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Vision is a widely used term, but not well understood. Perhaps leaders don't understand what vision is, or why it is important. One strategic leader is quoted as saying, "I've come to believe that we need a vision to guide us, but I can't seem to get my hands on what 'vision' is. I've heard lots of terms like mission, purpose, values, and strategic intent, but no-one has given me a satisfactory way of looking at vision that will help me sort out this morass of words. It's really frustrating!”

What is vision? Because it operates on many levels, vision is difficult to define simply. When we say that a leader has vision, we refer to the ability to see the present as it is and formulate a future that grows out of and improves upon the present. A leader with vision is able to see into the future without being far-sighted and remain rooted in the present without being near-sighted. We also speak of having a vision for an organization, which looks at it from a slightly different perspective. A vision is an idea of the future; it is an image, a strongly felt wish.

Vision is a tremendously powerful force in any walk of life, but in business it is essential. A vision is a target toward which a leader aims her energy and resources. The constant presence of the vision keeps a leader moving despite various forces of resistance: fear of failure; emotional hardships, such as negative responses from superiors, peers, or employees; or 'real' hardships, such as practical difficulties or problems in the industry.

Equally important, a vision, when shared by employees, can keep an entire company moving forward in the face of difficulties, enabling and inspiring leaders and employees alike. Moving toward the same goal, individuals work together rather than as disconnected people brought together because of having been hired coincidentally by the same organization. It can turn the stereotypical corporate hierarchy into a well-organized and harmonious matrix working together toward a common goal.

One definition of vision comes from Burt Nanus, a well-known expert on the subject. Nanus defines a vision as a realistic, credible, attractive future for [an] organization. Let's analyze this definition:

· Inspirational description of what an organization would like to achieve or accomplish in the midterm and long term future, it is intended to serve as guide for choosing current or future courses of action.

· A specialist was hired to develop and present a series of half-day training seminars on empowerment and teamwork for the managers of a large international oil company. Fifteen minutes into the first presentation, he took a headlong plunge into the trap of assumption. With great intent, he laid the groundwork for what he considered the heart of empowerment-team-building, family, and community. He praised the need for energy, commitment, and passion for production. At what he thought was the appropriate time, he asked the group of 40 managers the simple question on which he was to ground his entire talk: "What is the vision of your company?" No one raised a hand. The speaker thought they might be shy, so he gently encouraged them. The room grew deadly silent. Everyone was looking at everyone else, and he had a sinking sensation in his stomach. "Your company does have a vision, doesn't it?" he asked. A few people shrugged, and a few shook their heads. He was dumbfounded. How could any group or individual strive toward greatness and mastery without a vision? That's exactly the point. They can't. They can maintain, they can survive; but they can't expect to achieve greatness.

An additional framework for examining vision is put forward by Collins and Porras. They conceptualize vision as having two major components: a Guiding Philosophy, and a Tangible Image. They define the guiding philosophy as "a system of fundamental motivating assumptions, principles, values and tenets." The guiding philosophy stems from the organization's core beliefs and values and its purpose.

The right vision for an organization, one that is a realistic, credible, attractive future for that organization, can accomplish a number of things for the organization:

This is one of the primary reasons for having a vision for an organization: its motivational effect. When people can see that the organization is committed to a vision-and that entails more than just having a vision statement-it generates enthusiasm about the course the organization intends to follow, and increases the commitment of people to work toward achieving that vision.

A vision allows people to feel like they are part of a greater whole, and hence provides meaning for their work. The right vision will mean something to everyone in the organization if they can see how what they do contributes to that vision. Consider the difference between the hotel service worker who can only say, "I make beds and clean bathrooms," to the one who can also say, "I'm part of a team committed to becoming the worldwide leader in providing quality service to our hotel guests." The work is the same, but the context and meaning of the work is different.

A vision serves a very important function in establishing a standard of excellence. In fact, a good vision is all about excellence. Tom Peters, the author of In Search of Excellence, talks about going into an organization where a number of problems existed. When he attempted to get the organization's leadership to address the problems, he got the defensive response, "But we're no worse than anyone else!" Peters cites this sarcastically as a great vision for an organization: "Acme Widgets: We're No Worse Than Anyone Else!" A vision so characterized by lack of a striving for excellence would not motivate or excite anyone about that organization. The standard of excellence also can serve as a continuing goal and stimulate quality improvement programs, as well as providing a measure of the worth of the organization.

