Most large businesses have developed mission, vision, and values statements to help guide them and inform stakeholders about the company’s strategic direction. Going through this strategic exercise is a wonderful idea for even the smallest business as well.

A company’s mission statement lists its core purpose and desired impact for employees, customers, owners, and other stakeholders. A vision statement defines what the company wants to be. A values statement describes what the company stands for.

It’s a perfect activity for business owners to answer and remember why they built the business in the first place. It also serves to correct and re-align the trajectory of the business.

Mission Statement

Start by asking what impact you want your business to have on the outside world. Here are some mission statement examples that are frequently quoted:

• Harley-Davidson: More than building machines, we stand for the timeless pursuit of adventure. Freedom for the soul.
• Disney: The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to entertain, inform and inspire people around the globe through the power of unparalleled storytelling, reflecting the iconic brands, creative minds and innovative technologies that make ours the world’s premier entertainment company.
• Nike: Nike exists to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world. Our purpose is to move the world forward through the power of sport – breaking barriers and building community to change the game for all. *If you have a body, you are an athlete.

Notice how each one is short and simple to understand. They focus more on the big-picture benefits they bring to customers and less on how they will get there.

To write your own mission statement, ask yourself what your business’s purpose is and how you will impact your customers’ lives with your products and services.

Vision Statement

A vision statement is big, bold, and futuristic. What do you want your company to be?

Here are a few examples:

• Harley-Davidson: Building our legend and leading our industry through innovation, evolution, and emotion
• Deloitte: We aspire to be the Standard of Excellence, the first choice of the most sought-after clients and talent.
• Amazon: Amazon strives to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, Earth’s best employer, and Earth’s safest place to work.

What do you want your company to become?  That’s your vision statement.

Values Statements

Values statements are typically a set of adjectives or statements that answer what the company stands for. They can be in the form of leadership principles, core values, or a similar format. These days, they often include values on environmental, social, climate, global, human rights, diversity and inclusion, sustainability, and many other current issues. They can take the form of additional strategic statements on each one of these issues.

Sample values statements can be found in the company’s annual report as well as the About or Company section of their website.

Here are some examples:

• Harley-Davidson Principles:
  • Communication – Communicate with purpose, structure, facts and inspiration
  • Agility – Accelerate, innovate and thrive in a rapidly changing environment
  • Impact – Focus on impact, not process, and be outcome driven
  • Simplicity – Pursue the simplest path to achieve each outcome
  • Speed – Don’t let perfection get in the way of process and pace
  • Culture – Be fair, honest, positive and creative. Strive to win and have fun.
  • Courage -Take risks and go against the norm
  • Judgment -Think strategically and make informed decisions
  • Focus – Focus on a short list of meaningful opportunities that build desirability
  • Lean – Maximize impact with limited resources

• Coca-Cola Behaviors We Focus on:
  • Curious
  • Empowered
  • Inclusive
  • Agile

• Merck Values:
  • Patients first
  • Respect for people
  • Ethics and integrity
  • Innovation and scientific excellence

Your mission, vision, and values statements will help you communicate the qualities of your business. It can help in hiring to see if a candidate’s individual values align with the core corporate values, and with customer acquisition when prospects see what your company is about. It can also help you remember your roots and why you work so hard every day.

We’d love to hear from you when you write up your mission, vision, and values statements.