Who Needs a Vision?
“Who needs a vision statement? That’s for big companies with time and money to waste. I don’t need one.”
I hear that all the time, especially from smaller companies and entrepreneurs who rather would just “keep cranking.” The problem is, it’s impossible to develop a meaningful business plan – even for the short term — without a vision. It would be like embarking on a road trip without first picking a destination.
An accurate, meaningful vision statement is the foundation upon which a company’s mission statement and strategic plan are built. Those elements keep everyone in an organization focused on their common purpose. Conversely, failure to develop a vision, mission and plan is a frequent reason why businesses fail.
My thinking on this topic is inspired by the teachings of Peter F. Drucker (The Man Who Invented Management) and David P. Norton and Robert S. Kaplan, authors of The Balanced Scorecard: Translating Strategy Into Action.
Drucker helped industries think differently and position themselves for the future based on his vision of shifting technologies, the digital information revolution and man’s need to improve his habitat.
Simply put, vision is an understanding of who you are and where you want to go. A vision statement helps define and communicate a company’s direction and future.
It has been said that “management is doing things right” and “leadership is doing the right thing.” In that context, a vision statement defines the “right things” for a company to spend its time doing.
Before I discuss key elements for a company vision, I’d like to share a personal story that illustrates how I developed a vision for becoming a consultant and creating my own company, J. Robinson Group.
When I left corporate America four years ago, I took a year-long sabbatical to reorient myself before making my next career move. I spent a lot of time reflecting on who I am, what I have to offer and where I want to go in life. It was a very rewarding journey, one that I was privileged to take thanks to my husband’s patience and support.
As I looked back on my professional life, I considered those roles and responsibilities that enabled me to make the most impact, engendered the most appreciation, tapped my passions and ignited a “fire in the belly” feeling that I always found so rewarding and satisfying.
Distilling down all those experiences, I realized that I was happiest and most fulfilled when I could freely apply my business knowledge and creativity to solve complex problems, particularly those related to strategy and brand management. This is the essence of why I became a consultant and established my own company.
The process of reflection also helped me formulate the following vision statement for my company:
“J. Robinson Group will become the resource of choice for companies that need help directing their efforts to capitalize on future growth and prosperity. We will be known for our unique ability to focus deeply on a company’s brand, operating culture and capacity for change to generate desired results.”
As a business consultant, I now help other people and their companies go through this process of reflection and create a vision statement as the first step in developing their strategic business plans. Here are key points that I keep in mind when writing a vision statement:
A company vision should:
1. Be aspirational and inspire high performance by employees
2. Paint a picture of the future and the role that the organization and its people will play
3. Set the organization in motion
4. Define mid- to long-term goals
5. Describe how an organization wants to be perceived by the world
6. Help customers, shareholders and employees understand what the company is all about and what it intends to achieve
7. Represent a view for what the company can become
When defining your vision, stay away from quantifiable statements and focus more on developing statements that are engaging and meaningful in totality.
As I said, establishing a vision statement is the first step to creating a strategic business plan. Vision alone is too vague to guide day-to-day operations and resource allocations. That’s when strategy and tactics come into play. A vision can only become operational when the company defines a strategy for how the vision will be achieved.
In my next blog post, I’ll pick up where we left off to discuss the next steps in writing a mission statement and business plan.
