Organizational standards only prove themselves under pressure, when deadlines tighten or key people leave. A standard that survives a crisis is real; one that disappears is just words. People follow what you actually protect, not what you announce.
The standard isn't proven when it's announced. It's proven when it becomes inconvenient. When deadlines get tight or a top performer misses or a leader's just too busy. That's when the team learns whether the standard was real or whether it sounded real when things were calm. People don't follow standards and org charts and mission statements. They follow the standards protected in the day-to-day.
