Happy Employees Comes With Right Mission And Vision Statements
Building a successful business is the dream of many entrepreneurs. They can visualize their product or service being innovative and sought after. They can see future expansion and profit-margin growth. But rarely do they see, at least initially, those who will help get them there. For those entrepreneurs who are missing a well defined mission and vision statement, the employees will not be considered key in the future of the company’s success. This absence can be a serious flaw.
Recently the Wall Street Journal and Winning Workplaces, a nonprofit that helps small companies and their work environments, joined together to highlight the 15 Top Small Workplaces (Wall Street Journal Report, Oct 1, 2007). These companies unquestionably show the true value of respected and happy employees. Though 15 companies would be spotlighted the original list began with 850 nominations that had come from across the country. Is this by accident or by a defined focus to have a company wide mission statement and vision statement that employees would benefit and seek to grow with?
“When there is a genuine vision, people excel and learn because they want to, not because they are told to”, author of Mission and Vision Statements: Your Path to a Successful Business Future. “Practicing shared mission and vision involves finding ideal visions of the future that everyone holds in common. These inspire genuine commitment, rather than compliance.”
Common traits of the reported top company workplaces include trusting their employees and their decision making ability, adding real opportunities for employees to grow in future leadership within the company, profit sharing and being shown how their position, done well, is poised to reflect success. It is a recipe for success that any business can attain.
“Successful organizations have a mission statement that serves as a guide for good decision-making and as the base from which vision and strategic planning is launched” states Midgett. “Staff and employees are able to communicate the desired results from this base. They then can concentrate on being a part of the successful pursuit of the vision.”
Don Midgett, Author
Mission and Vision Statements: Your Path to a Successful Business Future
81 pages of valuable information, sold in 18 countries to a wide variety of clients, is available in digital format (pdf) at http://www.missionvisionstatement.com
Don Midgett is the managing partner for the GenesisGroup, helping organizations and leaders discover their full potential. Don specializes in workshops on mission and vision, strategic planning, and team building.
Tags: entrepreneur, mission and vision, mission statement, vision statement