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Your initial Newsletter | Mission Statements with Meaning Companies feel compelled to come up with all types of slogans: marketing slogans, employee slogans, quality slogans, guarantee slogans, etc. Are they worth the paper they’re written on? Sometimes I wonder. Look at mission and value statements. These well-crafted words are meant to inspire and motivate our associates to excellence, causing customers to flock to us with great anticipation, and stockholders to be proud. Don’t get me wrong, I believe in having a clear mission and a set of values. Without them, people go off in their own directions, often bumping into each other’s priorities. But I suggest that these statements have meaning. They need to be credible, and they must be simple enough for everyone to grasp, remember and incorporate daily. Who should write the company mission statement? Management? The marketing department? Or should it be “the people”? The people who, as they go through their daily routines, make all the many small decisions that make up the big picture. These people are our associates who interact with each other, our guests and really make the mission of the organization happen. Here are several steps you can take to create effective corporate statements and slogans. First, get input from the bottom up on the company mission, vision and values. Secondly, make sure your various statements don’t contain any competing messages. Next, incorporate your message into all aspects of corporate life. For example, put it on the back of training tent-cards and business cards, print it on break-room posters and make it the theme of employee events. If your goals are in writing and you constantly expose your associates to the message, they will incorporate it into their daily activities – and it will become a life force! Finally, and most importantly, mean what you say in your statements. If you say you care about your employees, make sure your actions prove it. I once worked for a company that used an acronym with a “P” that stood for “People first”. However, in everyday interactions, the company consistently failed to put its people first. The acronym became a joke and was ineffective as a motivation tool. Communication studies show that in face-to-face conversations, the main speaker’s message comes across through 55% physiology, 38% tone of voice and only 7% through the words spoken. So if your mission statement contains words that say you care, but your behavior sends a different message, your associates will believe your behavior every time. A strong and positive corporate culture can be a powerful recruiting tool and a major retention factor. Make sure your corporate statements reflect that desired culture. In a future column, I’ll discuss the benefits of creating a personal Life Mission Statement. .
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