The right vision takes the organization out of the present, and focuses it on the future. It's easy to get caught up in the crises of the day, and to lose sight of where you were heading. A good vision can orient you on the future, and provide positive direction. The vision alone isn't enough to move you from the present to the future, however. That's where a strategic plan, discussed later in the chapter, comes in. A vision is the desired future state for the organization; the strategic plan is how to get from where you are now to where you want to be in the future.

Before writing a vision statement, it is important to clearly understand three fundamental facts:

ü Your vision’s nature – what the vision is and what it is not (common misconceptions).

ü Your vision’s function – what the vision does for your organization as a leadership tool.

ü Your vision’s fuel – what you need to do in order to ignite its full potential.

Once you understand these three basic facts, it will be easier to start writing a vision statement for your organization

The vision is an appealing mental picture of the ideal future. Your vision is what your aspire to achieve, to become, to create. Your vision does not predict the future – it is a tool to help you create the future.

Your vision – in order to be an effective leadership tool – must accomplish two things simultaneously:

Your vision works like a compass to help your entire workforce navigate through the waters of change and move in the desired direction – it helps your whole organization focus its attention on what is most important.

Your vision helps you create a common context for efficient activity coordination, for elimination of unproductive activities, and for effective decision making throughout your organization at all levels.

A shared vision provides an organizational framework for guiding actions without having to have direct supervision and unobtrusive control.

The process of writing a vision statement is the first part, the second part is making sure everybody clearly understands it and buys into it so that everyone can row in the same direction.

The vision of your organization helps your employees see how their efforts contribute to the larger picture and it helps them become aware of how their involvement matters to a common cause. When people feel connected to the vision of the organization, they feel more motivated to think in new ways, to innovate, and to pull against the status quo.

A shared vision has the possibility to change the existing state of affairs for a better future.

A successful vision has the potential to enhance a wide range of performance measures: Organizations with a vision have historically outperformed companies without a vision.

You can have the best vision in the world, but if most of your employees don’t know about it, your impressive vision is useless.

Your vision realizes its full potential when it produces change, and to do so, it must be broadly shared, understood, and approved.

On one hand, when a vision is not shared, it lacks the collective commitment for bringing it to life – the most influential visions are developed upon the shared desires of your organization’s stakeholders: your employees, clients, suppliers, stockholders, etc.

On the other hand, if senior management’s behavior is not consistent with the vision, writing a vision statement is a waste of time – a vision statement must be embodied in the senior leader’s behavior. The behavior of senior leaders is one of the most influential ingredients in the creation of culture – the culture of your organization.

At this point we should know what a good vision consists of, and recognize a vision statement when you see one. But how does a strategic leader go about developing a vision for an organization? We can also recommend a few words of advice to someone formulating a vision for an organization:

There is no substitute for a thorough understanding of the organization as a foundation for your vision.

Don’t try to do it alone. If you're going to get others to buy into your vision, if it's going to be a wholly shared vision, involvement of at least the key people in the organization is essential. "Constituencies," refer to people both inside and outside the organization who can have a major impact on the organization, or who can be impacted by it. Another term to refer to constituencies is "stakeholders"- those who have a stake in the organization.

Don't be constrained in your thinking by the organization's current direction - it may be right, but it may not.

Another injunction about not trying to do it alone: those down in the organization often know it best and have a wealth of untapped ideas. Talk with them!

Provide continuity if possible, and don't throw out good ideas because you didn't originate them. In his book about visionary leadership,

To formulate a vision for an organization, you first must understand it. Essential questions to be answered include what its mission and purpose are, what value it provides to society, what the character of the industry is, what institutional framework the organization operates in, what the organization's position is within that framework, what it takes for the organization to succeed, who the critical stakeholders are, both inside and outside the organization, and what their interests and expectations are.

This step involves assessing the current direction and momentum of the organization. Key questions to be answered include: Does the organization have a clearly stated vision? What is the organization's current direction? Do the key leaders of the organization know where the organization is headed and agree on the direction? Do the organization's structures, processes, personnel, incentives, and information systems support the current direction?

