Company Mission Statements: Definition & Examples

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This lesson explains the role of a mission statement in an organization. Learn the definition of a mission statement, how they are created and how they are used.

The Mission Statement

If you have ever wanted to know what an organization's purpose is, what it stands for and why it exists, you can find it all in one statement. The mission statement captures the essence of an organization. It makes a bold statement to the public and organizational members about the goals and underlying philosophies of the organization. The mission statement should explicitly state things related to its business, such as industry, products or services, employees, culture, customers and other stakeholders, objectives, adherence to things - like quality and efficiency, pricing, social responsibility and the community, suppliers, competitors and the individual niche or competitive advantage.

Making a Statement

An organization's mission statement is a very personal and deliberate declaration that symbolizes its legitimacy to the world and what its desired public image is. However, it is most important that the employees of an organization understand the mission statement above anyone else. This is because members of the organization are expected to be able to identify with and commit to upholding the mission statement. Consequently, the mission statement should be reviewed frequently to ensure that it truly symbolizes the organization, its goals and what it stands for.

Members of an organization are expected to uphold the mission statement.

Examples of Mission Statements

Some examples of mission statements from organizations that you may be familiar with include:

Facebook: 'Facebook's mission is to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected.'
Coca Cola: 'To refresh the world; To inspire moments of optimism and happiness; To create value and make a difference'
Ford Motor Company: 'One Team; One Plan; One Goal; One Ford'

Companies such as Facebook have mission statements that you may be familiar with.

Assessing Your Organization's Mission Statement

As an employee of your organization, you should be familiar with the company's mission statement. If, however, you are not already aware of your company's mission statement, I encourage you to look it up and evaluate it. After reading the mission statement, ask yourself the following questions:

Is the purpose of the organization easy to recognize?
Does it reflect what, why and how the organization does what it does?
Do you identify with the mission as an employee?
As an employee, are you inspired to uphold the mission?
Does the organization's culture reflect its mission statement?
Would you be able to understand the mission if you were not a member of the organization?
Does it make an explicit statement about how they want the public to view the organization?
Is the mission statement recent and reflective of the current state of affairs at the organization?

Mission Statements and Strategic Plans

The mission statement is one of the key components of strategic planning in organizations. If you recall, strategic plans are designed with the entire organization in mind and begin with the organization's mission. Top-level managers, such as CEOs or presidents, will design and execute strategic plans to paint a picture of the desired future and long-term goals of the organization. The mission statement serves as a blueprint for where planning in the organization needs to begin so that it can achieve its fundamental purpose.

CEOs design strategic plans as blueprints for the desired futures of organizations.

For example, let's say Josh is the CEO of Simple Socks, Inc. whose mission is: 'To provide the world with high quality socks at a fraction of the price.' Josh will use the mission statement to guide his strategic planning efforts by creating strategic plans that are focused specifically on quality and cost efficiency. This might include looking into higher quality materials or pricing out different manufacturers to get the lowest price on their end, which will result in a lower cost to the customer.

Lesson Summary

Let's review. The mission statement captures the essence of an organization by identifying its purpose, what it stands for and why it exists. It makes a bold statement to the public and organizational members about the goals and underlying philosophies of the organization. The mission statement is a very personal and deliberate declaration that symbolizes their legitimacy to the world and what their desired public image is. However, it is most important that the employees of an organization understand the mission statement above anyone else because they are expected to be able to identify with and commit to upholding the mission statement.

The mission statement is one of the key components of strategic planning in organizations. Some good examples of mission statements include Facebook, Coca-Cola Company and the Ford Motor Company. It is always a good idea for you to understand, identify with and be inspired by the mission statement of your organization. If you are not already familiar with the mission statement of your company, or if it has been awhile since you have reviewed it, be sure to look it up so that you can become better acquainted with the mission of your organization.