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enough to put a company out of business.” That is not to say that a mission
statement is written in stone. Booth cites her own consulting business. It began well
before merger mania but has evolved with the times and now is dedicated in
significant part to helping merged companies create common cultures. “Today, our

original mission statement would be very limiting,” she says.
Even the most enthusiastic proponents acknowledge that mission statements
are often viewed cynically by organizations and their constituents. That is usually due
to large and obvious gaps between a company’s words and deeds. “Are there
companies that have managers who do the opposite of what their missions statements
dictate? Of course,” says Geoffrey Abrahams, author of The Mission Statement Book.
“Mission statements are tools, and tools can be used or abused or
ignored.…Management must lead by example. It’s the only way employees can live
[4]
up to the company’s mission statement.” Ultimately, if you are not committed to
using the mission statement then you are best advised not to create one.
Monitoring
The monitoring step of the mission and vision statements development process
is analogous to the “C” (controlling) part of the P-O-L-C framework. Identify key
milestones that are implied or explicit in the mission and vision. Since mission and
vision act like a compass for a long trip to a new land, as Information Week’s Hajela
suggests, “while traveling to your destination, acknowledge the milestones along the
way. With these milestones you can monitor your progress: A strategic audit,
combined with key metrics, can be used to measure progress against goals and
objectives. To keep the process moving, try using an external audit team. One benefit
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is that an external team brings objectivity, plus a fresh perspective.” It also helps
motivate your team to stay on track.
KEY TAKEAWAY
This section described some of the basic inputs into crafting mission and
vision statements. It explored how mission and vision involved initiation,
determination of content, communication, application, and then monitoring to
be sure if and how the mission and vision were being followed and realized. In
many ways, you learned how the development of mission and vision mirrors
the P-O-L-C framework itself—from planning to control (monitoring).
EXERCISES
1. Who should be involved in the mission and vision development
process?
2. What are some key content areas for mission and vision?
3. Why are organizational values important to mission and vision?
4. Why is communication important with mission and vision?
5. To which stakeholders should the mission and vision be
communicated?
6. What role does monitoring play in mission and vision?

4.6 Developing Your Personal Mission and Vision
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Determine what mission and vision mean for you.

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