A vision statement is intended to help you to communicate goals of your company to its employees and management in just a single or few concise sentences. Writing a mission statement may take some days or even weeks, if you want to have a well prepared product which can serve as a tool to inspire both strategic decision making and development of your business product for years to come.
Do I Need Writing a Vision and Mission Statement if Business is Successful?
According to a recent research revealed in the Harvard Business Review, about 70% of workers do not understand properly the strategy of their company. A misunderstanding of this kind can result in improper decision making at every level of the organization. This is why writing mission statement is so important to formulate what the company is, what place it takes in the industry, and what its realistic goals in both short-term and long-term prospect are.
A vision statement is rather an aspirational type of paper describing the goals which are of the top priority for a company. In contrast with business plans, a vision statement usually does not present some plan or schedule to achieve the goals. However, by setting the core objectives for a particular company, it enables the company’s personnel to develop some strategies aimed to achieve the set goals. With a unified vision statement available, employees can work really more efficiently because they can act as a single business team.
What should be highlighted in a good vision statement? In case of a small business, this document usually contains two core characteristics.
- First, what the company is going to achieve in the near future
- Second, it should give some motivation principles for the whole team on this way
Vision Statement or Mission Statement?
Writing a mission and vision statement, you should distinguish between them. The latter is a present-based document designed to help members of the team and people from outside to understand why this company exists. To the contrary, a vision statement is focused on the future and intended to encourage the staff and present the direction of development of the company; its target audience is insiders, rather than customers. A mission statement is to answer the question,
- ‘What is the reason to exist for the company?’
- At the same time, a vision statement is to respond to ‘Where is my business going?’
Along with the company’s growth, its goals and tasks may change. If this is the case, a vision statement should be adjusted to reflect the present state of the business, development of corporate culture, and changes that took place. Writing a vision statement, remember that it is a mid-term document to be valid for several years minimum.
Writing a Good Mission Statement: Advices
When you write this kind of document, you have an opportunity to reveal all your creative talents and ambitions. The task is serious nonetheless. Prior to get down to writing, consider some most important events and ideas which had impact on your business. Maybe you will find the first steps of the company to be the most exciting and inspiring.
For your convenience, make a list of what you would like to see in the document. Brainstorm with members of your team could be a good way to fulfill the task efficiently. They will make you know their vision of future mid- and long-term achievements of the company.
Another good advice to generate a good vision statement: just imagine publications regarding your business in 5-10 years.
Tips For Writing a Good Vision Statement
A vision statement is expected to stretch the reader’s imagination along with providing a clear direction. It has to set priorities and encourage employees to grow keeping pace with the company. It should be aimed not only at top management, but also and foremost at every member of your staff.
- The goals are to be set for some 5-10 years ahead.
- Do not be too modest with your dreams and goals.
- Present tense is to be used in this kind of document.
- The language of the document is expected be concise and bright.
- Consider if the generated vision statement can excite the eagerness of workers.
- Mentally, compose a picture of the state of your business in the future.
- Be prepared to invest enough time and zeal into writing this document.
If you succeed with your vision statement, you will find it passionately accepted and properly understood by your staff. In this case, the job will pay off completely through higher zeal and efficiency.