Core Values
Trust: Build Meaningful Relationships
Our venues and assets don’t fulfill promises to our customers; our people do. By creating an organization that lives by its commitment to build relationships that stand the test of time, we form enduring connections rooted in open communication. If we’re doing this successfully, we’re anticipating needs before they even surface and capturing the hearts of our stakeholders with a sincere drive to surpass their expectations.
This standard applies to the way we treat others within the organization as well. We know that trust breeds collaboration and that to create an environment of trust, our actions must speak first. Every interaction, every decision and every effort to communicate add up to our ability to effectively lean on one another. We want employees to try new things, speak the truth as they see it and take risks. Without trust among our peers and with leadership, these actions don’t sync with their true intention, which is ultimately to prompt engagement.
Collaboration: Accomplish Great Work Together
With an organization as complex as ours and with as many diverse stakeholders as we serve, working in isolation isn’t an option. Collaboration is a process that gets better the more it is practiced. Relationships are forged. Viewpoints are heard. Information is shared. And each opportunity to work together becomes more fluid and yields a better end product. Open communication becomes the keystone in the process that enables us to achieve the common goals that serve as the passion for what we do every day. The crux of this core value is the quality of the relationships built and the unique contributions that are shared. Both create a supportive, teamwork-oriented atmosphere where working together is one of the primary reasons that sparks enthusiasm for what we do.
Innovation: Commit to Constant Curiosity
We want to make every day better for our employees and our customers. To make that happen, we recognize that the status quo doesn’t cut it. It takes courage to embrace a mindset where change is not something to fear and where employees are encouraged to take risks. We value innovation because our business model is an innovation. The multiple brands that our organization supports allow us the freedom to offer experiences and incentives for our customers that no other destination can.
We seek to inspire an atmosphere where all ideas are given balanced consideration and fresh perspectives get heard and rewarded. To fuel a culture of innovation, it’s not always the biggest breakthroughs that reap the greatest rewards. Continuous curiosity leads to questions; questions lead to learning. It’s this steady pace of idea sharing that provides us with actionable business decisions, impacting the forward momentum of our company and community.
Integrity: Do What's Right, Not What's Easy
Difficult situations often reveal your truest colors. These instances may challenge us, but we’re self-assured because we foster a culture where employees are emboldened and expected to live by the words we’ve all been told before. “Do what’s right, not what’s easy.” Our individual choices are a reflection of the integrity we possess. It’s not enough to talk the talk of integrity at the CRVA. It’s a walk that must be walked, and one done so with humility. We respect those who aren’t afraid to admit mistakes and who step up to accept the responsibility in correcting any missteps. In turn, this unwavering commitment to putting values ahead of results cultivates enduring credibility.
Engagement: Inspire Passion, Purpose and Pride
True power comes from sharing it with others, not collecting it for yourself. When our employees get involved in the decision-making, we run an organization where the voices of many are heard. Employees become part of the fabric of the CRVA that guides its direction. They’re proud of where they work and what they do, ultimately ensuring they put their heart and mind into what they set out to achieve. In this process, individuals work to maximize their contributions, but most importantly, they’re inspired by one of the places where they spend such a vast percentage of their lives. We believe that life is too short to not love what you do or who you do it for, which is why engaging employees in believing in the community enrichment that we’re working for is critically essential. Passion changes everything.
Accountability: Count On Me
As a North Carolina public authority, we hold the resources with which we are charged in high regard. We know that being a trusted steward of public dollars means that we must take great care in our actions and decision-making. That’s why we strive to make choices for our organization and community that are worth it. While others may shy from great responsibility like ours, we live for the challenge. We keep a keen eye on making Charlotte a better place to live, work, play and visit, knowing that the significant economic impact that we influence has a positive and direct effect on the future of the city we call ‘home.’
Our steadfast commitment to accountability for our visitors, customers and stakeholders is only as good as the promises we make to each other within the CRVA. If we say we’re going to do something, we stick to it knowing that our success as a whole is, in fact, interdependent on every interaction with each other.
Inclusion: Discover and Value Our Differences
Inclusion at the CRVA is a shared responsibility for every employee. It’s a dedicated, long-term mindset that we celebrate the unique personal differences that make us a stronger organization. We are committed to being representative of the many faces that shape Charlotte’s character and strengthen its unity. And since we are trusted leaders in managing treasured city-owned assets and promoting our region’s limitless potential, our intentions are clear in this pursuit to leverage diversity and inclusivity in executing our mission within the CRVA and in the community.
Inclusion to us means respecting all differences and that those differences can drive people and performance to new heights. And to be inclusive, you have to intentionally seek to understand each individual and their respective worldviews. Our “employee first” culture demands engagement and engagement can’t happen without the voices of many talented and diverse individuals charting our direction.
Our Strategy
The CRVA's strategic plan reflects collective priorities balanced across four key areas related to customers, financial objectives, running the business and people and culture.