This step involves starting to narrow in on a vision. Key questions: What are the boundaries or constraints to the vision? What must the vision accomplish? What critical issues must be addressed in the vision?

This is where you look to the future, and where the process of formulating a vision gets difficult. Your vision is a desirable future for the organization. To craft that vision you first must think about what the organization's future environment might look like. This doesn't mean you need to predict the future, only to make some informed estimates about what future environments might look like. First, categorize future developments in the environment which might affect your vision. Second, list your expectations for the future in each category. Third, determine which of these expectations is most likely to occur. And fourth, assign a probability of occurrence to each expectation.

This step follows directly from the fourth step. Having determined, as best you can, those expectations most likely to occur, and those with the most impact on your vision, combine those expectations into a few brief scenarios to include the range of possible futures you anticipate. The scenarios should represent, in the aggregate, the alternative "futures" the organization is likely to operate within.

Just as there are several alternative futures for the environment, there are several directions the organization might take in the future. The purpose of this step is to generate visions reflecting those different directions. Do not evaluate your possible visions at this point, but use a relatively unconstrained approach.

Here's the decision point where you select the best possible vision for your organization. To do this, first look at the properties of a good vision, and what it takes for a vision to succeed, including consistency with the organization's culture and values. Next, compare the visions you've generated with the alternative scenarios, and determine which of the possible visions will apply to the broadest range of scenarios. The final vision should be the one which best meets the criteria of a good vision, is compatible with the organization's culture and values, and applies to a broad range of alternative scenarios (possible futures).

There are many methods for writing a vision statement – what works in one organization might not work in another. Nonetheless, these are some guidelines that will help you when writing a vision statement:

Writing a vision statement is a process – sometimes a long process that is not easy. It is definitely not a one-time clear-cut event.

This process requires commitment from top management. Sometimes writing a vision statement might seem like a waste of time because of the amount of work it requires.

Assign a single person who will be responsible for writing a vision statement; also, assign a team to this person who will support her in bringing this task to fruition. If the top person of the organization (e.g., the CEO) is not included in this team, she should supervise closely the development of this process.

John Kotter in “Leading Change” (HBSP, Boston, MA: 1996) suggests including in this team, people from throughout your organization with the following characteristics:

ü People with different expertise in terms of discipline, work experience, ethnic backgrounds, etc. – you want to bring to the table different perspectives.

ü People with credibility – you want these people to be taken seriously by the rest of your organization.

ü People with proven leadership ability – you want your change to move forward once your vision is finally shaped.

Make sure your team is able to work together effectively; otherwise, your team will spend endless hours debating and debating without being able to move forward.

Writing a vision statement is a process that requires both Number crunching and analytical thinking (work for the left-brain hemisphere) Dreaming and intuition (work for the right-brain hemisphere)

Figuratively speaking, writing a vision statement is an assignment for the head (managerial work) and for the heart (leadership work).

This process must analyze tons of data and synthesize it down to an elegant simplicity.

In other words, your team responsible for writing a vision statement must have a balanced inclusion of both: managers and leaders.

Your vision must be anchored in reality taking into account your organization’s problems and capabilities, and the environment – managers are good at this; but managers don’t create visions, they typically create plans which extend the past rather than creating the future. Leaders create visions.

You don’t want your workforce to find the vision too lofty, abstract, irrelevant, etc., you want your vision to be strategic and aligned with the aspirations of your people. Hence, writing a vision statement typically requires a process that starts at the top of your organization working its way down collecting data; then the process continues back to the top searching for common ground, to shape this input into a first draft. This cycle might take place just once, or perhaps more times as required by the needs of your organization.

In the Book of Proverbs it is said, "Where there is no vision, the people perish." This is as true in business as it is in life. Organizations whose leaders have no vision are doomed to work under the burden of mere tradition. They cannot prosper and grow because they are reduced to keeping things the way they have always been; they are guided by the saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

True leaders see things differently. They are guided by another belief more in keeping with the competitive world in which we live. They believe, "If it ain't broke, you're not looking hard enough." Realizing that there is always room for improvement, they believe that no one has ever done anything so well that it cannot be done better.

