Mission Statements

Business owners spend a lot of time examining trees. One is a live oak, another a pine, a third a maple. These trees are the different parts of their business, finance, sales, marketing, Human Resources. However, they don’t step back and enjoy the beauty and totality of the forest and its purpose on the planet, nor do they think about what it will look like in twenty years.

Mission and Vision Statements

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Part of a business owner’s forest is its mission statement, a powerful tool if used and applied well. A mission statement explains the reason the company is there, its reason for being. How this statement is crafted says volumes about the culture of the company because it is based on the core values of the company. For example, you might compare the grocery shopping experience at Walmart to Whole Foods. They both sell food, but the experience in each store is vastly different.

Three key questions can help you form a mission statement:

What does my company do?

This is an easy question. We rent bikes, however, “We provide transportation for tourists” is much different than “We sell and custom fit high performance bikes.”

How does the company do it?

This question is more difficult. Here is where you need to incorporate your core values. Your values inform your customers and staff about your business’ top priorities and core beliefs. It also helps employees identify with and connect to targeted consumers and reminds employees about the business’ goals and priorities.

To define these values, look at your core competency, your strengths that give you a competitive advantage over your competition and contribute to your long term success. From the core competencies, you develop your values like providing superior customer experience, developing cutting edge technology, etc. Once the business owner communicates the values to employees, they become shared values and guide every decision.

Why does the company do it?

The why question gets to your passion for your business. The vision statement declares the organization’s objectives and guides its internal decision-making. It’s a roadmap to where the business is going in a specific time frame, generally 2-5 years.

Forming a vision statement involves goal setting, but unless the vision is shared and the employees are motivated to work toward the vision, it’s dead in the water. So if the vision is motivational, it not only drives employees to the goal, but it attracts good talent. People want to work at a place where they understand and can contribute to the vision.

A strong vision statement also differentiates a business from others. A business that sets an agenda to achieve the vision sets itself apart. It inspires its employees to focus on the core competencies and to achieve its goals.

So write down your vision. Share it. Then watch your business take off.