Doing Business by the Good Book Ch 17

Mission Statements in Business

• Mission statements are crucial for guiding a company's principles and actions
• Ideal mission statements are concise, easily understood, and memorable.
• Effective mission statements attract top talent by clearly articulating values.
• A simple, memorable mission statement can be highly effective
• Examples include: "People, quality, and technology," "Provide a revolutionary way to streamline and simplify the global IT supply chain, all from a single source—WWT"
• The Golden Rule ("You shall love your neighbor as yourself") and similar principles can serve as good mission statements.

Crafting a Mission Statement

• A mission statement should stem from the company's core values and beliefs, not copied from competitors.
• Creating a sincere mission statement demands deep reflection and understanding of the company's identity.
• Mission statements aid in attracting top talent and defining a company's identity.
• Clarity and brevity are vital for a mission statement to be effective
• Mismatched actions and words in a mission statement are detrimental to a company's image.

Guiding Principles

• Guiding principles offer detailed guidance on how to operate in daily business and serve as an extension of the Mission statement.

• Guiding principles should be aligned with the mission statement.

• Effective guiding principles include: embracing change, honesty, a positive outlook, speed and creativity, the best effort and teamwork, and loyalty.

• Displaying guiding principles (e.g. posters and websites) aids in their understanding and engagement.