"Create shareholder value" has become management's mantra. Managers have developed an extensive set of tools for determining which parts of their businesses add to or subtract from shareholder value. Unfortunately, merely applying the tools of value-based analysis does not suffice to add shareholder value; these tools focus on financial management and what top managers do, whereas value creation results from actions by individuals and groups throughout the firm. A comprehensive value-based management (VBM) system must engage, motivate, and reward people throughout the organization who create shareholder value. The system offered here targets five stages of development: value-based analysis; management of commitment and stretch targets; VBM training and open-book management; employee empowerment and task-focused training; and sharing the value. The VBM system continues with dialogue among top managers about where stretch goals should be focused in the future and the involvement of all employees in determining the best means to achieve those goals. Equally important is an ongoing commitment to training in VBM and the tasks that derive from it. VBM cannot create a strategic vision for a company. But when it is focused on creating both economic value and enhanced customer value and is an integral part of the culture, the firm maximizes its future prospects.