The Strategic Planning Hierarchy for Events: Part I Mission, Vision and Values Statements

Values | Event Strategy

A strategy isn’t something that just appears out of thin air. Developing an effective strategy requires some preliminary steps and some subsequent steps that ultimately determine its success or failure. So let’s take a look at the strategic planning hierarchy.

At the top of the hierarchy is a Mission Statement. As mentioned before, every business starts with an idea and a mission statement captures the reason why the business exists or its purpose.

To create a mission statement, answer the following:

  • What does your company do? (it’s purpose or reasons for existing)
  • How does your company do it? (the values you operate by)
  • Why does your company do what it does? (your passion)

Next comes a Vision Statement, which outlines where the business sees itself in the future – assuming it’s successful in accomplishing its mission.

To create a vision statement, answer the following:

  • What does the world look like if your business is successful? What impact would it have?
  • What would you have accomplished? (your goal(s))
  • How would you have accomplished your goal(s)?

Examples of Mission and Vision Statements:

  • TED’s Mission: Spread ideas.
  • Ted’s Vision: We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and, ultimately, the world.

  • Nike’s Mission: To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world.
  • Nike’s Vision: To do everything possible to expand human potential.

* If you have a body, you are an athlete

  • Amazon’s Mission: We strive to offer our customers the lowest possible prices, the best available selection, and the utmost convenience.

  • Amazon’s Vision: To be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online.

  • Southwest’s Mission: Dedication to the highest quality of customer service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and company spirit.
  • Southwest’s Vision: To become the world’s most loved, most flown, and most profitable airline.

  • LinkedIn’s Mission: To connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful.
  • LinkedIn’s Vision: To create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce.

  • Google’s Mission: To organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.
  • Google’s Vision: To provide access to the world’s information in one click.

  • Uber’s Mission: Uber’s mission is to bring transportation — for everyone, everywhere.
  • Uber’s Vision: Smarter transportation with fewer cars and greater access. Transportation that’s safer, cheaper, and more reliable; transportation that creates more job opportunities and higher incomes for drivers.

  • AirBnB’s Mission: Belong anywhere.
  • AirBnB’s Vision: Tapping into the universal human yearning to belong—the desire to feel welcomed, respected, and appreciated for who you are, no matter where you might be.

  • Facebook’s Mission: To give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.
  • Facebook’s Vision: People use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what’s going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them.

Then comes a Values Statement, which defines how a businesses employees are expected to treat other employees, customers, suppliers, partners, indeed, everyone they come in contact with.

To create a values statement:

  • Identify a representative sample of key stakeholders to brainstorm with, including customers
  • Explain your objective and solicit their input
  • Scan the company culture, articles of incorporation, by-laws, and other relevant company documents for core values, beliefs, or behaviors
  • Narrow your list to a manageable number (5-7)
  • Avoid generic or vague values
  • Review drafts with stakeholders and create the final statement

Now that, hopefully, you have a better understanding of how businesses craft mission, vision and values statements, let’s apply this to events.

Here are the questions event strategists need to answer:

  • What is your event’s purpose, it’s reason for being?
  • Where do you see your event in the future, assuming you’re successful in achieving your mission?
  • How do you want your staff to treat your event stakeholders? How do you want your stakeholders to treat each other?

The answers to these questions form the foundation for your event strategy.

Summary: Successful businesses rest upon a foundation of ideas and principles that help guide the business – and the people who work for the business – toward success. Your event and your event strategy will benefit from establishing these fundamental elements.

Source:https://www.clearvoice.com/blog/difference-between-mission-vision-statement-examples/