Chapter 2

1. A vision statement is a company's road map, indicating both what the company wants to
become and guiding transformational initiatives by setting a defined direction for the company's
growth. Vision statements undergo minimal revisions during the life of a business, unlike
operational goals which may be updated from year-to-year. Vision statements can range in
length from short sentences to multiple pages. Vision statements are also formally written and
referenced in company documents rather than, for example, general principles informally
articulated by senior management.
2. A mission statement is a short statement of an organization's purpose, identifying the scope of
its operations: what kind of product or service it provides, its primary customers or market, and
its geographical region of operation.
3. Strategic planning will likely have its successes and failures. Leaders should celebrate the little
successes toward meeting objectives, which are part of the mission and vision statement. The
mission statement will help measure whether the strategic plan aligns with the overall goals of
the agency. The vision statement helps to provide inspiration to employees. Employees who feel
invested in the organizational change are more likely to stay motivated and have higher levels of
productivity.
4. Learn what is important to people in your communi ty
As developing your vision and mission statements is the first step in developing the action plan that will
guide your effort, it is especially important that these first steps are well grounded in community beliefs
and values. Knowing the important issues in your community is vital for the development of a strong,
effective, and enduring action group.
Therefore, one of the first steps you should take when developing the vision and mission of your
organization will be is to define the issue(s) that matter most to people in your community. How do you
go about doing so?
There are many different ways you can gather this information, including:
Conduct "public forums" or "listening sessions" with members of the community to gather ideas,
thoughts, and opinions about how they would like to see the community transformed.
In public forums or listening sessions, people come together from throughout the community to talk
about what is important to them. These meetings are usually led by facilitators, who guide a discussion
of what people perceive to be the community 's strengths and problems, and what people wish the
community was like. Someone usually records these meetings, and a transcript of what is said provides a
basis for subsequent planning.
Hold focus groups with the people interested in addressing the issue(s), including community leaders,
people most affected by the issues, businesses, church leaders, teachers, etc.
Focus groups are similar to public forums and listening sessions, but they are smaller and more intimate.
Generally speaking, they are comprised of small groups of people with similar backgrounds, so they will
feel comfortable talking openly about what concerns them. For example, the members of a group are
generally about the same age, are of the same ethnic group, or have another common experience. They
are used in much the same way as public forums, and also use facilitators and recorders to focus and
take notes on the work done.
Your organization may choose to hold focus groups with several different groups of people, to get the
most holistic view of the issue at hand. For example, if your organization is involved in child health, you
might have one focus group with health care providers, another with parents or children, and still
another with teachers. Once you have a rough mission statement, you might again use a focus group to
test it out.
Obtain interviews with people in leadership and service positions, including such individuals as local
politicians, school administrators, hospital and social service agency staff, about what problems or
needs they believe exist in your community.
Often, these individuals will have both facts and experiences to back up their views. If so, you can also
use these data later if and when you apply for funding, or when you request community support to
address the issues. More information on this topic can be found in Chapter 3, Section 12: Conducting
Interviews.
Of course, these different ways to gather information from you community aren't mutually exclusive. In
fact, if you have the resources, it makes sense to do all of the above: to have some time for the
community at large to respond, then spend more time in focus groups with the people you believe
might contribute greatly to (or be most affected by) some of the issues brought up in your community
listening session. And finally, some one on one time with community leaders can only serve to
strengthen your knowledge and purpose; remember, there are undoubtedly many people in your
community who have been wrestling with the same issues you are now looking at for a long time. Take
advantage of that experience; you don't want to reinvent the wheel!
DECIDE WHAT TO ASK
No matter if you are talking to one person or 300, your purpose is the same: to learn what matters in
your community. Here's a list of questions you might use to focus your discussions with community
members. These questions may be used for individual interviews, focus groups, public forums, or in any
other way you choose to gather information.

 What is your dream for our community?

