The Mission Statement explains the organization`s purpose - why it exists and what it does/will do. Ideally, the Mission Statement should be written by the founders, reflecting their vision when they established the organization.

A Mission Statement is best written in one simple sentence. It should be concise, to-the-point, and should be sufficiently broad to provide those working at the organization with sufficient latitude to do what they need to do to help the organization move forward in achieving its mission as circumstances change.

If you cannot write your Mission Statement in one simple sentence, you do not understand it well enough to be able to achieve it.

Even many of the largest organizations have well-thought-out, simple, yet broad Mission Statements. For example, Google`s Mission Statement is "to organize the world`s information and make it universally accessible and useful."

An organization`s Mission Statement is important to the business owners, executives, employees and investors - even suppliers. A lot of time is spent to "get it right."

Boeing`s Mission Statement is "People Working Together as One Global Company for Aerospace Leadership." To stress the importance of their Mission Statement, in a letter to their shareholders dated February 23, 1998, Boeing Chairman, Philip M. Condit and President, Harry C. Stonecipher discussed the meaning of each key word.

While you will share your Mission Statement with people outside of your company, your Mission Statement should not include “hype.” It is not a tagline or a slogan. It should be a statement of fact, delivered in a neutral tone that speaks for itself.

For example, my company’s Mission Statement is “to provide marketing communications services and tools, business and strategic marketing planning, consulting, training and education.”

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"People — A company, any company, is nothing more or less than the people who make it up. We must train, develop and lead those people. This is why the new Boeing has launched a series of new programs and initiatives in the area of people policies. During 1997, that included a commitment to provide financial support to employees wishing to pursue high school and college courses, whether or not such courses are related to their current job assignments.

Working — This is about effort – work. We have a task to do. We are here to provide value — to our customers, our shareholders, the communities where we work, and to our fellow workers. At all levels, employees will be measured and evaluated, rewarded or penalized, based on the value they create. As part of this philosophy, in 1998 we implemented a new stock-award executive compensation plan to strengthen management’s focus on improving shareholder value.

Together — Every organization has forces that try to divide and reduce the impact of the total. The more we pull together, the more we share knowledge and ideas, the stronger we will be.

One — We have a shared destiny. We will succeed or fail together. Sharing facilities, sharing service, and looking for common solutions to problems are all part of being "One."

Global — If we are to compete effectively in the next century, we will have to be a global company. This is a must in attitude as well as geography. We must go further than we have ever gone before in enlisting the cooperation and participation of people in many countries in the design, development and production of new generations of aerospace products. Our leadership team will increasingly reflect global backgrounds and global experience.

Company — A company is a cohesive, inclusive institution. It is a group joined by a common purpose.

Aerospace — We are an aerospace company. That is our identity. That is our purpose. We are here to produce aerospace products and systems — airplanes, launch vehicles, satellites and defense systems.

Leadership — We are not here to be also-rans. We are here to lead, to be the best, nothing less."

After seeing the effort Boeing put into thinking out their Mission Statement, perhaps you will be inspired to review yours - or if you do not have one, perhaps it is time to create it!

Here are some guidelines to follow...

• A Mission Statement should be written in one simple sentence.
• It should clearly characterize why your organization exists.
• Your Mission Statement should be broad enough to enable present and future executives to do what they must to achieve it. It should not include unnecessary restrictions which might obstruct future growth.
• A Mission Statement can be made public - it can represent what the organization stands for.
• Do not include hyperbole in your Mission Statement - it is not a tagline or advertising slogan.
• When writing a Business Plan for a new business, include your Mission Statement near the beginning. Your plan should reflect how you will work towards achieving your organization`s mission.
• Marketing Challenges you will identify will be derived from your organization`s Mission Statement. These will be the basis for the strategies you will develop as you plan for your organization`s success.
  

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