For leaders, a vision is not a dream; it is a reality that has yet to come into existence. Vision is palpable to leaders; their confidence in and dedication to vision are so strong they can devote long hours over many years to bring it into being. In this way, a vision acts as a force within, compelling a leader to action. It gives a leader purpose, and the power of the vision and the leader's devotion to it work to inspire others-- who, sensing purpose and commitment, respond. Warren Bennie, having spent many years working with leaders, has concluded:

A vision is a mental picture of the result you want to achieve---a picture so clear and strong it will help make that result real. A vision is not a vague wish or dream or hope. It’s a picture of the real results of real efforts. It comes from the future and informs and energizes the present. Visioning is the most powerful tool I’ve witnessed in over twenty years of helping organizations and individuals get the results they want.

The practice of using visions is mainstream. Some companies use visions to communicate their values and goals. Professional sports teams use visioning exercises to improve performance (there are studies showing that basketball players who practice free throws only by “envisioning” the ball going through the hoop improve their shooting percentage almost as much as those who actually throw the ball). The director of a play might “envision” a perfect production before rehearsals begin.

A vision inspires action. A powerful vision pulls in ideas, people and other resources. It creates the energy and will to make change happen. It inspires individuals and organizations to commit, to persist and to give their best.

A vision is a practical guide for creating plans, setting goals and objectives, making decisions, and coordinating and evaluating the work on any project, large or small.

A vision helps keep organizations and groups focused and together, especially with complex projects and in stressful times.

Be clear—so sharp and so detailed that you can see, smell and taste the smallest details.

Be positive. Acknowledge the difficulties, but don’t try to motivate yourself or others with a vision of bad things that might happen if you don’t succeed. A vision based on fear may help fuel immediate action, but it can also limit your results to damage control rather than getting to positive change.

Be big enough. Create a bigger picture of the effects of your work than just solving the problem at hand. A vision that’s too small may not provide enough inspiration, or generate enough energy, to get you past the tough spots. It might even close your mind to what you could achieve.

Include changes in attitudes. The challenge you see in front of you is only the part of the problem you can see—the rest of the challenge is deeper and often involves personal attitudes that may be strongly held. Remember the “iceberg” in Coach’s Corner #3.

Include a clear picture of your personal role, Not just that of your organization, if you’re in one. This isn’t about ego. It’s about you taking full responsibility for helping achieve the results you want.

Come from the heart, not the head. Don’t try to think your way to a vision. To create a vision that’s exciting and compelling, you’ve got to give yourself the freedom to dream—to use your imagination to see and feel what does not yet exist. A vision is not the same as goals or objectives; those come from the head. A vision comes from the heart.

Learning how to create and communicate a vision is useful whether you’re starting a project on your own or you’re joining a group already organized around a project. Later, I’ll show you how to communicate your vision to a group or team, pulling in volunteers and resources. I’ll also explain how to use a vision to guide your planning process, to get institutions and bureaucracies to listen to you, and to shape your communications---from speeches to brochures.

Just as they underlie organizational culture, beliefs and values are a critical part of guiding philosophy and therefore vision. One CEO expressed the importance of core values and beliefs this way:

I firmly believe that any organization, in order to survive and achieve success, must have a sound set of beliefs on which it premises all its policies and actions. Next, I believe that the most important single factor in corporate success is faithful adherence to those beliefs. And, finally, I believe [the organization] must be willing to change everything about itself except those beliefs as it moves through corporate life.

We have provided examples of core values and beliefs from a survey of industry they conducted, and cite the following examples, among others:

L.L. Bean: "Sell good merchandise at a reasonable price; treat your customers like you would your friends, and the business will take care of itself."

Sony: "We should always be the pioneers with our products--out front leading the market. We believe in leading the public with new products rather than asking them what kind of products they want."

Motorola: "Everything will turn out alright if we just keep in motion, forever moving forward."

The second part of guiding philosophy is purpose-why the organization exists, what needs it fills. A good purpose statement should be "broad, fundamental, inspirational, and enduring." Consider this purpose statement: "The purpose of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD, is to prepare midshipmen to become professional officers in the naval service." Or this purpose statement from Apple Computer: "To make a contribution to the world by making tools for the mind that advance humankind." How do these statements of purpose stack up?

