Give serious and ample thought to the organization's mission. The purpose of the business must be clear before it can be run successfully. The purpose settled on will ultimately guide all future business decisions.
When the purpose is clear, write the mission statement. This should be a brief, succinct synopsis of the purpose of the business. It should answer the question "Why does this agency exist?" The mission statement clarifies and focuses the business purpose. Beyond that, it commits the agency to the purpose and communicates it to employees, customers, and the world at large. Effectively constructed, a good mission statement can be a very powerful marketing tool.
Write the mission statement from the customer's perspective. It should be simple but elegant, and should inspire the staff to greatness. However, do not confuse mission with capabilities. A gas station might be in business to sell gas, but it can also change tires. The spectrum of capability extends infinitely from the core of the business (its mission) to the distant horizon of marginal ability. For example, the mission of a school might be to educate children, but the school might also be capable of providing day care or adult education. A mental health agency might have a mission of providing acute care and also be capable of training the community in prevention of mental health problems.
It is the job of the business manager to clarify the mission and determine the capabilities. A good business manager knows where to draw the line in order to retain effective business focus. If the parks and recreation department takes up mowing neighborhood lawns just because it is capable of doing so, it could seriously jeopardize its ability to focus on its real mission. The boundaries drawn around a business could be the difference between doing things well and doing all things. The most effective businesses are those that know how to stick to their knitting.
Specify Targeted Goals For The Organization
While the mission statement identifies general policy directions of an organization, goals specify how these general policy directions will be carried out
Goals: A limited number of statements, which translate the association's mission into major policy direction.
Some organizations include goals within their mission statement. However, these should he separated from the mission statement so that they can be used as a tool to assess the success of the organization in fulfilling its mission. Goals will necessarily be broad statements, limited in number, and focused on the unique characteristics of the organization.
|
|
|
||||||
| |||||||
