Vision and Mission Statements: Concepts and Cases

An interesting trend emerging in recent times is that companies have begun to define their vision and mission statement as a living document of the organization. They are lived and not framed as a plaque on the wall. It can be found that companies have started decorating their brochures and boardroom walls with grandiose vision and mission statements of global aspirations. Vision and Mission statements have now become an important part of strategy-making exercise and managements are taking pains to craft an effective statement as they form a basis for all tactical decisions. These statements have gained considerable significance as they provide direction and the focus for organizations. Vision Statement defines the destination and the mission statement defines the path to get there. They are envisaged through a strategic process and thus there is an alignment between the statements and business strategy. They are seen as the focal points of an organization, which unite the three main stakeholders – the committed customers, motivated employees and the satisfied resource providers and its usefulness is formulated when they are translated into a coherent set of performance measures. Companies without the vision and mission advantage survive. So what is this vision and mission advantage all about? The answer is the focus, flow and foundation that they capture which enable thriving instead of merely surviving. The book ‘Vision and Mission Statements’ The Concepts of Corporate Identity’ attempts a clear understanding of the concepts and values of vision and mission statements. The various dimensions of the statements are explored in the book to arrive at an understanding that these statements can be termed as a point of departure for business objectives to deliver productivity and efficiency. The book traces the wellbeing of an organization to its shared focus. Cases and experiences illustrate the benefits of the vision and the mission statements as corporate parameters in the reckoning and as human dimensions of problem solving.