Vision and Mission

Essay by s0109930 September 2007

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1.IntroductionRecently we have seen the emergence of the mission statement. The phenomenon is not confined to large companies; there are now numerous examples of mission statements from a wide variety of all kinds of organizations. Opinions on their usefulness and role are mixed. This report describes an enquiry into why companies have mission statements, its components and importance to the company's performance by illustrating mission statements of several companies in airline and bank industrial fields.

2. Theory1)ConceptionThe mission statement is a document central to every firm's strategy. In its most basic form, a mission statement is intended to capture an organization's unique purpose and practices. As a formal document, the mission statement should answer some fairly basic, yet vitally important, questions: what is our purpose? Why do we exist? What are we trying to accomplish? An effective mission statement describes the firm's fundamental, unique purpose. An important part of this description indicates how a firm is unique in its scope of operations and its product or service offerings.

Thus, in simple yet powerful terms, a mission statement proclaims corporate purpose. This proclamation indicates what the organization intends to accomplish, identifies the market in which the firm intends to operate, and reflects the philosophical premises that are to guide actions. Mission statements are also intended to provide motivation, general direction, an image of the company's character, and a tone, or set of attitudes, through which actions are guided. Furthermore, because mission statements embody a company's soul, they are often inspirational. Additionally, the mission statement indicates what the company intends to accomplish and describes the philosophical premises that guide peoples' actions. Once completed, mission statements become the foundation on which other intended actions are built. Only after a mission statement has been developed can objectives and appropriate strategies be formed properly...