Why I dislike 98% of all Mission Statements
Whenever we are helping a company define their brand, a part of that process is defining what is most commonly called a "mission statement." We prefer the term "Core Purpose" because it better tells me "Why do you exist?" or "What is your purpose?"
Here are my rules for crafting a great core purpose statement.
• Make it as short as possible. Cut out as many words (and commas!) as possible without losing meaning.
• It should describe the reason employees are motivated to get out of bed and come to work every day.
• It should be easy to remember and keep top of mind as all staff dig deep into their daily tasks.
A few famous core purpose/mission statements are…
• Explore the Heavens – NASA
• Refresh the World – Coca-Cola
Here are some examples of some of my favorite core purpose statements we have helped craft. These all answer the questions "Why do you exist?" – "We exist to…"
• Provide Financial Relief
• Change the Way People See the World
• See Africa Prosper Through Business
• Humanize IT
and of course, my favorite is answering "Why does Matchstic exist?" "We exist to…"
• Ignite Passionate Brands
Do you have any favorites?
5 Comments
"I think it can also be valuable to pair a mission statement with a vision statement as well. One way to do this is to make the mission is an ongoing activity, while making the vision some measurable (if unachievable) thing that points to how you know if you are on mission. Vision can change with the business environment, while the mission more immutable.
The classic vision statement that comes to mind is Henry Ford's dream of "a car in every driveway"."
- Dillon
"Many companies confuse/conflate mission and vision statements. As Craig states, the mission should be why a company exists (sell the best widget at the lowest price), while the vision statement should always be an aspirational but measurable goal (to be the highest rated seller of widgets by 2012 (as measured by the JD Power survey). Caution should be exercised so as to not overwhelm customers and employees with too much content. I've seen companies with five sentence mission statements plus a lengthly vision document plus five core values plus 10 customer satisfaction principles plus 8 key goals for the next year."
- Eric Christ
"Craig,
With all due respect I'll have to respectfully disagree. I didn't rise to the top of the business world with bad mission statements, in fact, I think longer ones provide an opportunity to say more stuff and be more eloquent, showing you belong in the elite business community.
For instance, one of the ten companies I started since 2005, Deliciously Douché (pronounced doo-SHAY), is a bakery with a purpose, and the mission statement is all about that purpose which accomplishes a lot of very meaningful agendas.
Our mission statement reads like manifesto for a new corporate culture, high end products, and social values.
"Deliciously Douché exists to dominate the boutique baking industry with radical solutions to your taste issues that involve high end management training, elite staff services, nothing-but-the-finest organically raised ingredients without any pesticides, and a laser focus on improving the lives of cocoa farmers, whipped cream manufacturers, and wheat farmers across the world by letting them each own one share maximum of the company (totaling 1% overall shares) to give pride back to the people to improve their roads, water supply, equipment, schools, parenting and education."
You can't beat that. It's like a fully loaded gun of profit making potential with all the necessary ingredients in today's business climate.
Good post though."
- Chris Douché
"The last place I worked developed a three sentence mission statement. The last line reads
"The organization educates our members and community in striving to be the "Center of it all""
I just can't figure out what that might possibly mean."
- happy
"I heard a sermon my John Piper that inspired me to write a post calling for "The One Word Mission Statement" http://b2b-marketing.org/general/the-one-word-mission-statement/ While it may be a little altruistic, it at least makes you think about what that word would be."
- Todd Miechiels