#19 The Power of Vision and Mission Statement

In my previous post, putting personality into products is very important to any products. This is because it brings life to a product. In support of this, personality should also be factored into a brand which in this case is the company.  In my old post, there was mention that a company is just a company by itself. It is through the action of the people and processes around it that brings it to life. What better way to do this by defining the purpose of the company’s existence using mission and value statement. Having this in mind, there are many researches done on what is the best way of setting mission and value statement.

Value statement (sometimes referred as vision statement) is usually the ultimate value and principles that a company lives by. It defines the existence of a company to perpetuity. It answers the question of what does the company stands for 10, 20 and 50 years from now. Examples of vision statements are IBM vision statement which says:

 

“Solutions for a small planet.”

 

This simple 5 words statement defines how IBM does things. It is a value that is lived by everyone in the IBM community. The IBM-ers has values revolving around solving problems.

Values setting should not only be from top level but also participation from a company-wide level. This is because a consensus must be reached among each and every one in this circle. This is because conflicting values can be very detrimental to the company. Let’s take the case of Arthur Andersen which its value statement states:

 

“We believe in integrity, respect and always speaking as one firm. We believe in maintaining a passion for excellence in people, service and innovation. And we believe in demonstrating a commitment to personal growth through training and development. In fact, these values are minimum standards for anyone within our organization. Each has roots in the thinking of Arthur Andersen himself. And each guides us toward a brighter future ahead. “

 

 They became famous for dropping large and profitable client who challenges their integrity. Everything changed when they established their consulting arm which is more profitable. Their procedures, culture and system encourages the people to compromise on their integrity for greed. As such, people’s value changes and is in conflict with the value of the company. This resulted in the demise of Arthur Andersen.

The lesson learnt from this case is that value statement should be taken seriously. Participation from everyone is crucial in setting the right values. In addition, value statement should also be used as a basis to hire new people. The people’s value should be in line with the value of the company for it to work.

On the other hand, mission statement states how a company is to achieve its value. Generally, mission statement can range from 1 to 3 years or sometimes 5 years. This is in contrary with value statement as value statements can last up to 50 years or more. In addition, mission statement is also called leadership statement. Unlike value statement, mission statement is usually set by top level management. This acts as a direction of where the company is moving and thus decisions are mostly made at the top level. However, this does not restrict lower level employee to participate. Examples of mission statement is as follow:

 

“At IBM, we strive to lead in the invention, development and manufacture of the industry’s most advanced information technologies, including computer systems, software, storage systems and microelectronics.”

 

Mission statements are more specific as compared to vision statements as it gives a clear direction of a company.

In conclusion, mission and vision statements bring companies to life. It should not be restricted and should be more opened to participation from the people. This is because it brings energy, drive and purpose to a business and its people. It will be detrimental if there is a disconnection between the people’s value and the purpose of the company. Thus, having the right mission and vision is important for the sustainability and existence of a well managed company.

“A vision and mission statement can bring your company high up like an eagle but it can also bring you down like a falling brick. To know whether your business have a right value statement, ask yourself where do you see your company 100 years from now. A vision statement should be the ultimate purpose of existence and will last for a very long time. In contrary, mission statement is the direction of a business towards achieving the vision. In short, the vision is the ultimate destination of a sailing ship and the mission is the direction of the sailing ship.”

 Photo taken from: http://www.globfranchise.com/en/images/stories/visionandmission.jpg