Core Values

Jelly is in the digital marketing business. This is how we define “what” we do. However, we believe that “how” we go about that business is equally important to define.  We have chosen to do that by articulating our corporate values as they provide us with marker posts against which we can monitor and develop the means we use to accomplish our company’s aspirations. In short, they define who we want to become as a team.

We have five core values:

FAIRNESS

Do the Just Thing

Learn More

Fairness is the moral compass we strive to use in all our dealings. It is the discipline to do the right thing, keeping in mind all the stakeholders. It is “the constant free will” to give to the other party(s) their rightful due. It is a standard above both self interest and legal compliance and, as such, it can cost us. It is indiscriminate of the size of the decision and its potential impact. We ask not only – is this a good thing for us, and is it legal? We also ask – is it right? It is interdependent with all the other Jelly values of temperance, prudence, courage and humility. It touches everything, including effort, compensation, conversation, investor returns, and vendor, customer, and community relationships. It should always temper our competitive behaviour but never quash it.

Touchstone Phrases

  • Honesty
  • Justice
  • Moral Integrity
  • Not Perfection
  • Not Cheating
  • Doing Right by our Clients and Each Other
Balance Scale Emoji

PRUDENCE

Thought Before Action

Learn More

Prudence, although similar to wisdom, is not quite the same. Prudence is the discipline that fathers wisdom and, correspondingly, is improved by wisdom. We define prudence as thought before action. It often results in a plan of action such as: a spending plan, a campaign plan, or an organizational plan. It is the discipline of making time and space before action is taken, so that we can apply what we already know, which will in turn create more opportunity to gain wisdom. This is auditing our action against the plan (the thinking). Although prudence may seem to limit creative opportunities, we believe it is actually the foundation for creativity. It also allows us, when under pressure, to make better decisions.

Touchstone Phrases

  • Wait, Process, Think before Action
  • Assess When to Slow Down and Speed Up
  • Always Go in With a Plan
  • Think, Plan, Execute, Audit, Learn
  • Foundation to Creativity
Thought Bubble Emoji

HUMILITY

Do Your Duty, Serve Others

Learn More

Humility is an essential component of building healthy relationships and operating as a team. At its centre, humility is the pursuit of serving people by taking into consideration their needs, desires and perspectives. This consideration equips us to be a full support to others.

For the purposes of Jelly, humility is defined as seeking to serve others in their objectives—not to the exclusion of our responsibilities but in addition to them—because doing our duty is the first step in serving the team. Humility is not solely the domain of the quiet and introverted, nor is it inconsistent with those who are confident, charming or aggressive. It is independent of both personality and position, and is therefore a non-exclusive quality. It is a choice. This ever-present choice to consider others before oneself inadvertently produces humility. We help others to succeed both through our activity and posture, whether our counterpart is a client, supplier, peer, superior or subordinate. To quote C.S. Lewis: “True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.” It involves risk, faith and effort. We use our gifting and capacities to build up individuals, and thus, the team, ultimately moving the collective toward a common good.

Touchstone Phrases

  • Your Duty is Your Most Important Service
  • Take On the Harder Tasks
  • Come Underneath
  • Use Your Talent to Support, Not Dominate
  • Volunteer
  • Listen Well, Speak Less
  • Let the Credit Fall Where it May
woman-tipping-hand-medium-light-skin-tone

TEMPERANCE

The Right Amount, the Right Distance

Learn More

Temperance is the governor to our passions. It is the trait that permits us to find the practical balance in the exercise of our gifting, desires, and reflexes. It guides how hard we work, how hard we play, and even guides us in the moment, such as how much coffee we drink. It implicitly acknowledges a measurable standard outside of ourselves. It is the balance between perfect and adequate. It considers how much time we spend on activities and the degree of excellence with which we perform those activities. It protects us from both excess (too much, too long or even too good) and insufficiency (not enough, too short, not good). A perfectionist needs to temper their execution to avoid wasted effort/energy; a sloth needs to temper its lack of effort. Temperance is balance in practice. To exercise it takes much energy as it requires us to confront our passions, reflexes, desires, our weaknesses and just as importantly, our strengths. It is essential to sound judgement. It assists us in becoming holistic, multi-dimensional and creative.

Touchstone Phrases

  • Balance
  • Respect both art and science
  • Ying and Yang
  • We Value the Tree and the Tinsel
OK Hand Emoji

COURAGE

Confront Fear with Right Action

Learn More

The fundamental prerequisites for courage are that we acknowledge that both fear and danger exist and that we resist fleeing from those fears and dangers. The risk of negative consequence to us is evident. Conversely, courage is not running into hell with a bucket of water; such an action would more likely be considered ignorant or rash rather than courageous. To exercise courage requires both emotional ballast (capacity/strength) and the expenditure of emotional energy. Put simply, applying it usually hurts. Courage can take many forms. For some, it could mean trying things that might result in failure; for others, it might mean being honest in giving negative/constructive feedback; still for others, it might mean holding a position for which they will meet resistance. Recognizing the subjective nature of courage, we accept that it can take many forms and, as such, we define courage as doing what we know to be right in the face of danger and fear.

Touchstone Phrases

  • Fortitude
  • Resiliency
  • Push Through
  • Be Honest with Each Other
  • Ask for Help
  • Admit When You Are Wrong or Unsure
  • Own Your Failures
  • Don't Hide
  • Try Things That Might Not Work
  • Embrace Gracious Confrontation
  • Be Prepared to Swim Upstream, Go Against the Grain with Unselfishness
Man Running Emoji

These five separate values are to be considered together as they reinforce, complement and depend on each other. They are intended to be practiced as an integrated whole.  By way of example, Courage is a foundational value in that the confrontation of our own fears is essential if any of the other Core Values are to be exercised. That is, it will often require courage to act with Temperance, Fairness, Prudence, and Humility. It may take even more courage to remain steadfast in those behaviours when they are not reciprocated. 

Finally, it is our intent to make these five values the foundational considerations in all our decisions, and trust that over time they will become our reflex, and in so doing will foster common success within Jelly, the communities that we serve, and those whom we are responsible to.