Comments on: Your Mission Statement: Mostly Hogwash

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 15:36:40 +0000

thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.

By: rummuser

rummuser — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 15:25:04 +0000

Man, do I relate to that rant or what! I used to do that too except for much more colourful language. The front end salesforce loved it and went out and beat the c***** out of competition. That is all the mission that they needed.

Then the problems started, other competitors started following suit. Guess what mission statement we came out with?

I shall doff my topi off to the commentator who comes nearest to it.

By: wwds

wwds — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 14:39:29 +0000

Dave…good point, and maybe I should have made that part more obvious. Our organization most definitely did everything with high integrity, the missioni of Beat Kroy was more of a mobilizer than anything, and was always done wtih good humor. Other companies use this type of competitive mission as a way to justify their own evil methods. These companies are often caught in anti-competitive situations, Lanham Act violations, and a corporate policy of litigating mostly smaller competitors into the dust.

By: Dave Opton

Dave Opton — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 14:26:19 +0000

GL,

The trick, of course, is to beat the “Helvetica” (one of the best tag lines ever!) without bringing your organization down to the level of the other guy. Anger is a great motivator. So is integrity. “Time wounds all heels.”

Dave

By: wwds

wwds — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 14:17:26 +0000

You are exactly right, Clare.

By: Clare

Clare — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 14:11:51 +0000

Does anyone ever read mission statements? Do customers ever base their buying decisions on them? Personally, I never make an effort to read them on a company website, but maybe because most of what I’ve seen is either hopelessly general along the lines of “we strive to be number one at…” (Who doesn’t?) or so wrapped up in biz speak that it’s more or less unintelligible.

By: Morteza Tatlari

Morteza Tatlari — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 17:47:14 +0000

This is the second piece of writing I’m reading here, and I enjoyed that. Thanks and keep going!

By: wwds

wwds — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 16:50:46 +0000

Jacqui…thanks. Sometimes simpler is best. It is very easy to get ur undies wrapped around the axle with this topic, though, as I am sure you have seen more often than you would care to even admit.

Karen…thanks for stopping by and commenting. Two weeks? Hmmm, I couldn’t spend two weeks on one subject if the subject wsa “Business Stuff.” I hope you visit often…

By: Karen E. Brennan

Karen E. Brennan — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 16:03:16 +0000

I had to laugh when I read this. Having graduated last year, yes, I can tell you, we spent a good 2 weeks on mission statements in Strategic Management. Of course, as students, we tried very hard NOT to make them hogwash.

Thanks for your humor as well as your insights. It makes points more memorable.

Karen E. Brennan

By: Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter, MRW

Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter, MRW — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:38:14 +0000

Mission,Vision and Value Statements – in my corporate life, I had my share of helping facilitate semi-annual planning sessions where such matters were brainstormed. After awhile, it seemed to be a matter of making the simple complex. As well, it seemed like bureaucracy machinations at their best.

Your point of telling it in five word or less so Hilda tells her friends makes good sense.

Your title: “Your Mission Statement: Mostly Hogwash” resonates.

Thanks again for sharing your wisdom and insights gleaned from your years of business leadership success.

Jacqui
“Your Value Into Words”