Rob Lebow, the author of the Journey into the Heroic Environment book and the creator of Shared Values, worked at Microsoft in the 1980's prior to the advent of the Windows operating system. As the Vice President of Corporate Communications, Rob was able to watch Bill Gates search - not just for programs that would run on a computer - but an operating system that would emotionally link people to their computers.

After Windows became incredibly successful in doing just that, Rob Lebow left Microsoft to search for an "operating system" that would emotionally link people to their work environments. He knew that a successful system would need to balance the needs of the people and the needs of the business, but he needed clarification on what people in an organization would need.

In doing his research Rob discovered a research project already conducted by the University of Chicago containing input from 17 million people that answered the question "What do you need in your working environment to be satisfied, productive, and perform at the top of your game?" The answers given to this question turned out to be some basic, universal human needs:

• Truth Telling
• Being Trusted and Trusting Others
• Mentoring
• Being Receptive To New Ideas
• Taking Risk's for the Organizations Sake
• Giving Credit Where It's Due
• Honest
• Putting the Interests of Others Before Your Own

Rob Lebow then set up his eight People Values around the answers of the survey, and created a measurable way to determine to what level an organization is providing these eight values by creating the Values and Attitudes Survey. With the addition of the Business Values that each organization creates, the balance between people and the business that Rob knew to be so important, can be attained.