Organisations existence
Most of the organisations seem to exist to fill the gap in helping people and world solve a particular problem - if it is not an obvious problem, it then becomes the organisations role to educate the existence the problem which they solve. I call it their reason for existence.
To give some simple examples,
The follow is a quote from LinkedIn’s culture and values page.
Creating a digital map of the global economy to connect talent with opportunity at massive scale.
They call it their mission. Our mission: To give everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly, without barriers.
Mission is what they call it (interestingly it is accessible only from google search), Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.
How do organisations approach it
Every organisation has different ways to define their purpose. Some call them vision, some mission, some simply put together a statement.
I found how my previous employer Mindtree did it quiet interesting.
They used to have a vision statement, a value statement and a mission derived from the vision statement that addresses the medium term. Back in the days, then chairman Respected Mr. Ashok Soota used to walk every employee through the “Vision, mission & values” session.
Recently they seem to have alignt to Mission and Values.
Mindtree’s mission
Sounds a bit too vague to me. We engineer meaningful technology solutions to help businesses and societies flourish.
Mindtree’s values
COLLABORATIVE SPIRIT Mindtree believes in developing true partnerships. We foster a collegial environment where individual perspectives are respected and honest dialogue is expected.
UNRELENTING DEDICATION Mindtree is driven to meet client needs with determination and grit. We embrace tough challenges and do not rest until the problem is solved, the right way.
EXPERT THINKING Mindtree brings robust skills and forward looking perspectives to solve customer challenges. We use proven knowledge to make recommendations and provide expert guidance to our customers.
One last old school mission, vision and values statement from the very old BBC
Mission To enrich people’s lives with programmes and services that inform, educate and entertain.
Vision To be the most creative organisation in the world.
Trend towards sustainability and social responsibility
Corporate social responsibility and sutainable business practice are other differentiators that organisations bring to the market.
To me, the mean more - they mean as some wiseman once pointed out,
People don’t just buy products anymore, they buy into values they represent.
What do workers buy in?
If values are the one that are bought in for even just day do day products, what about the work.
To me, I am spending best part of my life working, I better have a clear and convincing buy in to the business - its mission and values it represents.
Else it is as good as calling it a life wasted.