A vision statement is a vivid idealised description of a desired outcome that inspires, energises and helps individuals and organisations create a mental picture of their destination. It is a vividly descriptive image of what a company or an individual wants to be or wants to be known for. A vision is a picture of the future we seek to create, described in the present tense, as if, it were happening now. It shows where we want to go and, what we will be like when we get there.
A vision provides a driving force. It is clear, specific and simple. One should be able to easily integrate it, apply it to all of one’s decision making, articulate it without having to read the text, and to act upon it.
All successful leaders have a vision for their businesses, projects or teams. In fact, one wouldn't be a leader if one didn't have vision, if one couldn't see exciting possibilities in one’s products or services and people. And, yet, many leaders when asked to create a vision statement for themselves or for their team tend to minimise the importance of this process. They often give it lip service, so they can get back to the "real work”.
A mission statement is the broad expression of the reason for organisation’s existence. It often reflects the values and beliefs of top managers in an organisation. A good mission statement inspires employees and provides a focus and direction for setting lower level objectives. It should guide employees in making decisions and establish what the organisation does. Mission statements are crucial for organisations to prosper and grow. While studies suggest that they have a positive impact on profitability and can increase shareholder equity, they also support that almost 40 percent of employees do not know or understand their company's mission.
While mission statements vary from organisation to organisation and represent the distinctness of each one, they all share similar components. Most statements include descriptions of the organisation's target market, the geographic domain, their concern for survival, growth and profitability, the company philosophy, and the organisation's desired public image.
A mission statement should inspire employees and get them involved in the organisation. It has been called the glue that holds the organisation together through shared values and standards of behavior. A mission statement should be relevant to the history, culture, and values of the company.
Values are defined as a set of cherished notion that guides all our actions. It refers to the guiding principles and behaviours that embody how an organisation and its people are expected to behave. Values reflect and reinforce the desired culture of an organisation. Values support and guide the decision making of every member of the organisation so as to enable the organisation accomplish its mission and attain its vision in an appropriate manner.
However, the evolution of Vision–Mission–Values needs to be supported by the leadership in involving employees at all levels and communicating and reinforcing the understanding of the same across the organisation in a sustained manner.
Methodology:
TQMS has over the years developed an expertise in conducting the Vision-Mission-Value workshops for the companies by facilitating the process of developing the V-M-V and helping the companies in its communications and reinforcement. The V-M-V assignment has the following key steps :
TQMS consultant interact with the senior leadership team of the organization for two days in workshop mode preferably at an off-site location
TQMS consultant conducts the workshop during these two days with the senior leadership team to arrive at the corporate Vision, Mission and Value statements. The workshop emphasises on evolving clear interpretations of the terms used, the intent of the same and developing ownership of these statements by the Senior Leadership Team.
TQMS consultant also helps the Senior Leadership Team in this workshop to develop the approaches for communication cascade and measure the effectiveness of the same for taking the V-M-V forward in the organization.
Benefits:
Some of the major benefits of the V-M-V processes are - it attracts commitments and energises people and establishes a standard of excellence while creating a bridge between the present and the future. A common set of V-M-V helps people set priorities and negotiate expectations and thus, differences and boundaries become less important. Also, people feel empowered to do things that move the organisation closer to its goals.
While the workshop takes two days, the entire assignment takes around 4-6 weeks to complete including communication cascade depending on the size and spread of the organization.