While mission statements define the purpose of an individual or organization, a vision statement establishes a standard or overarching goal to aspire to. Once that goal is achieved, it becomes crucial to formulate a new and captivating vision statement. The vision answers the question, “Where do we see ourselves going?”
Involving others in the development of a vision is vital as it allows your team to contribute to shaping an attractive and successful future for the company, fostering a sense of shared ownership in the organization’s success. The initial step in crafting a vision is to bring together key stakeholders to reflect on the most positive “Best Future State” they envision for the team or organization. Begin by asking the question:
“If you were transported three to five years into the future and all your highest aspirations for this team or organization were realized, what would you see?”
Envision yourself waking up in the future, three to five years from now. As you observe your company, pay attention to what people are saying and doing, the achievements they are accomplishing together, and what others—customers, industry peers, employees, the media, and the community—are saying about you and the heights you have reached as a team or organization.
Before discussing these observations with the group, have everyone individually write down a detailed description of precisely what they experienced during their journey to the future—no matter how farfetched. Encourage them to be vivid in their descriptions and capture every aspect of the time travel exercise.
Facilitate Dialogue and Identify Common Themes
Once everyone has had an opportunity to record their ideas, foster a dialogue that will help identify common ground for building a vision that unifies stakeholders. As before, it is crucial to have a skilled facilitator who ensures that the group’s input is encouraged, captured, processed, and reported back later.
- Form smaller groups of eight to ten individuals for larger gatherings.
- Within each group, allow each person to share their vision of the Best Future State. This process promotes thoughtful dialogue about each person’s visualization.
- Instruct the groups to summarize the common themes that emerge from the vision descriptions they heard within their group.
- Ask the groups to present these “vision themes” to the larger gathering. Common themes often revolve around the workplace environment, customer experiences, company growth, collective learning, societal impact, accolades, and being recognized as a great place to work.
Write the Headline
By starting with each individual’s vivid description of the future and then identifying the shared themes across all the sub-groups, you will be able to find a common direction on which to build a compelling vision.
Ensure that your organization’s vision statement goes beyond being a mere slogan—it should be something measurable. In other words, the overarching goal should be broken down into milestones that, over a span of time (usually 3-10 years), guide you towards achieving the final vision.
Establish a Timeline
What are some milestones that can be set to accomplish your vision? In other words, what needs to be achieved to reach your vision?
Your vision serves as the umbrella guiding the organization towards its desired future. This overarching goal is then broken down across departments and teams within the organization, ensuring that the strategy, goals, and objectives align with the vision.
By following these steps, you can develop a compelling vision that inspires and unifies your organization, propelling it towards a future of growth, engagement, and success.