Whether individual, team, organization or nation, a sense of purpose and direction is essential to commitment. A shared sense of purpose is the glue that binds people together in common cause, often linking each individual's goals with the organization's goals. Properly formulated, a shared sense of purpose provides understanding of the need for coordinated collective effort -- for subordinating individual interest to the larger objective that can be achieved only by the collective effort. When it is long range in nature, it is the basis for detailed planning for the allocation of resources. When it is noble and inspiring, it gives dignity and respect to those participating in the effort. And, when it promises a better future, it gives hope to all who seek it

The second major component of vision is tangible image. This is composed of a mission and a vivid description. Mission is "a clear and compelling goal that serves to unify an organization's effort. An effective mission must stretch and challenge the organization, yet be achievable"

It involves thinking about the future, and modeling possible future states. A vision doesn't exist in the present, and it may or may not be reached in the future. "A vision portrays a fictitious world that cannot be observed or verified in advance and that, in fact, may never become reality" (emphasis added). However, if it is a good mental model, it shows the way to identify goals and how to plan to achieve them.

How can a vision be realistic and idealistic at the same time? One way of reconciling these apparently contradictory properties of a vision is that the vision is realistic enough so that people believe it is achievable, but idealistic enough so that it cannot be achieved without stretching. If it is too easily achievable, it will not set a standard of excellence, nor will it motivate people to want to work toward it. On the other hand, if it is too idealistic, it may be perceived as beyond the reach of those in the organization, and discourage motivation. A realistic vision for that software company might be to maintain their current market share and produce instructional software that meets quality standards. Realistic, yes; but inspiring? No. A realistic yet also idealistic vision might be: To become the industry leader in the development of state-of-the-art instructional software products, known for the quality and the innovativeness of their design.

A vision must be consistent with the organization's values and culture, and its place in its environment. It must also be realistic. For example, in a time of downsizing and consolidation in an industry, a very ambitious, expansionistic vision would not be appropriate. An organization with a history of being conservative, and a culture encouraging conformity rather than risk taking, would not find an innovative vision appropriate. The computer software company mentioned above, with a history of producing high quality instructional software, would not find a vision to become the industry leader in video games or virtual reality software an appropriate one.

Generally, the vision proposed above for the software company does reflect measurable standards of excellence and a high level of aspiration. The actual measure could be the external reputation of the company, as assessed by having users evaluate the company and its products.

In defining that "realistic, credible, attractive future for an organization," a vision provides the rationale for both the mission and the goals the organization should pursue. This creates meaning in workers' lives by clarifying purpose, and making clear what the organization wants to achieve. For people in the organization, a good vision should answer the question, "Why do I go to work?" With a good vision, the answer to that question should not only be, "To earn a paycheck," but also, "To help build that attractive future for the organization and achieve a higher standard of excellence."

An inspiring vision can help people in an organization get excited about what they're doing, and increase their commitment to the organization. The computer industry is an excellent example of one characterized by organizations with good visions. A recent article reported that it is not unusual for people to work 80 hour weeks, and for people to be at work at any hour of the day or night. Some firms had to find ways to make employees go home, not ways to make them come to work! What accounts for this incredible work ethic? It is having a sense of working organizations that are building the future in a rapidly evolving and unconstrained field, where an individual's work makes a difference, and where everyone shares a vision for the future.

In order to motivate individuals, and clearly point toward the future, a vision must be articulated so people understand it. Most often, this will be in the form of a vision statement. There are dangers in being too terse, or too long-winded. A vision must be more than a slogan or a "bumper sticker." Slogans such as Ford Motor Company's "Quality Is Job One" are good marketing tools, but the slogan doesn't capture all the essential elements of a vision. On the other hand, a long document that expounds an organization's philosophy and lays out its strategic plan is too complex to be a vision statement. The key is to strike a balance.

