e-Zine Article Archives Ezine, Issue #006 - Strategic Awareness from your Vision Statement
Ezine, Issue #006 - Strategic Awareness from your Vision Statement
Conscious Chief Executives E-zine - Issue #06
Strategic Awareness from Your Vision Statement
Steven Bowman
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When was the last time you heard someone say
“Our Vision statement truly guides all our strategic decision making” Or
“Our vision statement is what holds the organization together”. Or
“People really get our vision and work with us to achieve that vision”?
Yet isn’t this what vision statements are for?
One of the most powerful tools for creating strategic awareness in your nonprofit organization is your Vision statement. A Vision Statement is an expression of what your organization would like to see as a possibility and a future for the community and stakeholders you serve. Having created the Vision Statement, then all decisions, projects and services can be filtered through the vision statement to assess whether they are truly “Vision-driven” and hence creating the strategic awareness of possible futures and the impact that your organization desires.
A Vision statement has traditionally been where an organization has stated what its core values and core purposes are for the organization, maybe with some values thrown in for good measure. This is essentially inward looking and all about the organization. This is why most Vision statements work against strategic awareness. They are too often about the vehicle of delivery, the organization. Our point of view is that the Vision statement should be about the future your organization wishes to create for the community and stakeholders you wish to impact.
The vision could start of with something like…”Our vision is for a community where….”
Creating a Vision statement is quite simple and easy. It is usually done as part of the nonprofit strategic planning process, as one of the first exercises of the strategic plan facilitation. Click here for some strategic plan facilitation tools>>
The planning group (consisting of various people who have points of view about the organization that truly matter to the organization) are asked the question:
“What is the future we would wish for our community (not for this organization!)”
"What lasting legacy would we desire for our community?”
“Who is the community we are servicing? Will they change? Do we need a broad or narrow description of our community?”
These questions will assist to get at the core essence of why the organization was created in the first place. This should take no more than about an hour.
The days of Vision fatigue are over (you’ve heard about this, when large groups of people meet over lengthy periods of time to debate wordsmithing of something that no-one will ever use?). Here are some examples of Vision statements that create strategic awareness and future possibility:
“We value a community where there is confidence in aged care, where cultural diversity is truly celebrated and family and community remain connected.” - World class regional Aged Care facility specializing in multicultural care
“Our vision is for an ethical environment where training and employment services lead future requirements, career pathways are valued equally, safety and security is paramount and people and teams are motivated to excel.” - Large and innovative training and employment organization.
These Vision statements have “oomph”, they get at what the organization strives to create, it represents why the founders created the organization, and why Board members choose to sit on the Board.
The next discussion then should be about how well we map our existing programs against the key elements of our Vision statement, and how we “walk the talk”. This discussion, at both nonprofit Board and staff level, should focus on the strategic issues that are raised, and the awareness that is required to drive the organization towards creating the future and the possibilities that the Vision articulates.
Here are eleven things you can do to create strategic awareness from your Vision statement.
- Have the vision statement on each Board agenda to remind the Board why they are meeting
- Encourage the Chairman and other Directors to use the Vision statement to assist in gaining clarity around a discussion or decision, and to create greater strategic awareness around the issue
- Describe in the annual report how you are using the Vision statement to drive the organization forward, and provide stories that illustrate the “walking the talk”.
- Embed discussion of the Vision statement into the Board induction program with new directors, and how the organization uses the Vision statement
- Use the Vision statement as the first point of discussion and filter at your strategic planning session. Click here for a related article on “What Corporates can learn from Nonprofit Strategy Setting” >>
- Ensure that all strategies and actions from the strategic plan directly align with the Vision statement. Click here for some e-book resources in this area >>
- Evaluate how the Board understands and uses the Vision statement as part of your Board evaluation process. Click here for more articles on this area >>
- Evaluate how key stakeholders perceive the Board understands and uses the Vision statement as part of your Board evaluation process
- Embed the key elements of the Vision statement into the performance management framework of staff, especially senior leadership
- Ensure that all new projects specifically address the key elements of the Vision statement. Click here for a simple tool to assist>>
- Revisit the Vision statement annually as part of your annual strategic plan review, and ask the questions: “Does this still represent the essence of what we want to create?” “Has anything changed that will necessitate a change in our Vision statement?”
If you are able to show that all the above are in place, then you are truly a vision-driven organization, strategically aware, a social innovator, an organization that makes a difference in all it does, and an organization that is creating a better place for the stakeholders who have placed their trust in you. Are you and your Board willing to be the social innovators that your Vision statement invites you to be?
