A Values-Based World Bank Group

For the diverse workforce of the World Bank Group, integrity, ethical behavior, and adherence to corporate values are core to the success of our mission to end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity.    

Our core values guide everything we do, everywhere we work. They remind us — and anyone working with us — of who we are, what we stand for, and how we get things done. They inspire and guide us to hold ourselves to the highest standards of behavior and actions. 

All institutions of the World Bank Group have collectively adopted these core values. Impact, integrity, respect, teamwork, and innovation help us focus on how we achieve our mission. Jobseekers, investors, public and private sector counterparts alike will see our core values in action. 

To foster a values-based institution and in line with international best practice, in 2020 the World Bank Group adopted a Code of Ethics exclusively centered around our core values. The new Code of Ethics articulates in detail what our core values mean in practice. The Code, and the values it encompasses, sets the standards to which we hold ourselves accountable. 

We help our clients solve their greatest development challenges

• We use our convening power, commitment to excellence, and deep professional expertise to facilitate outcomes that improve people’s lives
• We make decisions that prioritize impact over politics or process
• We stay at the cutting edge in our fields of expertise
• We leverage the best knowledge and expertise available, from within and outside the World Bank Group
• We partner with our clients with flexibility and agility

We do what is right

• We hold ourselves, our clients, and our partners to the highest ethical standards
• We put the interests of the World Bank Group and our clients first
• We ensure our words are consistent with our actions
• We take ownership of our actions and decisions
• We communicate with honesty and transparency
• We question actions that are inconsistent with our values

We care for our people, our clients, our partners, and our planet

• We treat everyone with dignity and compassion
• We embrace diversity and pursue inclusion of backgrounds, identities, cultures, work styles, and perspectives
• We remain humble in carrying out our mission
• We support work-life balance of our colleagues across the globe
• We apply policy and standards with fairness and consistency
• We promote sustainable solutions in our operations and in our work environment

We work together to achieve our goals

• We seek diverse views, perspectives, and experiences
• We encourage challenging ideas and constructive disagreement
• We collaborate across boundaries and borders
• We collectively own team deliverables, decisions, and accountabilities
• We celebrate and reward team successes

We learn and adapt to find better ways of doing things

• We challenge assumptions and take informed risks
• We approach our work with curiosity and passion
• We reflect on, and learn from, mistakes and failures
• We capture, apply and share knowledge consistently
• We ask for and learn from feedback

Last Updated: Jan 29, 2021