Organizational values indicate what an organization hopes to achieve through its activities.  They are generally aspirational and fairly abstract, providing general as opposed to specific guidance.  These values are translated into practice through policies, procedures, budgets, and business plans.

In the context of ethics consultation, questions around organizational values arise in terms of both how to achieve these goals in practice and how to find an appropriate balance when two or more of the values are in tension with each other; the desire to provide particular care (genetic testing, for example) to everyone who might want it can clash with stewardship of resources, for example.