Indulge me whilst I share my thoughts as to why now, more than ever, having a focused vision, backed by a solid mission, and encapsulated with core values is a must for every organisation.
Let me start by breaking down exactly what each is, and the relationship between all three.
A Vision statement, to put it simply, is a living statement that provides a concrete way for all stakeholders, especially employees, to understand the meaning and purpose of the business. It is the What, Where, or Who you want the company to become in the long term. A vision statement should have the ability to inspire and motivate others around a concept or idea. It can establish a benchmark, provide a line of sight, direction, and where the organisation wants to be in a set period of years. The purpose of setting a vision is twofold: it is there to create a long-term strategy for where the company is going; secondly, it is meant to align everyone around the company’s directions.
A mission statement, on the other hand, is used to explain the organization’s purpose for being, why it exists and the purpose it serves in the market. If the Vision was the What, Where or Who you want the company to become, the mission is Why the company exists, it is the purpose, passion, or cause.
Core values (sometimes called company values or corporate values) are the set of guiding principles and fundamental beliefs that help a group of people function together as a team and work towards a common business goal. These values are often related to business relationships, customer relationships, and company growth. At StoryIQ, our core values are;
1)Decide based on logic and evidence
2)Passion for change
3)Concise, simple communication
4)Our word is golden
Every member of the exec team lives and breath these values. In fact, when we are discussing changes or business objectives, we often call out whether an idea or approach lives up to these values. If it doesn’t, we challenge it. Our staff know these core values and we champion them calling out when they see something that does not follow these values. It creates a template for how we conduct ourselves both as an exec team, and as valued employees of StoryIQ.
Let me share some examples of large organisations Vision and Mission statements you may have come across;
Tesla
Vision – To create the most compelling car company of the 21st century by driving the world’s transition to electric vehicles.
Mission – To accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy
If we break down Tesla’s vision, it is clear that the company acknowledges that the world has come to an era where only renewable energy should be prioritised. In the case of Tesla, the focus is on the use of electric energy to power all motor vehicles. They have clearly defined what they want to be in the future, in the 21st century as a whole to be exact.
The mission, on the other hand, shows a shift towards business approaches that are more futuristic. The focus on sustainability indicates the compliance of the company with global demands of business methods that align with calls for green energy. The companies mission sets out the agenda for how it is going to achieve the vision.
Apple
Vision – We believe that we are on the face of the earth to make great products, and that’s not changing.
Mission – Bringing the best user experience to its customers through innovative hardware, software and services.
Apple’s vision statement is clear, concise, and to the point. They are evidently determined to deliver quality products for their clients. The statement also points out that they intend to do this for quite some time to come, and I believe them! It gives a detailed account of how the company approaches its operations to position itself as the dominant player in the technology sector.
The current CEO of Apple @Timcook first surfaced this mission statement in its 2018 annual report. Through its mission statement, Apple highlights that it exists to offer its clients the best service that it can. That’s right, it exists to offer the best service it can. What’s good about Apple’s mission is it also includes a top-level overview of how it intends to do this. A critical point a great mission statement should include.
But what if you are not a Silicone Valley super giant, is it still relevant? Absolutely it is. We are living and working in a more virtual, remote world and every indication is that as much as 40% of the working public in the UK will continue to work remotely when the pandemic restrictions are a fragment of history. This poses huge challenges for companies when it comes to providing guidance on what the organisation is looking to achieve, and how they plan to get there. Here at StoryIQ, we have just finished our executive strategy planning for the new financial year and the Vision, Mission, with the addition of Core Values, took centre stage during this process. In fact, we completely re-worked the Vision and Mission of the company based on the new world. As an exec, we wanted to create a vision that had the ability to both inspire and motivate. But is it normal to change a vision and mission? Absolutely it is. In fact, I would question any company that doesn’t evolve its mission and vision as time passes. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not an annual expectation, I would advise companies to keep their mission and vision consistent for a period of 3-5 years, but anything more than this and they run the risk of becoming dated and no longer relevant.
If you are looking to build out your Vision, Mission, and Core Values, there are a number of different theories and published approaches to follow. A simple google search will provide many tools to help get you started, however if I were to recommend one, I would point you in the direction of Cameron Herold’s Vivid Vision (I am not endorsed by him) as for me, it is a great simple to follow principle that is applicable for almost any business, any size, operating in almost any industry. No matter which principle you choose to follow, all are centred around the same principles so I would advise anyone of looking to take the plunge and build their own statements to do some research and see what works best for them.
But why are mission and vision statements important to your employees and staff? As I have previously mentioned in other articles, a company’s greatest asset is its people. Invest in them and you are investing in the future growth and success of a business. I have worked for companies that had either no, or diluted vision and missions. Let me tell you, they were not nice environments to work in and typically resulted in higher attrition, lower employee satisfaction, and depreciating productivity. That’s why I hang my hat on the need for a strong vision and mission and is my first action when working for a new company. People need a purpose; they need to know that what they are doing is important and is making a difference to the overall success of their company. A clear, living vision and mission are the tarmac on the road in front of the staff. It gives them a solid footing, stability, and path that leads them onwards to the promise land. The core values on the other hand are the white lines, they tell you what side of the road to operate on and whether you are allowed to overtake oncoming slower objects or not. Ok, maybe that was a bit cheesy, but you get my sentiment.
So to summarise; a clear and living Vision, Mission, and set of Core Values are instrumental in providing the organisation with direction and purpose, whilst providing the staff clarity on what the business is trying to achieve and how. Now more than ever do we need to provide clarity to our teams, don’t let them down by failing to understand the importance of having them in place.