What's New?
1 day Intensive Workshop in Advanced Nonprofit Strategic Planning , Sydney, Australia, Rydges World Square, 11th December 2008.
This workshop aims to provide excellence in debate and implementation in the Strategic Planning field encompassing stages from future potentials, through to execution and on to impacts, results and accountability. It is particularly relevant to Nonprofit organizations.
This one day intensive workshop will cover
• Creating Awareness & Exploring Possible Plausibles through environmental scanning
• Establishing Strategic Planning Frameworks that work
• Creating Decisions that are truly Strategic
• Embedding Your Strategic Plan into the organization
Click here to download brochure and registration details
"Strategic Risk Management: Risk as Strategic Advantage for Nonprofit Leaders"
This Chief Executive Quick Guide has been formulated to provide leading edge perspectives and techniques on topics particularly relevant to chief executives of nonprofit organizations around the world. This Quick Guide has been tested in the real world of nonprofit Board rooms and senior leadership teams, and is designed to provide points of view on key areas of chief executive responsibilities in terms of risk management. Only US$45.00, this Quick Guide is available as a downloadable e-book immediately. Click here for more information and to order >>>>
"The Conscious Chief Executive-Leading Your Nonprofit Organization to Success from Awareness"
This book is based on the awareness that all nonprofit organizations have unlimited potential and possibility to become successful and thriving if they are led by conscious leaders. This book shows what it would take for chief executives to become conscious leaders and to embody and be the greatness of who they truly are. It provides chief executives of nonprofit organizations a practical conscious leadership "toolbox" of strategies. Only US$35.00, this is available as a downloadable e-book immediately. Click here for more information and to order >>>>
"Advanced Strategic Planning-Strategic Planning that works for nonprofit Boards and Leaders"
What would it take for your strategic plan to be truly strategic? Do you want to know how to embed the strategic plan into all facets of your organization and get amazing buy-in from Board, staff and stakeholders? Do you want a process that is quick, focused and provides step-by-step guidelines that result in a strategic plan that is accountable and measurable? Only US$45.00, this Quick Guide is available as a downloadable e-book immediately. Click here for more information and to order >>>>
Strategic Plan Facilitation
Contact Steven Bowman for an invitation to work with us to create your strategic plan that is truly strategic with embedded project action plans: in 1 day, involving key stakeholders, with full accountability to the Board, staff and stakeholders., and a strategic plan that creates change at the Board, staff and community level
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Previous Issues Topics
Issue #001 -- When Board members step over the line
Issue #002 -- How can the Chair and the CEO work together productively?
Issue #003 -- What are the Powers of Members vs Nonprofit Boards?
Issue #004 -- How can we improve attendances at Board meetings?
Issue #005 -- How do we remove unproductive Board members?
Click here for links to back issues
Next Issue Topic
Next issue will focus on nonprofit Board remuneration (should we, shouldn't we, and why), a very emotive topic that has arisen more frequently in the past few months. (Mind you, I might change the topic if something even more topical comes in. Let me know what you would like to see!)
Please send us any of your feedback, or any questions that you might like to see in the e-zine. All communications are confidential.
Happy reading
Steven Bowman
Contact Us
Contact us if you would like more information on any of the following:
Board and Governance audit and review Our Strategic Governance review is a comprehensive independent review of Board processes, including Board strategic processes, Board structure, Board and stakeholder communication, Board compliance responsibilities and strategic operational issues that directly affect the governance of your organization.
Strategic Planning facilitation Our Strategic Planning process encapsulates the most robust, time-efficient planning techniques to provide a focused, vision driven strategic plan, with value added components that embed the strategic plan into the Governance and operational framework of the organization. Powerful success measures, a unique ethics filter, strategic reporting frameworks and strategic thinking processes are end results of our Strategic Planning process.
Strategic Plan annual review facilitation Is your strategic plan on track? Our strategic plan review facilitation provides a focused forum for reviewing your existing strategic plan, with four key questions explored?1. What has worked with our strategic plan 2. What has not worked with our strategic plan 3. What has changed in our environment 4. What do we need to add or take out of our strategic plan
Telephone (61)3 95099529
Mobile 0438 325 782
Email us steven @ conscious-governance.com
Conscious Governance website www.conscious-governance.com
Physical address: 17 Gordon Grove, Malvern Australia 3144
