I’ve come across way too many organizations who are either unwilling or unable to involve their people when it comes to setting up the important stuff … like the creation of a mission statement.
Oh sure, leaders may communicate what their mission and their strategy is … but that doesn’t mean that the employees have any emotional connection to the mission or the strategy. And that’s critically important.
Mission statements that are made at the top, rapidly put together, and then announced to the masses … are soon forgotten. They become nothing more than just a bunch of nice sayings on the wall that mean essentially nothing. Worse yet, the “stated mission” might even create a source of cynicism and hypocrisy in the organization’s culture.
What’s the antidote? Involve lots of people. Solicit lots of input. Listen and listen some more. Focus more on the discussion “forums” you create and you’ll be a lot happier with the mission “forms” or statements you end up with.