What Company Values Should We Define and Promote to Build a Strong and Positive Culture?

In the high-velocity world of SaaS, culture isn’t a soft concept—it’s a strategic asset. According to a Harvard Business Review study, companies with strong, clearly defined cultures outperform their peers in revenue growth, employee retention, and innovation. For SaaS CEOs navigating rapid scaling, M&A readiness, or even a potential exit, defining the right company values is not just about internal alignment—it’s about increasing enterprise value.

So, what values should you define and promote to build a culture that drives performance, attracts top talent, and withstands the pressures of growth or acquisition?

1. Customer Obsession: The North Star of SaaS

Amazon’s Jeff Bezos famously said, “We’re not competitor obsessed, we’re customer obsessed.” In SaaS, where recurring revenue depends on long-term relationships, this mindset is non-negotiable. Embedding customer-centricity into your values ensures that every team—from product to support—prioritizes user outcomes over vanity metrics.

Actionable KPIs:

• Net Promoter Score (NPS): Track customer loyalty and satisfaction.
• Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV): Monitor how well your product delivers long-term value.
• Customer Health Score: Combine usage, support tickets, and engagement to predict churn.

As explored in What Metrics Should We Track to Measure Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV), optimizing retention strategies directly impacts valuation multiples in M&A scenarios.

2. Ownership and Accountability: Fuel for Scalable Execution

In a SaaS environment where agility is key, teams must operate with autonomy and accountability. Stanford’s research on high-growth startups emphasizes “distributed decision-making” as a core driver of speed and innovation. When employees feel ownership, they act like stakeholders—not task-takers.

Best Practices:

• Define clear OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) at every level.
• Use post-mortems not to assign blame, but to learn and iterate.
• Reward initiative, not just outcomes—especially in R&D and product teams.

Companies preparing for acquisition should note: buyers often assess cultural alignment and team maturity during due diligence. As outlined in Due Diligence Checklist for Software (SaaS) Companies, demonstrating a culture of accountability can reduce perceived integration risk.

3. Continuous Learning and Innovation: Staying Ahead of the Curve

Innovation isn’t just a product function—it’s a cultural imperative. According to McKinsey’s 2023 Tech Trends report, companies that embed learning into their DNA are 30% more likely to outperform peers in new product development and time-to-market.

Innovation KPIs to Track:

• Feature Adoption Rate: Measures how quickly users embrace new capabilities.
• Time to Value (TTV): Tracks how fast customers realize benefits from new features.
• Experimentation Velocity: Number of A/B tests or pilots run per quarter.

Encouraging a culture of experimentation also boosts your attractiveness to acquirers. As noted in How Can We Encourage a Culture of Innovation, innovation culture is a key intangible asset in SaaS M&A valuations.

4. Transparency and Trust: The Foundation of Resilience

In a hybrid or remote-first SaaS company, transparency isn’t optional—it’s structural. Wharton’s research on organizational trust shows that transparent communication correlates with higher employee engagement, lower turnover, and better cross-functional collaboration.

How to Operationalize Transparency:

• Hold regular all-hands with open Q&A sessions.
• Share key metrics (ARR, churn, burn rate) with context, not just numbers.
• Use tools like Notion or Confluence to document decisions and roadmaps.

Transparency also plays a critical role during M&A. As discussed in Completing Due Diligence Before the LOI, acquirers value clean, well-documented operations—and that starts with a culture of openness.

5. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI): A Strategic Advantage

DEI isn’t just a moral imperative—it’s a business one. A 2020 McKinsey study found that companies in the top quartile for ethnic and gender diversity were 36% more likely to outperform on profitability. For SaaS firms, diverse teams bring broader perspectives, better product-market fit, and stronger global expansion potential.

DEI in Practice:

• Set measurable DEI goals and report progress quarterly.
• Implement structured hiring processes to reduce bias.
• Foster employee resource groups (ERGs) and mentorship programs.

Moreover, as you scale or prepare for exit, DEI can influence buyer perception. Strategic acquirers increasingly assess cultural alignment and ESG factors as part of their investment thesis.

6. Financial Discipline: Culture as a Valuation Driver

While not often labeled a “value,” financial discipline should be embedded in your culture—especially in today’s capital-efficient SaaS environment. As PitchBook’s 2023 SaaS report notes, investors are rewarding sustainable growth over growth-at-all-costs.

Embed Financial Rigor by:

• Educating teams on unit economics (LTV:CAC, gross margin, burn multiple).
• Incentivizing cost-effective innovation, not just speed.
• Aligning compensation with long-term value creation, not short-term wins.

Firms like iMerge Advisors often use proprietary valuation models that reward operational efficiency and margin discipline. A culture that understands and respects financial levers is more likely to command premium multiples during an exit.

7. Collaboration Over Silos: Scaling Without Friction

As SaaS companies grow, silos naturally emerge. But unchecked, they erode speed, morale, and customer experience. Promoting cross-functional collaboration as a core value ensures that product, marketing, sales, and support stay aligned on outcomes—not just outputs.

Tools to Reinforce Collaboration:

• Shared OKRs across departments.
• Cross-functional sprint planning and retrospectives.
• Internal NPS to measure inter-team satisfaction.

In M&A scenarios, cultural misalignment is a top reason deals fail post-close. As highlighted in How Do I Assess the Cultural Fit Between My Company and a Potential Buyer?, fostering a collaborative culture reduces integration risk and increases deal success rates.

Conclusion: Culture as a Strategic Lever

Defining and promoting the right company values isn’t just about employee morale—it’s about building a resilient, high-performing organization that scales efficiently, innovates consistently, and attracts both talent and capital. For SaaS CEOs, culture is a multiplier of strategy, not a substitute for it.

Whether you’re optimizing for growth, preparing for acquisition, or simply building a company that lasts, these values—customer obsession, ownership, innovation, transparency, DEI, financial discipline, and collaboration—form the cultural foundation of enduring success.

Scaling fast or planning an exit? iMerge’s SaaS expertise can guide your next move—reach out today.