Vision and Mission Statements

When a person or group of people set up a business he/she/they believe that their management philosophy, products and/or services will result in a favourable public image thus bringing customers to them and in the process, success. This philosophy, when put down as a statement would constitute the vision and/or mission statement. We can look at these as the founding set of beliefs.

The VISION statement answers the question “What do we want to become?” How do we want to be viewed by the public sometime in the future? A vision statement may read “The organization is committed to providing real and genuine value to all of its stakeholders”. This statement encompasses what management wants the organization to become with regards to its owners, employees, customers, distributors, creditors and the government, these being the stakeholders.

The MISSION statement on the other hand will answer the question “What is our business?” It is a statement that will set the business apart from its competitors. The company will prosper by providing services/products with genuine value to its customers through efficient distribution and support networks ensuring HAPPY CUSTOMERS, thereby increasing its value to its investors, creditors and the public. It shall conduct business in ways which are transparent, ethical and legal. With this, the organization is committing itself to provide services/products which are valuable to its market thereby increasing and giving value to its owners, creditors and other stakeholders. It also commits to doing business honestly and legally.

Why are VISION and MISSION statements important?

1. Create unanimity of purpose within the organization.

2. Serve as a basis for resource allocation.

3. Serves as a focal point for people to identify with the organization (basis for an organizational culture)

4. Basis for translating objectives into a work structure (assignment of tasks)

What should a MISSION statement look like?

1. Should define what the organization is and what it seeks to do

2. It must be narrow enough to limit some ventures but broad enough to allow for growth. For example: We are in the retail business. . . . working closely with our suppliers to ensure quality merchandise. . . This example is broad enough to allow for growth in what the organization will sell and it is open to the possibility of backward integration (engaging in production) in order to maintain quality. At the same time it is narrow enough to limit the organization from going into ventures like mining, aerospace or farming.

3. As related to #1, it should distinguish