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How do I Create a Company Vision?

Carol Francois
Carol Francois

A company vision is a statement that summarizes the purpose of your company. The statement must inspire staff, instill confidence, and represent your business mission. The process of creating a company vision can be straightforward, but it requires creativity, clarity of mind, and a willingness to take risks. There are three steps necessary to create a company vision: brainstorm about the business identity, identify key message and communicate the message.

The first step in brainstorming is to turn on your creative thinking process. Warm up with word association, kamikaze poetry, or brainteasers. Get together a group of creative people to help with the process. Move outside your comfort zone and do not be afraid to try new things.

Jotting down ideas and thoughts onto a pad of paper is the first step to creating a company vision.
Jotting down ideas and thoughts onto a pad of paper is the first step to creating a company vision.

It can be difficult to think of simple statements that summarize the business when you are deeply involved in the day-to-day operations. To begin, make a list of at least three main drivers. These drivers are the items that are the main activity sources each day.

Next, brainstorm on what you would like past clients to say about your firm. Define what is the highest praise for you and how important is customer feedback to the business. Then make a list of the harshest criticisms you have ever received on the firm.

Post these items on large sheets of paper and put them up on a large wall. Highlight all the verbs in yellow, and underline the adjectives in red. Evaluate the verbs and adjectives to learn more about how others view your company.

Create a draft vision statement. Make a list of bullet point statements that incorporate all the points in your brainstorming. Work with your creative and executive team to narrow down the statements to one or two sentences.

Ask your executive staff and select customers to review the statement and get their honest appraisal. A vision is meaningless unless is speaks to staff and customers. Create a focus group and review feedback on the company vision statement, making adjustments as necessary. Incorporate your vision statement into your firm's identity.

Have it posted in the entranceway to your offices. Place it prominently in all business publications. Repeat your vision statement in communications to staff and customers alike. Use the statement to reinforce the mission of the business. Evaluate new ideas and projects in terms of adherence to the company vision.

Discussion Comments

bythewell

@browncoat - I know if I was ever going to start a business, it would almost certainly be in response to another business doing something wrong. Like, I really hate the hiring and staff treatment of certain fast food restaurants. If I was going to develop a company vision and mission, it would be to do better than whoever was already out there.

Of course, you wouldn't want to say that specifically in the vision statement, but you'd definitely want to allude to it, particularly since it would be your point of difference in order to get people talking about your company.

browncoat

@Ana1234 - If you're trying to come up with a statement before you actually hire many people, you might want to look up company vision statements examples from other businesses that you admire. Even if you don't have anything in common in terms of what you actually do, you can still emulate their process and their relationships with customers and staff.

You can also take advantage of the research that's been done by other companies in order to figure out the best way to do things. Your vision doesn't have to be that specific, of course, but it can encompass values that you are planning to focus on specifically in the future.

Ana1234

If you've already got staff you might want to ask their opinion on what should be included in your company vision or mission statement. Even the people who are on the lowest tier will appreciate the chance to have a say, and it's a good way to demonstrate that talk about inclusiveness and open door policies are more than just words.

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    • Jotting down ideas and thoughts onto a pad of paper is the first step to creating a company vision.
      By: alpy7
      Jotting down ideas and thoughts onto a pad of paper is the first step to creating a company vision.