Our values
Find out how our values help shape our direction of travel.
A community at heart
Everyone who works at YHA – permanent employees, seasonal workers and volunteers — enables us to transform young lives through travel and real adventure.
YHA is made up of brilliant, passionate people whose investment in the organisation helps shape our direction of travel. And it’s not always about the qualifications or job experience. We value ‘lived experience’ here at YHA as well and offer detailed inductions and on-the-job training to develop our teams to be the best they can be.
Our people are recognised for their commitment to our values. Our HEART values are woven throughout the organisation.
At YHA, we want to create an inclusive environment, where everyone can give their best and develop to their full potential.
Our HEART values
Helpful
Helpfulness is about making life easier for other people, being hospitable and creating a pleasant working environment.
What we want to see more of:
- a can-do attitude, positive, friendly, enthusiastic
- proactive, uses initiative, takes responsibility and finds solutions
- communicates effectively, actively listens
- builds rapport and develops relationships to improve understanding
- follows through on things they say they’ll do
- knowledgeable about YHA, its mission, vision and values
- leads by example, is an ambassador for the brand
What we want to see less of:
- a negative, complaining attitude
- avoids responsibility, has a poor work ethic
- fails to respond in a reasonable timescale
- inflexible, stubborn, uncooperative
- avoids tasks, fails to follow through
- brings YHA into disrepute, risks the organisation’s reputation
Efficient
Being efficient means being organised, thoughtful in decision-making, hardworking and committed to improvement. As a charity, it’s our duty to make best use of our resources.
What we want to see more of:
- asks questions, explores what’s required
- takes time to plan, identify tasks, scopes resources and involves relevant people
- driven and results-orientated; focuses efforts towards specific, measurable outcomes to increase income and impact
- prioritises and uses time wisely to meet deadlines and uphold work-life balance
- communicates at all stages of a project or task
- builds in transparent contingencies
- reviews and improves, learning from the past to bring positive change
What we want to see less of:
- Â sets unrealistic, unachievable goals
- won’t collaborate, consult or communicate
- fails to prioritise, demonstrates poor time management
- disorganised, works in an unstructured or haphazard fashion
- slow to react, lacks the drive or pace to get things done
- gets distracted, concentrates on inconsequential tasks
Authentic
Being authentic combines the qualities of honesty, trustworthiness, and transparency. It’s about being genuine and straightforward.
What we want to see more of:
- provides empathetic, constructive feedback
- shares information readily, explains the ‘why’ as well as the ‘what’ when communicating decisions
- raises concerns or problems quickly, challenging poor behaviour
- applies policies and procedures consistently and fairly
- principled, has integrity, practices what they preach
What we want to see less of:
- tells people what they want to hear not what they need to hear, avoids difficult conversations
- uncommunicative, keeps information to themselves or is misleading
- tries to conceal mistakes, shifts blame, or turns a blind eye
- participates in gossip, encourages a toxic atmosphere
- asks colleagues to do something they’re not willing to do themselves
Respectful
Respect is about valuing the time, energy, opinions, achievements and working styles of colleagues, volunteers, and supporters. It’s about promoting equality and inclusivity.
What we want to see more of:
- encourages views and ideas, actively seeks input from others
- involves others in decision-making
- takes the time to understand the roles and responsibilities of other teams, departments and
directorates - gives credit where credit is due
- tailors communication to the audience, making it easy to understand and avoiding jargon
- promotes diversity and inclusion
- takes a genuine interest in people, is supportive and sensitive to the feelings of others
- encourages and supports a culture of reflection and learning
- makes time for others, including committing to regular one-to-ones
What we want to see less of:
- intolerant; dismissive of others, their ideas and experiences
- judgemental, criticises for the sake of it
- lacks empathy; communicates without tact or sensitivity
- takes personal credit for the achievements of others
- actively encourages cliques, creates friction and causes division
- lacks respect for boundaries, roles and responsibilities
- unable to take constructive feedback, won’t be challenged, arrogant
Team spirited
YHA is one team. And for the health and success of the team, we take individual responsibility, show personal leadership qualities, and collaborate towards our goals.
What we want to see more of:
- understands the strengths and weaknesses of the team and how best to get things done
- reliable, dependable, delivers what they say they’re going to
- works to a high standard, takes pride in a job well done
- volunteers to take responsibility and lead on tasks
- adopts a one-YHA approach, respecting the contribution of colleagues from across the
organisation - is concerned with improving performance and expertise
What we want to see less of:
- intolerant; dismissive of others, their ideas and experiences
- judgemental, criticises for the sake of it
- lacks empathy; communicates without tact or sensitivity
- takes personal credit for the achievements of others
- actively encourages cliques, creates friction and causes division
- lacks respect for boundaries, roles and responsibilities
- unable to take constructive feedback, won’t be challenged, arrogant
Ready to join the team?
From hostel roles to business support, our latest vacancies can be found through our job search. Take a look.