In Module 1, we set out what our vision, values and purpose are for businesses, and you created these for your company.
A reminder of Vision definition:
A vision is to help business leaders globally think bigger, be better and achieve more every day.
A vision statement is the anchor point of any strategic plan. It outlines what a business would like to ultimately achieve and gives purpose to the existence of the business. A good vision statement should be short, simple, specific to your business, and leave nothing open to interpretation. It should also have some ambition.
Also, in Module 1, you defined a purpose statement – these are mainly about the company’s customers and the benefits they can expect from doing business with it.
Now in this module, we will also define your business’ mission.
Mission Statement Definition:
A mission statement focuses on the business and the big-picture goals and beliefs of the company. A mission statement is written more for company employees, so they know what their role is and how they contribute to the greater purpose of the business. A mission statement may include competitor differentiators and core values and serves to motivate employees.
An effective mission statement must be a clear, concise declaration about your business strategy.
Every entrepreneur should write a mission statement early on because they provide you and your employees with the framework and purpose. If you don’t have one, you need to get one.
A clearly defined mission statement makes it clear what is important, who your customers and clients are and provides direction. One way of formulating a mission statement is to answer the following questions:
- What do we do?
- How do we do it?
- Whom do we do it for?
- And, for some organisations, where do we do it?
It communicates your purpose, so should be action-focused, succinct and emotionally engaging. And it’s also the framework within which to create your strategy. Your mission is what you’re going to do, and your strategy is your plan for how you will do that.
So let’s get writing our mission statement.