A business is like a big, long rowing boat which has many rowers working hard to propel it forward. The success of this boat in a race is possible only if all people involved in rowing it do it in harmony, if all their efforts are well-orchestrated. If all people work hard but in different directions, without following the instructions, their efforts will go in vain. The boat will slow down and will go haywire.
A business has many similarities to this boat. A business also has many people working in it. The efforts of all must be in tandem, in harmony with each other, such that they help the business move forward in the right direction. If their actions are not coordinated, their efforts will be wasted and the business will falter away.
So, the most important task of a leader is to provide the right direction to the business and be watchful about the course it takes.
The journey of a business starts when the founder(s) start the business to provide a solution to customers through a product or a service. They may have a purpose behind starting the business. They may also have some estimate about the potential of the business and to which scale it can grow. But, as time passes, more and more people join the business. Each one of them may be coming from different backgrounds and experiences and with different priorities. The team joining hands with the founders may not be as clear about the purpose or potential of the business. But, the efforts of all these employees must be coordinated well. To synergize the efforts of all the people working in a business, the business leaders must set the larger picture of the business. Everybody in the business should know what the business is trying to achieve, where it is headed, what it stands for. To communicate these goals to the people who work for the business, the leader must establish and articulate Mission, Values and Vision of the business.
Mission
- The mission is the purpose of the business. It is the reason for the existence of the business.
- Mission is the first thing that must be finalized in our efforts towards finalizing the direction of the company.
- Mission of a business is everlasting, as long as the business exists. It may be changed or tweaked, but not frequently.
- To help formulating a mission statement, answers to the following questions can be helpful:
- Why was the business started by the founder?
- Was it to make some money?
- Was it to create a name?
- Was it to prove something?
- Was it to follow a passion?
- Was it to serve the society in some way? To make a difference?
- Was it to solve some customer problem? To make her life easier?
- Why was the business started by the founder?
- The answers to these questions may lead to the mission of the business.
- It should be clear that a company’s mission should not be to make a profit, but it should be what it will do to make a profit. Profit may be an objective or intended outcome of the mission, but not the mission itself.
- Ideally, the mission of any business must be to positively impact the customers’ lives, to bring a positive change in their lives. The mission of a business must be to make this world a better place by making the customer’s life better through its product or service.
- The focus of the mission should be on what we can do for the customer, how we can help her. It should not be on what we will get out of her.
- The objective of making a profit will be achieved only if the mission of the business is successfully fulfilled. So, a company must focus on fulfilling its mission first, i.e. serving the customers in a way that it changes their lives positively.
- The overall purpose or mission of the business should be such that it guides all the important decisions throughout its lifetime. The next generations of the founder(s) should be able to derive guidance from this purpose. It should provide them a direction in which to chart the course of the business. With a consistent mission, a business can continue its journey uninterrupted even if the ownership or the product line changes.
- Everybody entering the business (as an employee or as an owner family member) must be clear about the purpose of the business.
- So, the mission is the first things that the founder(s) must clearly establish if they wish the business to continue and thrive beyond their own lives.
- Examples of some of the famous companies’ mission statements:
- We save people money so they can live better.
- To organize the world‘s information and make it universally accessible and useful.
- To help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential.
- Rewrite rules, retain values.
- To deliver superior value to our customers, shareholders, employees and society at large.
- Examples of some smaller companies’ / firms’ mission statements:
- A sweets supplier: To add sweetness in every celebration.
- An insurance agent: To provide security and peace of mind.
- A garment showroom chain: To add confidence to people’s personality.
- An interior decoration material company: To make our clients’ living and work places elegant.
(Expert advice to GROW your business wherever you are, whenever you want.
SMEBusinessGuide.com… https://goo.gl/E3pfoQ)
