Helping the Future of Organizations with Vision and Mission Statements

The Mission Statement is a vital component in the strategic planning of a business organization. Creating a mission is one of the first actions an organization should take. This can be a building block for an overall strategy and development of more specific functional strategies (Abrahams, 1995). By defining a mission an organization is making a statement of organizational purpose.

Vision and mission statements provide information about the organization. They appear in strategic and operational plans. How do you define vision and mission statements? How should they be developed and used?

Vision statement of a business is very imperative in summarizing the strategic path of the business. The vision of a business should summarize what precisely the business is encompassed in and what the business plan to develop into in future. The vision of the business should highlight what precisely the business plans to do for its shareholders. Summarizing I could say visions should be the communication approaches through which the business communicates with its workforces regarding the planned leadership of the business. Proverbs 29:18 states, “Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint, but blessed is he who keeps the law” (NKJ). In order for persons to perform well, individuals should know God’s practices and sustain his

A vision statement should be a future oriented on what the organization is going to strive to become (Aguinis, 2013). This statement should be set for about five years in the future. The Centura Vision Statement is “Centura Health will fulfill a covenant of caring for our communities with excellence and integrity to become their partner for life.” (Centura, 2014). Agunis (2013) states that the eight characteristics to a good vision statement are it should be brief, verifiable, bound by a timeline, current, focused, understandable, inspiring, and a stretch.

A strategic vision thus points an organization in a particular direction, charts a strategic path for it to follow in preparing for the future, and molds organizational identity. A clearly articulated strategic vision communicates management’s aspirations to stakeholders and helps steer the energies of company personnel in a common direction. For instance, Henry Ford’s vision of a car in every garage had power because it captured the imagination of others, aided internal efforts to mobilize the Ford Motor Company’s resources, and served as a reference point for gauging the merits of the company’s strategic actions.

Both vision and mission statements are the choice of inspiring words by very well known successful leaders to clearly and concisely communicate the direction of an organization. By making a reasonable statement of purpose and vision statement, you can compellingly communicate expectations and intentions all while motivating the organization to realize an attractive and inspirational common vision of the future. Each and every organization should have a specific set of values and goals, whether they are verbatimly written down or not. The values guide the viewpoint and perspective of the organization as well as its activities.

In short a Vision statement describes the organization's vision for the future. It provides an organization a strong sense of direction as well as an end destination point for management and staff to strive to achieve through their diligent work ethics. (Evans, 2010)

An organizations existence is based on its mission statement. The mission statement of an organization identifies the people who it serves and states the standards of practice, ethics, and principles for which it believes in. An organization’s vision statement looks into the future and states goals the organization wishes to accomplish (Marquis & Huston, 2012). The mission and vision statement are important for driving the climate and culture of the organization.

A vision is basically the target goal for the company’s future. After reading the Mystic Monk Case, I came to the conclusion that the vision for the company is to earn enough profit to be able to purchase a Ranch called Irma Lake. In the case study, Father Daniel Mary states his vision, “We beg your prayers, your friendship and your support that this vision, our vision may come to be that Mount Carmel may be refounded in Wyoming’s Rockies for the glory of God”. In this statement, the Irma Lake Ranch is located in what he refers to as the Wyoming Rockies. The mission statement essentially is what is happening in the company at that time

A well written vision statement will give aspirations about how we feel and think about the future of the company. The message conveys a powerful statement that is frequently used in communicating the organizations vision and dream. It builds a frame of mind and helps to envision in the minds of others. The statement defines a conclusion of the company’s best achievements to inspire and challenge their people.

A company's vision is a "general statement of its intended direction that evokes emotional feelings in organization members." (Dessler, 2003). The mission statement determines the type of business it will be by setting the purpose for the company, and

In addition, be sure to provide inspirational vision and strong values, meaningful and challenging work, offer career opportunities, create an environment that enables people to do their best work, offer tangible rewards in both monetary and non-monetary ways and ensure work/life balance and support its importance.

The companies’ vision statement is, “to be the most profitable quality service restaurant business, with use of its franchise system and workforce while serving the best burgers in the world”. The vision statement states where the company wants to be in the future. In its vision statement, the company states that it wants to be the most profitable quality service restaurant business in the world. A vision statement encourages the companies’ employees to be focused and to know what the company wants to achieve in the future (Anthony et. al. 2013).

An effectively communicated vision is a valuable management tool for enlisting the commitment of company personnel to actions that get the company moving in the intended direction.

Vision and mission statements provide information about the organization. They appear in strategic and operational plans. How do you define vision and mission statements? How should they be developed and used?