When your organization is questioning people, the facilitator should encourage everyone to allow their
most idealistic, hopeful, and positive ideas to shine through. Don't worry right now about what's
practical and what's not - this can be narrowed down later. Encourage everyone to be bold and
participate, and to remember that you are trying to articulate a vision of a better community, and a
better world.
DECIDE ON THE GENERAL FOCUS OF YOUR ORGANIZATION
Once members of your organization have heard what the community has to say, it 's time to decide the
general focus of your organization or initiative. First of all, what topic is most important to your
organization and your community? For example, will you tackle urban development or public health
issues? Racism or economic opportunity?
A second question you will need to answer is at what level will your organization work. Will your
organization begin only in one school, or in one neighborhood, or in your city? Or will your initiative's
focus be broader, working on a state, national, or even international level.
These are questions for which there are no easy answers. Your organization will need to consider what it
has learned from the community, and decide through thoughtful discussion the best direction for your
organization. We suggest you open this discussion up to everyone in your organization to obtain the
best results.
Of course, if your organization is receiving grant money or major funding from a particular agency, the
grant maker may specify what the general goal of your group should be. For example, if your group
accepts a grant to reduce child hunger, at least part of its mission will be devoted to this purpose. Even
in these circumstances, however, the community should determine the ultimate vision and mission that
will best advance what matters to local people.
DEVELOP YOUR VISION AND MISSION STATEMENTS
Now that your organization has a clearer understanding of what the organization will do and why, you
are in a prime position to develop the statements that will capture your ideas.
As you are looking at potential statements, remember to keep them broad and enduring. Vision and
mission statements that are wide in scope allow for a sense of continuity with a community's history,
traditions, and broad purposes. And vision and mission statements that are built to last will guide efforts
both today and tomorrow.
Vision Statements
First of all, remind members of your organization that it often takes several vision statements to fully
capture the dreams of those involved in a community improvement effort. You don't need - or even
want - to have just one "perfect" phrase. Encourage people to suggest all of their ideas, and write them
down - possibly on poster paper at the front of the room, so people can be further inspired by the ideas
of others. As you do this, help everyone keep in mind:

 What you have learned from your discussions with community members
 What your organization has decided will be your focus
 What you learned about vision statements at the beginning of this section

If you have a hard time getting started, you might wish to check out some of the vision statements in
this section's Examples. You might ask yourself how well they meet the above suggestions.
After you have brainstormed a lot of ideas, your group can discuss critically the different ideas.
Oftentimes, several of the vision statements will just jump out at you - someone will suggest it, and
people will just instantly think, "That's it!"
You can also ask yourselves the following questions about vision statements:

 Will it draw people to common work?

A final caution: try not to get caught up in having a certain number of vision statements for your
organization. Whether you ultimately end up with two vision statements or ten, what is most important
is that the statements together give a holistic view of the vision of your organization.
Mission Statements
The process of writing your mission statement is much like that for developing your vision statements.
The same brainstorming process can help you develop possibilities for your mission statement.
Remember, though, that unlike with vision statements, you will want to develop a single mission
statement for your work. After having brainstormed for possible statements, you will want to ask of
each one:

 Does it describe what your organization will do and why it will do it?
 Is it concise (one sentence)?
 Is it outcome oriented?
 Is it inclusive of the goals and people who may become involved in the organization?

Together, your organization can decide on a statement that best meets these criteria.
OBTAIN CONSENSUS ON YOUR VISION AND MISSION STATEMENTS
Once members of your organization have developed your vision and mission statements, your next step
might be to learn what other members of your community think of them before you start to use them
regularly.
To do this, you could talk to the same community leaders or focus group members you spoke to
originally. First of all, this can help you ensure that they don't find the statements offensive in any way.
For example, an initiative that wants to include young men more fully in its teen pregnancy prevention
project might have "Young men in Asheville are the best informed" as one of their vision statements.
But taken out of context, some people community members might believe this statement means young
men are given better information or education than young women, thus offending another group of
people.
Second, you will want to ensure that community members agree that the statements together capture
the spirit of what they believe and desire. Your organization might find it has omitted something very
important by mistake.
DECIDE HOW YOU WILL USE YOUR VISION AND MISSION STATEMENTS
Finally, it's important to remember that while developing the statements is a huge step for your
organization (and one you should celebrate!), there is more work to be done. Next, you have to decide
how to use these statements. Otherwise, all of your hard work will have happening for nothing. The
point is to get the message across.
There are many, many ways in which your organization may choose to spread its vision and mission
statements. To name just a few examples, you might:

