Posts Tagged ‘Business’
What’s so Funny ‘Bout Vision Mission and Culture?
Well… this title was supposed to be sung to the Nick Lowe tune, popularized by Elvis Costello, referencing ‘Peace, Love, and Understanding’ but I know it doesn’t quite work. My apologies to Mr. Costello and Mr. Lowe. The challenge of writing on a seemingly overwritten business subject was to try and spice it up somewhat. Now that I’ve got your attention, I hope I can hold it for a couple of minutes!
Realistically these three words are very important to any business or organization. Even if you are as large as Microsoft or even just starting out as a lone ranger, these are purpose statements to run your business by. Unfortunately, businesses that have taken the time to write their Vision Mission and Culture do so and it is quickly placed “out of sight, out of mind”.
The question to ask is “What is the purpose of these purpose statements?” Answering that question will get you a lot more mileage out of them.
Vision. This is the long-range goal of what you see your business becoming. It’s out there on the horizon as far as you can see. Remember; as you get closer to your ideal your horizon expands so always re-evaluate your Vision.
Mission. This is how you are going to accomplish your goal, the mission is simply explaining what course the company takes in day to day movement towards the horizon. It also plays a defining role and sets forth the values and beliefs that the company holds as most important. Companies love to hang a paragraph in their lobbies about themselves but there they sit. Many of the mission statements I have read as subjective, although that is the idea it’s good to get an objective view. It’s nice to let visitors know what you are supposedly all about but its real use is for you. To really understand this you really need to understand yourself.
Culture. This is the most overlooked of the three yet it is the most utilized in day-to-day operations. Simply put, it is the rules of the game defining how you operate as a company. It’s about what you expect from your people your customers and your suppliers. It sets behavior standards for your company. It should have tight aspects to it – absolutes and limits of what is tolerable – as well as loose aspects to it – to enable innovation.
Collectively these statements should be used as symbols to measure your strategies against. Does your new chosen business strategy get you closer to your vision of what your ideal company is? (Vision) Does it fit with the path you want to take? (Mission) Finally, is it capable of being fit into the set of rules by which you operate? (Culture)
The more clearly you can define your purpose statements the easier it will be for your employees to follow them. As well, these statements are the main things that run the company when you are not there. Your employees should understand the values inherent in them.
