Make a Statement: Creating the Vision, Mission and Values

 The very first of F. Edwards Deming’s 14 points admonishes us to “Create constancy of purpose toward improvement of product and service, with the aim to become competitive and to stay in business, and to provide jobs. This surely applies to a company wanting to create a culture conducive to CRM. We are more likely to achieve this goal if we focus on the customer rather than on the bottom line. Nicholas Murray Butler (1862 - 1947), an American educator and Nobel Prize laureate, once said, “Businesses planned for service are apt to succeed; businesses planned for profit are apt to fail.” This important idea should be central to your organization in the creation of your Vision, Mission and Values Statements.

The Vision Statement (what you hope to do) should capture the long-term picture of what you want your organization to become. Do not confuse this with branding tag lines (creating image). "We Bring Good Things to Life" is merely GE’s tag line. Vision and image sound similar, but they are very different.

PRO-West is a private, nonprofit organization providing health care utilization management and quality assurance services nationwide. Its Vision Statement is "To be recognized for leadership, innovation and excellence in improving the health of individuals and populations.” A Vision Statement must be inspirational, …