“Many executives don’t realize that mission is an underused asset in improving organizational performance and profitably, and they neglect their ultimate responsibility of aligning their brand and culture with their highest purpose.”

- Chris Groscurth, Gallup Journal

When mission, vision and values are more than slogans on a corporate document or simply lip service, they can be leveraged by organizations to create a competitive advantage.

CREATING A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE WITH MISSION,

VISION AND VALUES

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Why Mission, Vision and Values are Essential1A clear and compelling mission, vision and values can help to energize an entire organization towards the future.

1. Create Aspirational Meaning and Purpose

When people find purpose in their work beyond extrinsic rewards, they also feel a sense of personal accomplishment.

Researchers Raj Sisodia, David Wolfe and Jag Sheth, investigated whether purpose drives profit. They identified 28 companies as having a well-articulated and authentically-lived purpose that goes beyond profit maximization. This sample returned 410 percent growth over the ten-year period, compared to only 107 percent growth for the S&P 500.

Organizational energy is created and released when an organization’s people are emotionally and intellectually excited by the firm’s vision and values.

- Raj Sisodia, David Wolfe and Jag Sheth, Firms of Endearment

Research Insight:

The key takeaway for organizations is to make sure that the sense of purpose being sought after by employees is being fueled by the mission, vision and values.

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Guidelines to Implement the Mission, Vision and Values2As we know, a well-articulated mission, vision and values can energize companies towards positive business outcomes and give them a significant advantage over their competition. Even though many companies are spending large amounts of effort creating these statements, research indicates that they do not always resonate with employees.

According to Gallup researchers Nate Dvorak and Bailey Nelson, only four in ten employees strongly agree that the mission or purpose of their company makes them feel their job is important. Also, less than half of workers feel strongly connected to their company’s mission.

What can companies do to help ensure that employees clearly understand the company’s mission, vision and values and feel a connection to them in their own jobs?

Below are suggested guidelines for leaders and managers to consider to help accomplish this objective.

GUIDELINES:

1. Walk the talk

Leaders need to take accountability to live the mission, vision and values and set an example that employees can observe and follow.

Leaders need to support employees by showing them respect and providing the resources needed to do their job successfully.

2. Clear communication at launch

Facilitate small group sessions to kick off the mission, vision and values and ensure it is articulated in a clear and compelling manner.

Use a variety of channels to support launch such as staff meetings, bulletin boards, email and websites to ensure the same message is communicated throughout the organization.

It’s clear that a majority of leaders and managers are failing to connect employees with their company’s mission or to sustain a purpose-driven culture.

- Nate Dvorak and Bailey Nelson, Gallup Journal

Research Insight:

Leaders and managers need to take personal accountability to ensure that the mission, vision and values statements are more than just words in a corporate document.“

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Guidelines to Implement the Mission, Vision and Values23. Attract and develop talent with a shared vision

Identify the knowledge and skills that need to be bolstered, and create a plan outlining the training, development and coaching required to deliver on the mission, vision and values.

Use purposeful recruitment messaging to convey the company’s unique identity to help draw candidates that have a strong connection with it.

4. Create alignment with departments/teams

Map out how each employee’s role supports the organization’s mission, vision and values.

Create a set of guiding principles for each department to display showing how they add value and support each other and the organization’s mission, vision and values.

5. Integrate or align brand promise

In light of the research showing the potential impact that introducing a new mission, vision and values can have on business outcomes such as customer satisfaction, it is critical to ensure that brand promises will be kept.

Discuss the new mission, vision and values with clients and explain how it will help the organization to build a differentiated brand and enable it to separate itself from its competition.

Consistently communicate the same brand messages to employees and customers.

6. Integrate culture and systems

Publish a set of ground rules and standard operational practices to guide others on living the purpose and delivering the mission. Specifically, what does it mean to live the values from a functional perspective?

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Suggested Reading31. Amabile, T. and Kramer, S. (2011). The Power of Small Wins. Harvard

Business Review. May 2011 (pg. 11).

2. Collins, J. (2001). Good to Great. Why Some Companies Make TheLeap…and Others Don’t. (pg. 210). New York, NY: Harper Business.

3. Dvorak, N. and Nelson, B. (2016). Company Missions: Not ResonatingWith Employees. Gallup Journal. August 2016 (pg. 2).

4. Groscurth, C. (2014). Why Your Company Must Be Mission-Driven.Gallup Journal. March 2014 (pg. 1).

5. Kenny, G. (2014). Your Company’s Purpose Is Not Its Vision, Mission orValues. Harvard Business Review. September 2014 (pg. 1-2).

6. McGregor, L and Doshi, N. (2015). How Company Culture ShapesEmployee Motivation. Harvard Business Review. November 2015 (pg. 1).

7. Sisodia, R., Wolfe, D. and Sheth, J. (2014). Firms of Endearment: SecondEdition. How World-Class Companies Profit from Passion and Purpose.(pp. 169). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. Pearson Education.

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