ORGANISATIONAL values assessment and culture transformation is not a phrase that rolls easily off the tongue.

But thanks to a Bury businessman, these are services which could ultimately become the language of captains of industry.

For they will play a vital role in allowing companies to attract and keep their best people while increasing creativity, productivity and customer satisfaction.

The services are now being offered by Summerseat man Phil Clothier through a network of consultants in the UK and Europe.

Phil (35), is taking the helm of Corptools (UK) Ltd as managing director.

The company is a subsidiary of Richard Barrett Associates LLC in the USA who have been delivering these key services for the past four years.

Barrett developed the culture assessment model, tools and transformation services.

Phil's responsibilities will include growing and looking after the European network and global marketing of the Corporate Transformation Tools (CTT). In addition, the Global CTT conference for 2002 is planned to take place in Manchester. Existing Corptools customers include Microsoft, Ford and Mitsubishi.

For many, culture assessment is a new philosophy which many businesses have yet to encounter.

To help the uninitiated, Phil explained: "The assessment tools allow you to map the culture of an organisation through values, beliefs and behaviours."

He added: "Basically, the assessment takes place on the Internet. Staff sign into a secure web site and are asked for basic demographic information and are then asked three questions."

These are:

What are your personal values (how you are now, not what you would like to be)?

What are the values you see currently in the organisation?

What are the values you would desire to see in a high-performing organisation?

Phil continued: "For each question, they are presented with a customised template of 100 values words from which they pick 10."

The results are then aggregated and plotted into a designated model to provide a picture of the organisation.

"A key next step is to build alignment in the organisation through shared vision and engaging the core motivation of all employees," Phil went on.

On the benefits of such assessements, he continued: "Having decided what positive values, beliefs and behaviours we want the organisation to live by, we can adopt changes involving people, processes and technology to bring these values into daily life."

The assessment tool can be used for individuals, teams, companies and others.

Phil, of Cliff Avenue, has had a mixed career. He was an assistant warden in a sheltered housing complex and a sales director and consultant of a computer firm.

But two years ago, he read Barrett's "Liberating the Corporate Soul" book which influenced him so profoundly he decided to get involved in its core subject.

"That book really struck a chord in me," he says. It was like, wow, this is where I need to be. It was very vocational for me."

He hopes a programme of speaking engagements on the services he offers will bring in clients for Corptools (UK) Ltd.

"I'll be working with chief executives and I'll be able to lay out on a piece of paper what this culture means," said Phil.

"Since the company was founded, I haven't had to do any marketing as businesses have found us."