 Add them to your letterhead or stationary

5. Function

The mission statement needs to include some description of the function of the business. For example,
"to promote industrial excellence," tells customers and employees nothing. A more effective description
would be "To provide management consulting services."
Target Consumers

An effective mission statement sets out, in broad terms, the target market. A manufacturer that makes
nuts and bolts might set its target market as retail hardware stores, machine manufacturers, or both.
Target Region
The business must determine what region it serves best and relay that information by way of
the mission statement. A garage, for example, might limit its target region to the community
while a magazine company might target an entire country.
Values
Mission statements typically include a statement of company values. Values such as customer
service, efficiency and eco-consciousness often appear on lists of company values. At their best,
company values should express principles the company explicitly tries to affirm in day-to-day
operations.
Technology
For businesses that rely heavily on technology, the mission statement should include a
description of the essential technology the company does or plans to employ. If nothing else,
this directs purchasing agents toward the appropriate vendors for goods and services.
Employees
Every company has a policy regarding its relationship with employees. A mission statement
provides an opportunity to describe that policy in brief so employees know the essentials of
where they stand.
Strategic Positioning
Effective mission statements also include a brief description of the business's strategic position
within the market. For example, the company might excel at serving residential clients and seek
to maximize that strategic advantage.
Financial Objectives
For for-profit ventures, businesses require clear financial objectives. A start-up company might
set one of its financial objectives as making an initial public offering of common stock within two
years. This lets the employees and potential investors know the company intends to go public,
with all of the legal and record keeping ramifications that entails.
 Image
Like people, companies develop public images. Careful companies craft the public image they
want to establish and lay out the major features of it in the mission statement. This helps
managers direct employees that stray from the sanctioned public image.

6. Audacious: Your vision represents a dream that’s beyond what you think is possible. It
represents the mountaintop your company is striving to reach. Visioning takes you out beyond
your present reality.

Capitalizes on core competencies: Your vision builds on your company’s core competencies. It
builds on what you’ve already established: company history, customer base, strengths, and
unique capabilities, resources, and assets.

Futurecasting: Your vision provides a picture of what your business looks like in the future.

Inspiring: Your vision engages language that inspires. It creates a vivid image in people’s heads
that provokes emotion and excitement. It creates enthusiasm and poses a challenge.

Motivating: Your vision clarifies the direction in which your organization needs to move and
keeps everyone pushing forward to reach it.

Purpose-driven: Your vision gives employees a larger sense of purpose, so they see themselves
as building a cathedral instead of laying stones.

7. Define your customers. Even the most gigantic businesses have a defined customer base.
Walmart sells clothing but their target customer is not the same customer as those who shop at
Neiman Marcus.

Define your customer’s needs. All businesses, and I mean all businesses even those who are
non-profit ones, are in the problem-solving business. Someone, your target customer has a need
that must be fulfilled, a problem to be solved, and your company will solve that problem. A
restaurant does not sell prepared food. It sells satisfaction of hunger, the satiation of an
appetite. A furniture store does not sell sofas or beds. It sells devices upon which to sit and
sleep. Non-profits have a leg up on this component because their validation for existence is
almost always very clearly defined – feed the hungry, house the homeless, care for the sick, etc.

Define your product or service. What will your company provide or your organization supply to
solve your customer’s problem and satisfy their need(s)?

Define your company’s values. Here is a list of examples of business values. Consider them and
identify five or six which represent how you want your business TO BE PERCEIVED. This is all
about perceptions, your value as a business or organization lies in how the public in general and
your customers in particular see you.