Scott McInnesFounder and Director, Inspiring Change · 20+ Years Helping Leaders Build Stronger Cultures, More Human Communication and Embed Lasting Change | Founder | Keynote Speaker | Podcast Host

Weaponising Organisational Values + Navigating Behavioural Feedback at Work

3 Feb 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

1:13

Three speakers discuss how organisational values get weaponised in feedback. Without concrete examples and real understanding, people use phrases like "you're not being respectful" as shields rather than critiques. The core problem: feedback about behaviour often feels like an attack on who you are.

Chapters

I think when you're talking about behaviour and behavioural feedback, it's more personal and people feel it more personally in trying to actually articulate it. They're concerned about how it's going to be received in terms of opening up and providing that feedback. Again, I would find that people, number one, try and shy away from it in certain circumstances if they haven't internalised the values, understand what they mean, and can articulate feedback aligned to an example of a behavior, how it's showing up, how it's manifesting, and what needs to happen differently.
What was described to me was that whole idea of the weaponization of the values being, well, you're not being respectful to me and that's one of our values, or you're not being inclusive and that's one of our values, and people actually using the values that way to perhaps defend or protect themselves.
When somebody says to me, it's not personal, my first response is, well, actually it is, but that's okay. Because there's a lot of defensiveness out there. And I think we do need to make a distinction between what am I doing and how am I being. And the being bit is personal.