Vision + Values = Success

from Linked IN 19 Sept 13 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4biz 7/14

What does a Vision do? A powerful vision provides inspiration, challenge, & purpose. It gives meaning to your work and purpose to your business. Your business gives you a place where you can satisfy your need to achieve. Everyone’s life needs a purpose, something important to strive for. One way to add both meaning & context to your vision is to establish values. Clearly defined values simplify decision-making. They also help ensure consistency as well as ethical & behavioral congruency.

Value is a word that describes what each of us searches for in many different places. We look for value in what we purchase, what we do, & for value in our relationships. Most of us would like to believe that there would have been some value to our life and to our accomplishments. In today’s global & ever-changing business environment, values should play an important role in structuring, planning, & operating your business. Direction is provided in part by Vision – which creates excitement, commitment, & purpose. Achievement & excitement must be tempered by Values, lest people pursue goals without consideration for the ethics of other people. Values represent the core priorities in the organization’s culture including what drives individuals and how they truly act in an organization. Therefore, another key element of a successful planning process is the organization’s Mission statement of what it’s Values are. Throughout the life of the business, decisions must be made. Core values of the organization will lay the foundation & provide the framework for all decisions.

What do Values do? An organization’s Values create a foundation for integrity and they define the important truths that guide your actions. They will serve as a guidepost for all those in the organization who – through their individual efforts – will collectively achieve the organizational Goals & Vision. Values are principles or standards by which we do business and are to be non-negotiable. As you think about developing your values, consider what you know to be right as well as how you want to be known by others.

Mission Statement. If the primary function of your business is to attract & maintain customers – in order to generate long-term profits or financial viability, then issues such as meeting client or customer expectations, delivering quality service, etc., must be included in the Mission statement. Your values should take into consideration the importance you place upon each stakeholder in your business.

A Stakeholder is anyone who has the power to exert influence on your organization. It may be an individual, a group, or another organization. For example, your stakeholders could include your customers, your employees & their families, your stockholders, the community, licensing & regulatory agencies, or suppliers.

Examples of Mission statements are:
-· Improving the quality of life through technology & innovation.
– To be regarded by our customers as a provider of high-quality, reliable products and services.
-· Our first concern is for our customer, our second concern is for our employees, our third concern is for our management, our fourth concern is for our community, and our fifth concern is for our stockholders.

Write a Mission Statement for your business and share it with your colleagues, staff, other employees & your Customers. Modify with any feedback you find useful in defining the Values you stand for.