Core Values and the Performance Culture Shift

AT&T's stated core values — **Live True, Think Big, Pursue Excellence, Inspire Others** — are the explicit framework. But the lived culture is shifting under Stankey. His controversial 2025 internal memo signaled a move from "familial" loyalty-based culture to a "market-based" performance culture, with stricter return-to-office mandates and tighter accountability. Candidates need to know both the public values and the actual current operating culture.