What are characteristics of a mission statement?

Answer 1

Mission Statement

Formulation & Characteristics

Mission Statement

While the essence of vision is a forward-looking view of what an organisation wishes to become, mission is what an organisation is and why it exists.

Mission is a statement, which defines the role that an organisation plays in a society. It refers to the particular needs of that society, for instance, its information needs. A book publisher and a magazine editor are both engaged in satisfying the information

needs of society but they do it through different means. A book publisher may aim at producing excellent reading material while a magazine editor may strive to present news analysis in a balanced and unbiased manner. Both have different objectives but an identical mission.

A mission was earlier considered as the scope of the business activities a firm pursues. The definition of mission has gradually expanded to represent a concept that embodies the purpose behind the existence of an organisation. Thompson (1997) defines mission as the "essential purpose of the organisation, concerning particularly why it is in existence, the nature of the businesses it is in, and the customers it seeks to serve and satisfy" Hunger and Wheelen (1999) say that mission is the "purpose or reason for the organization's existence". Now there is not much difference of opinion about the definition of mission. Yet, there are instances of organisations confusing mission with vision or objectives. In strategic management literature, mission occupies a definite place as a part of strategic intent.

A mission statement, once formulated, should serve an

organisation for many years. But a mission may become unclear as the organisation grows and adds new products, markets and technologies to it activities. Then the mission has to be reconsidered and reexamined to either change or discard it, and evolve a fresh statement of organisational mission.Formulation of Mission Statement

Truly speaking, an organisation's mission statement lies in the basic philosophy of those who create and manage the organisation as shown in figure

Most organisations derive their Mission Statements from a particular set of tasks they are called upon to perform in the light of their individual, national or global priorities. Several public sector organisations, set up in India during the 1950s and 60s owe their existence to the vision of Jawaharlal Nehru,the first prime minister, who worked for the national aim of building a strong basic infrastructural independence.

Role of Entrepreneur

Usually, entrepreneurs lay down the corporate philosophy which an organisation follows in its strategic and operational activities. Such a philosophy may not be consciously and formally stated but may gradually evolve due to the entrepreneur's actions.

Generally an entrepreneur has a perception of the type of organisation that he, wants his company to be. Mission statements could be formulated on the basis of e vision that an entrepreneur decides on in the initial stages of an organisation's, growth.

Role of Strategists and Executives

Major strategists could also contribute to the development of a mission statement. They do this informally by lending a hand in the creation of a particular corporate identity or formally through discussions and the writing down of a mission statement.

Chief executives plan a major role in formulating a mission statement both formally and informally. They may set up executive committees to formally discuss and decide on a mission statement or enunciate a corporate philosophy to be followed for strategic management. Consultants may also be called upon to make an in-depth analysis of the organisation to suggest an appropriate mission statement.Characteristics of a Mission Statement

A mission statement defines the basic reason for the existence of that organisation. Such a statement reflects the corporate philosophy, identity, character,

and image of an organisation. It may be defined explicitly or could be deduced from the management's actions, decisions, or the chief executive's press statements. When explicitly defined it provides enlightenment to the insiders and outsiders on what the organisation stands for. In order to be effective, a mission statement should possess the following seven characteristics.

1. It should be feasible. A mission should always aim high but it should not be an impossible statement. It should be realistic and achievableits followers must find it to be credible. But feasibility depends on the resources available to work towards a mission.

2. It should be precise. A mission statement should not be so narrow as to restrict the organisation's activities nor should it be too broad to make itself meaningless. For instance, 'Manufacturing bicycles' is a narrow mission statement since it severely limits the organisation's activities, while mobility business' is too broad a term as it does not define the reasonable contour within which the organisation could operate.

3. It should be clear. A mission should be clear enough to lead to action. It should not be a high sounding set of platitudes meant for publicity purposes. Many organisations do adopt such statements but probably they do so for emphasizing their identity and character. For example, Asian Paints stresses 'leadership through excellence', while India Today sees itself as 'the complete news magazine'. The Administrative Staff College of India considers itself as 'the college for practicing managers' and Bajaj Auto believes in 'Providing, value for money, for years'. To be useful, a mission statement should be clear enough to lead to action.

4. It should be motivating. A mission statement should be motivating for members of the organisation and of society, and they should feel it worthwhile working for such an organisation or being its customers. A bank, which lays great emphasis on customer service is likely to motivate its employees to serve its customers well and to attract clients. Customer service, therefore is an important purpose for a banking institution.

5. It should be distinctive. A mission statement, which is indiscriminate, is likely to have little impact. If all scooter manufacturers defined their mission in a similar fashion,there would not be much of a difference among them. But if one defines it as providing scooters that would provide 'value for money, for years',like Bajaj, it will create an important distinction in the public mind.

6. It should indicate major components of strategy.

A mission statement along with the organisational purpose should indicate the major components of the strategy to be adopted.

The chief executive of Indal expressed his intentions by saying that his company "begins its fifth decade of committed entrepreneurship with the promise of a highly diversified company retaining aluminum as its mainline business, but with an active presence in the chemical, electronics and industrial equipment business". This statement indicates that the company is likely to follow a combination of stability, growth and diversification strategies in the future.

7. It should indicate how objectives are to be

accomplished. Besides indicating the broad strategies to be adopted a mission statement should also provide clues regarding the manner in which the objectives are to be accomplished.

COMPONENTS OF AN EFFECTIVE MISSION STATEMENT

Mission statements can and do vary in length, content, format and specificity. Most practitioners and academicians of strategic management consider an effectively written mission statement to exhibit nine characteristics or mission statement components. Since a mission statement is often the most visible and public part of the strategic management process, it is important that it include most, if not all, of these essential components. Components and corresponding questions that a mission statement should answer are given here.

1. Customers: Who are the enterprise's customers?

2. Products or services: What are the firm's major products or services?

3. Markets: Where does the firm compete?

4. Technology: What is the firm's basic technology?

5. Concern for survival, growth, and profitability: What is the firm's commitment towards economic objectives?

6. Philosophy: What are the basic beliefs, core values, aspirations and philosophical priorities of the firm?

7. Self-concept: What are the firm's major strengths and competitive advantages?

8. Concern for public image: What is the firm's public image?

9. Concern for employees: What is the firm's attitude/orientation towards employees?