If you don’t know where you want to get to, you will never get there.

Important as clear short-term targets expressed in a balanced scorecard may be, most employees can take real motivation by feeling that their work is part of something important. In some cases, this manifests itself in doing work which may improve the human condition. In other cases, it may be the creation of products or services which truly inspire customers. The effective leader will communicate the organization’s vision while simultaneously emphasizing the importance of the team’s role in that vision.

When communicating vision, the leader needs to consider the following elements:

What is the purpose of our organization?
What is our driving force?
What core values do we share?
How can we make a difference and how do we contribute to the success of the overall organization?
What activities are worth undertaking in the next 10 years?
What do we want to accomplish?
What do we need to change?

A good vision will always:

Pull people forward.
Project a clear image of a possible future.
Generate the enthusiasm and energy to strive toward the destination

A good vision has the following five key elements. It must be:

IDEAL/VIABLE (an achievable high standard to aspire to). Visions are about hopes, dreams, and aspirations. They're about making a difference. They tell us the ennobling purpose and greater good we are seeking.
UNIQUE (pride in being different, an identity). Visions are about the extraordinary. They are about what makes us distinctive, singular, and unequaled.
Contain a tangible IMAGE (a concept or mental picture made real or tangible through descriptive language). Word pictures, metaphors, examples, stories, symbols, and similar communication methods all help make visions memorable.
FUTURE-ORIENTED (looking toward a destination). Visions describe an exciting possibility for the future. They stretch our minds out into the future and ask us to dream.
Aimed at the COMMON GOOD (a way people can come together). Visions are about developing a shared sense of destiny. Leaders must be able to show others how their interests are served and how they are a part of the vision in order to enlist others in it.

Here are a few of my favorite vision statements. While not all vision statements are short, I have chosen ones which take on the character of a memorable slogan.

“We bring good things to life” – General Electric
“We seek to create a more prosperous society through automotive manufacturing” – Toyota
“To be the global leader in connected life and work” – Deutsche Telekom
“To put a ding in the universe” – Apple
“Extending and enhancing human life” – Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals

Many leaders at various levels in an organization tend to treat vision creation as something which comes from the rarified air of the board room. Ideally we should have a highly inspirational vision from corporate leadership, but we should be looking for how to customize that to address our employees in a very personal way.

Herb