I think it depends on whose perspective you're asking for. I think from an employee perspective, seeing leaders talk about squishy things like "company values"

I think it depends on whose perspective you're asking for. I think from an employee perspective, seeing leaders talk about squishy things like "company values" can feel hokey and gimmicky. After all, even Enron had plaques hanging in their headquarters about their values. So are values just the sort of snake-oil marketing buzzwords you use to sell how great and "innovative" your organization to investors and prospective employees (e.g. WeWork)? I certainly think that this is true to some extent for most companies. At the same time I also think they're really important for founders/leaders to articulate and stick with. It explicitly formalizes a set of moral norms, behavioral patterns and ideologies you want those who are part of your company to abide by. They're pithy shorthands for verbally and explicitly describing your company's aspirational culture to others who are not part of it. I think a lot of us feel disgruntled and frustrated when leaders profess one set of values, and seem to live by another. I think many of us would prefer to work for a company where the values aren't explicitly stated, but they're followed than for a company where the reverse is true (e.g. Enron). At it's core, I think having a set of company values is basically having a list of aspirational behavioral norms that you have agreed to collectively prioritize. It allows people to check people's decisions against these norms (e.g. "Hey, I think you're doing something sneaky that makes our company look good to prospective clients, but I think it's important we respect our value of 'No Shenanigans.'"), and also make decisions (e.g. "One thing we value is to 'Not Settle'. Are we settling in this product decision?"). Done well, it can be really motivating and purposeful. Done hypocritically or inconsistently, it just feels like another marketing gimmick that big companies do.