in sessions and focus groups, online surveys, and regular meetings and forums.
• A set of proposed new values will be shared for further collaboration in early March.
• Our aim is to have our new values and the associated behaviours finalised by the end of June.

• Deloitte was appointed following a competitive tender process commenced work with AV on 14 December 2022. Working with the Project lead, the supplier’s role is to facilitate the co-design and implementation plan for a new set of organisational values that will guide and prioritise appropriate values-driven behaviour.
• The supplier is working with AV to develop the project plan, confirm schedules and schedule the co-design and engagement in the new year.

• A tender for an experienced contractor to lead the co-design of our values and to develop an implementation plan to embed those new values, closed on 2 September 2022 and are currently being reviewed.
• Work to co-design our values is expected to commence from early October and discussions regarding the approach to the values redesign continues with our Steering Committee and Staff Reference Group.
• AV is currently completing detailed planning and taking steps to prepare for the co-design process.

• AV has undertaken initial planning and preparatory work to redesign our organisational values, in line with Recommendation 7. A tender for an experienced contractor to lead the co-design of our values and to develop an implementation plan to embed those new values, closed on Friday 2 September. Work to co-design our values is expected to commence from early October and discussions regarding the approach to the values redesign continues with our Steering Committee and Staff Reference Group.