Merchant Processing Services

Directional Strategies: Mission

How many small optical organizations have ever thought about a mission statement? What is it? A definition I regularly use can be summarized by the following:

• The mission of an organization indicates what the organization really is about. Who it is and what it does. It is its “distinctiveness” among other organizations.
  

• It is broadly defined and states the purpose of the organization

The mission lets us, and the environments in which we operate know who we are and what we do. Now, that may sound simplistic, but it is vitally important. Do your employees know what you do? Of course, but often in the day-to-day operations we sometimes forget. It is helpful to have a well-placed statement of the mission on the wall for all to see in order to remind us and keep us focused on the mission. Go to any hospital, and you will see it in many places. Seeing the mission statement lets the patients they serve know how the organization views their role. 

These statements target the population they serve, and indicate the products or services offered. They define the philosophy of the organization and share that philosophy with all those who enter. Mission statements are generally developed by those at the top of the organization, but with input from all of the staff and stakeholders. 

Directional Strategies: Vision

The vision of the organization also comes from the senior leadership, and should state where the organization wishes to go in the future. It asks what you want to be down the road. Vision is something that may be difficult to teach. It requires an individual have an ability to see the potential and then be able to communicate it to the organization. Once communicated, the organization must accept it. Without acceptance by all parties, it can never be effective, so the communication piece is very important. Make sure you have a vision for your organization, and then communicate it effectively to the staff so that your vision becomes theirs. When all of the people involved pull in the same direction, we can then move into the future and achieve that goal.

Characteristics of vision include:

• Inspiring

• Clear and Challenging

• Sensible

• Stable but Challenged

• Directive

• Empowering

• Futuristic

• Detailed

Directional Strategies: Values

What are values? They are the core beliefs of the organization. They are the fundamental principles that the organization and those within it live by on a daily basis. It is the moral compass of the organization. Values are easy to establish, but as people change, they can prove difficult to maintain. Symbolism is important here. Think about the United States Marine Corps and their television commercials. The symbol of the young people in their dress blues with crossed swords provides a symbol for us all. The history that is celebrated cements that symbol in our minds. While your organization is probably not the Marine Corps, think about ways you can develop some symbolism. Do you have a well-designed logo or something else that can be associated with your organization? Do you celebrate the history and current activities of the company?

Values should be the collective beliefs of all those in the organization. They meld into a single set of values that all live by. It is imperative that the leaders of the organization assure in the hiring process that they bring in people who can add to the overall organizations goals and values and are going to be comfortable in the environment.

Directional Strategies: Goals

Strategic goals are extremely important to the success of the organization. Goals:

1. Relate specifically to activities that are critical to accomplish the mission

2. Link the success factors to the strategic momentum (carrying out the objectives)

3. Limited in number and achievable.

4. Come from the leadership, but should be accepted and appreciated by everyone.

Goals are not developed willy-nilly. We must carefully design our goals to make sure they follow the above guidelines. Goals should be measurable and obtainable. Setting goals outside our capabilities will do nothing more than set us up for failure, and that sends the wrong message. I have a friend who sells frames. His company sets unrealistic goals, and then can’t figure out why they never achieve them. It causes significant turnover and hurts all of those involved. They are not doing well, and will not until they learn to set realistic goals. Make sure you provide goals that are achievable, and also develop objectives……..short term goals, if you will, that help us reach our overall goal. This aids the organizations overall workplace satisfaction and will allow us to increase our goals over time. 

Conclusion

In summary, strategic management is a process. Beyond the mission, vision, values, and goals and objectives, there are action steps that need to be implemented to make the process work. It is an ongoing activity that includes:

1. Analysis- analyzing specific situations that present themselves as opportunities and based on where we see our market heading.

2. Planning- planning the appropriate strategies to help reach those overall goals and objectives

3. Implementation- implementing the plan

4. Evaluation and Control- evaluating our results, and if necessary choosing an alternative strategy if our original plan is not achieving what was expected.

This simplistic overview of the process must be revisited regularly. Much like CQI, we must constantly scan the environment for changes and adapt what we are doing to meet them. We must look to the future, and improve, or at least maintain our position through appropriate strategies for success. Unfortunately, we in the eye care industry do more reacting than strategically positioning ourselves for the future, and it is my sincere hope that this series has stimulated you to at least think about strategic management. I know it can make you more competitive in your marketplace. We can react, or be the leader that sets the tone. What is your strategy for the future?

References on request

Warren G. McDonald, PhD
Professor of Health Administration
Reeves School of Business / Methodist University