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Mission, Vision and Values
by Kim Olver
Published on this site: November 23th, 2006 - See
more articles from this month
A great deal has been written in business literature about how critical
it is for a company to have a mission statement. Many companies jumped
on board with this idea and created a mission statement. Some did it collectively
with employees and stakeholders and some simply held an executive committee
meeting and created a mission statement for the company.
Whatever the situation, I believe that most companies were unable to sustain
the excitement of having a vision of where they were going and a mission
of why they are in business. In fact, I think there are very few employees
who can articulate their company's vision or mission statement.
A couple of weeks ago, I received a phone call from a client asking me
if I would develop a year's worth of leadership trainings for their mid-level
managers. During our conversations, I asked what types of topics they
would be interested in. I was told that their managers were really at a basic level.
They had basically been promoted from direct line staff and given no transition
training for the past five years!
That's when I asked the big question. Does your agency have a mission
statement? The person on the other end of the phone got really quiet and
then finally said, "You know, I honestly don't know." At this
point I knew that whether or not the company had a vision and mission
statement didn't really matter if the employees don't know what it is.
When you have a good vision and mission statement in a company, everyone
knows why the company is in business and in what direction it is going.
I believe one of the best books that will guide a company through the
process is Full Steam Ahead! Unleash the Power of Vision in Your Work
and Your and Life by Ken Blanchard Jesse Stoner. They say that "in
order for organizations to be fully powered, the leaders need to know
how to create a compelling vision that resonates with the hopes and dreams
of those in the organization."
Mission Statement:
The first element of a dynamic vision is to clearly articulate what the
company's purpose is. It describes why they are in business and usually
translates into the good they are doing in the world. Coaching for Excellence
is not in the business of leadership coaching and staff development. We
are in the business of helping leaders develop skills to be more effective
with those they supervise by placing equal value on relationships with
employees and the quality of the product or service.
You want your mission statement to be written from the point of view of
your clientele. What benefits do they get from the product or service
you provide? What's in it for them?
Once you have your mission statement, everyone in the company needs to
personally figure out what they contribute to the mission. How does their
job support the mission of the company? The mission should be designed
so that everyone in your company becomes excited and energized at the
thought of fulfilling their part.
Values:
The next step is to discuss company values. Values will help determine
how the mission statement will be supported. The company must clearly
articulate what values are important in living out the company's purpose.
When values are written, employees should know exactly what it looks like
when they are living the company values. Behavioral examples are important.
When an organization has taken the time to outline their values, then
they can hold people accountable for behaving in line with the values
and people who are interviewing for a job can make a conscious decision
to accept an offer based on whether or not their values are compatible
with the company's values.
Blanchard and Stoner write, "There's a lot of power in values. I
think it's because values tap into people's feelings. People cherish their
values and are deeply emotional about them. When they act in support of
their values, they are proud of their actions. . .Values serve as the
driving force behind purpose. Values supply the energy and excitement that help people remain committed
when the going gets tough."
Vision:
A company's vision describes its direction for the future. As Coaching
for Excellence's Empowered Leadership teaches us, there is much more energy
associated with working toward what a person wants, as opposed to what
he doesn't want so a vision statement must be expressed positively.
Once you have a map describing where you are going, it's easy to know
what to do next. As goals are accomplished, the next goals come into focus.
Blanchard and Stoner enumerate eight elements of a compelling vision:
- Helps us understand what business we're really in
- Provides guidelines that help us make daily decisions
- Provides a picture of the desired future that we can actually see
- Is enduring
- Is about being "great"-not expressed solely in numbers
- Touches the hearts and spirits of everyone
- Helps each person see how he or she can contribute
If your company wants to develop a strong vision statement, start today.
Begin with conversations about why you are in business, but don't end
there. Develop the mission, the values and vision and then keep the excitement
alive by continuously talking about it.
Kim Olver - is a professional coach, specializing in the field
of interpersonal skills, empowerment and leadership development. She has
functioned in the role of supervisor and administrator for over 20 years.
This column is
for readers to submit their questions for Kim to answer. It could be a
question about supervision skills, maximizing teamwork, customer service,
interpersonal skills or client satisfaction and empowerment. No interpersonal
question in the field of work is off limits. For more information visit
http://www.coachingforexcellence.biz/Coaching.shtml
or contact Kim by email to [email protected].
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