This is where the leaders of an organization need to ask themselves, "What is the one thing we do better than anyone else? What is it that sets us apart from others in our area of business?" A good example of a visioning process refocusing a company on its core competencies are Sears. A few years ago, Sears had expanded into areas far afield from its original business as a retailer. Among other things, Sears began offering financial services at their stores. Poor performance led Sears to realize that they could not compete with financial services companies whose core business was in that area, so they dropped that service and eliminated other aspects of their business not related to retailing. Interestingly, Sears' primary competitor is Wal-Mart, an organization with a very clear and compelling vision. Sam Walton found a niche in providing one stop shopping for people in rural areas, and overwhelmed "Mom and Pop" stores with volume buying and discounting. Wal-Mart is very clear about their vision, and has focused on specific areas where they can be the industry leader. The key is finding what it is that your organization does best. Focus your vision there.

It must not be commonplace. It must be truly extraordinary. This property gets back to the idea of a vision that causes people and the organization to stretch. A good vision pushes the organization to a higher standard of excellence, challenging its members to try and achieve a level of performance they haven't achieved before. Inspiring, motivating, compelling visions are not about maintaining the status quo.

Now that you have a vision statement for your organization, are you done? Formulating the vision is only the first step; implementing the vision is much harder, but must follow if the vision is going to have any effect on the organization. The three critical tasks of the strategic leader are formulating the vision, communicating it, and implementing it. Some organizations think that developing the vision is all that is necessary. If they have not planned for implementing that vision, development of the vision has been wasted effort. Even worse, a stated vision which is not implemented may have adverse effects within the organization because it initially creates expectations that lead to cynicism when those expectations are not met.

Before implementing the vision, the leader needs to communicate the vision to all the organization's stakeholders, particularly those inside the organization. The vision needs to be well articulated so that it can be easily understood. And, if the vision is to inspire enthusiasm and encourage commitment, it must be communicated to all the members of the organization.

How do you communicate a vision to a large and diverse organization? The key is to communicate the vision through multiple means. Some techniques used by organizations to communicate the vision include disseminating the vision in written form; preparing audiovisual shows outlining and explaining the vision; and presenting an explanation of the vision in speeches, interviews or press releases by the organization's leaders. An organization's leaders also may publicly "sign up" for the vision. You've got to "walk your talk." For the vision to have credibility, leaders must not only say they believe in the vision; they must demonstrate that they do through their decisions and their actions.

Once you've communicated your vision, how do you go about implementing it? This is where strategic planning comes in. To describe the relationship between strategic visioning and strategic planning in very simple terms, visioning can be considered as establishing where you want the organization to be in the future; strategic planning determines how to get there from where you are now. Strategic planning links the present to the future, and shows how you intend to move toward your vision. One process of strategic planning is to first develop goals to help you achieve your vision, then develop actions that will enable the organization to reach these goals.

An organization must and can develop a strategic plan that includes specific and measurable goals to implement a vision. A comprehensive plan will recognize where the organization is today, and cover all the areas where action is needed to move toward the vision. In addition to being specific and measurable, actions should clearly state who is responsible for their completion. Actions should have milestones tied to them so progress toward the goals can be measured.

Implementing the vision does not stop with the formulation of a strategic plan - the organization that stops at this point is not much better off than one that stops when the vision is formulated. Real implementation of a vision is in the execution of the strategic plan throughout the organization, in the continual monitoring of progress toward the vision, and in the continual revision of the strategic plan as changes in the organization or its environment necessitate. The bottom line is that visioning is not a discrete event, but rather an ongoing process

Our vision serves as the framework for our Roadmap and guides every aspect of our business by describing what we need to accomplish in order to continue achieving sustainable, quality growth.

To achieve sustainable growth, we have established a vision with clear goals.
Profit: Maximizing return to shareowners while being mindful of our overall responsibilities.
People: Being a great place to work where people are inspired to be the best they can be.
Portfolio: Bringing to the world a portfolio of beverage brands that anticipate and satisfy peoples; desires and needs.
Partners: Nurturing a winning network of partners and building mutual loyalty.
Planet: Being a responsible global citizen that makes a difference.

"GM’s vision is to be the world leader in transportation products and related services. We will earn our customers’ enthusiasm through continuous improvement driven by the integrity, teamwork, and innovation of GM people."

"McDonald's vision is to be the world's best quick service restaurant experience. Being the best means providing outstanding quality, service, cleanliness, and value, so that we make every customer in every restaurant smile."

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful