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An Analysis of The Mission Statements of
An Analysis of The Mission Statements of
6, 2004
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1. Corporate Mission
According to Peter Drucker (1973), "A business is not defined by its name, statues, or
articles of incorporation. It is defined by the business mission. Only a clear definition of
mission and purpose of the organization makes possible clear and realistic business
objectives." The mission of an organization defines its business. For example, a food
manufacturing company's mission is to produce food products, a petroleum company's
mission is to supply fuel in the market, a university's mission is to provide tertiary level
education to its students and a software company's mission is to make software. Peter
Drucker says, asking the question "What is our business?" is similar to asking the question
"What is our mission?" But there are some people who think that the definition of mission
should not be that simple. It should contain some other components that will be acting as
guidelines for 'strategic management'. Defining a clear mission for the business is very
important for setting future strategies of the business. Campbell, Devine and Young (1993),
in their famous book called 'A Sense of Mission' has quoted from the speech of Colin
Marshall (Deputy Chairman, British Airways) that, "A corporate mission is much more than
good intentions and fine ideas. It represents the framework for the entire business, the values
which drive the company and the belief that the company has in itself and what it can
achieve." Setting a clear and well-defined mission is the very first step of strategic
management (David, 1999). Through defining the business, the mission helps to set the longterm objectives of an organization and basing on those long-term objectives, strategies can be
set.
Different schools of thought have defined mission in different ways. Some of them described
mission as a 'strategic tool' and some of them argued that mission should be stated in terms
of 'philosophy and ethics' (Campbell, et al,
___________________
*
Lecturer, Department of Accounting and Information Systems, Faculty of Business Studies, University of
Dhaka, Bangladesh.
1993). If both of these thoughts are analyzed, it becomes conspicuous that the first school of
thought (defining mission as a strategic tool) is more concerned with the 'survival' of an
organization as a 'business concern' and the second school of thought (defining mission in
terms of philosophy and ethics) is more concerned with seeing the organization as a 'social
unit' and thus they dealt with social emotions. There is no doubt that each of these views has its
own importance. The world of business is becoming more and more competitive and in order
to survive in this competitive environment, proper strategic management is very important. As
a 'strategic tool', a mission can help in this purpose. On the other hand, it is also true that
modern society presents business with immensely complicated problems it did not have
formerly (Davis, 1975). There is no doubt that business is a social unit and in order to exist and
survive in the society it has to respect the ethical values of the society. It is said that, today a
business lives in a 'Glass House' and that is why business has greater 'Public Visibility' (The
extent that an organization's activities are known to persons outside the organization) in
comparison to other institutions in the society (Davis, 1975). Society is very much alert to
know the activities of the business. The growing popularity of 'social welfare' is also
compelling the business to perform some social responsibilities. The concept of 'Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR)' is a burning question in today's world.
So, as these both views are very important, it is better to set a corporate mission incorporating
both these issues and that will help the organization to set proper goals and then set the
strategies according to those goals.
Campbell, et al (1993) suggested that a mission should have the following four components:
1. Purpose: Why the company exists?
2. Strategy: The competitive position and distinctive competence.
3. Standards and Behaviors: The policies and behavior patterns that underpin the distinctive
competence and the value system.
4. Values: What the company believes in.
The mission of the company should be well communicated to the stakeholders of the company
and the medium of this communication is a 'mission statement'.
2. Mission Statement:
A mission statement is a clearly written statement that communicates about the mission of the
organization to several parties related to that particular organization. These parties include
employees, strategists, customers, investors and others who have any relationship with the
affairs of the organization. A clear mission statement is essential in order to establish effective
objectives and
Define what the organization is and what the organization aspires to be,
Be limited enough to exclude some ventures and broad enough to allow for creative
growth,
3. Distinguish a given organization from all others,
4. Serve as a framework for evaluating both current and prospective activities, and
5. Be stated in terms of sufficiently clear to be widely understood throughout the
organization.
There is no particular length or format of a mission statement. It differs from organization to
organization. It can also be said that there is no specificity about the components of the
mission statements. Several authors have identified several different numbers of components
that should be present in a 'good mission statement'.
Components of mission statements suggested by Fred R. David:
Though David (1999) admits that mission statements can differ in length, content, format and
specificity, he suggested the following components to be present in a mission statement:
1. Customers: Who are the firm's customers?
2. Products or services: What are the firm's major products and services?
3. Markets: Geographically, where does the firm compete?
4. Technology: Is the firm technologically current?
5. Concern for survival, growth and profitability: Is the firm committed to growth and financial
soundness?
6. Philosophy: What are the basic beliefs, values, aspirations and ethical priorities of the firm?
7. Self-concept: What is the firm's distinct competence or major competitive advantage?
8. Concern for public image: Is the firm responsive to social community and environmental
concern?
9. Concern about employees: Fourteen companies (93.33%) have mentioned about their
concern about employees. For instance, Uttara Finance and Investments Limited
mentioned: "......to ensure human resource development to meet the challenges of the
time." Southeast Bank Limited mentioned that there mission is to "...... attract and retain
quality human resource."
4. Some Other Issues
1. Shinepukur Holdings Limited, Beximco Textiles Limited, Beximco Pharmaceuticals
Limited, Beximco Infusions Ltd., Bangladesh Online Limited, Beximco Denims Limited
and Padma Textile Mills have the same mission statement without mentioning their
products and services. Though it can be said that all these companies are from the same
business group BEXIMCO, but there is no doubt that their products are different. So, it
can be said that the mission statements of these companies failed to define their
businesses as every company should have a unique mission statement (McGinnis,1981).
2. Advanced Chemical Industries Limited did not mention their customers specifically but
they mentioned that they are working for '.......the well being of the people of
Bangladesh'.
3. Singer Bangladesh Limited indirectly mentioned about their products saying that "Our
mission is to improve the quality of life of people by providing comforts and
conveniences......."
5. Conclusion
From the findings of this study a conclusion can be drawn that Bangladeshi companies are
preparing their mission statements mostly in terms of 'philosophy and ethics'. Out of 15
companies, 14 companies have included their concern for public image in the mission
statements. But in respect of using the mission statement as a strategic tool, they are not
successful. Campbell, et al (1993) said that, "Many managers misunderstand the nature and
importance of mission, while others fail to consider it at all". In case of Bangladesh, it is also
true. Bangladeshi managers are preparing the mission statements not understanding its real
use. Peter Drucker (1973) observed that, "That business purpose and business mission are so
rarely given adequate thought is perhaps the most common cause of business frustration and
failure". Bangladeshi companies are showing their mission statements in the annual reports
just to make it attractive to the public. The kind of mission statements that are prepared by
most of them cannot give any guideline for strategic management.
References
Campbell, A., Devine, M. and Young, D. (1993). A Sense of Mission,Pitman Publishing,
London.
David, F. R. (1999). Strategic Management: Concepts and Cases,_ 7`h Edition, Prentice Hall
International, Inc., New Jersy.
Davis, K., (1975). Business and Society: Environment and Responsibility _3`, Edition,
McGraw-Hill Book Company, NY.
Drucker, P. F. (1973). Management: Task, Responsibilities and Practices, Harper & Row,
New York.
Ghosh, A. (2001). Strategic Management:Concepts and Issues, Books and Allied (P) Ltd.,
Calcutta.
Gratton, L. (1996). Implementing a Strategic Vision: Key Factors for Success, Long Range
Planning, Vol: 29, June, pp. 290-303.
McGinnis, V. (1981). The Mission Statement: A key Step in Strategic Planning, Business,
Nov.-Dec., pp. 41.
Appendix-1
Table 1: Components covered in the mission statements of different companies
Name of the company
Markets
Technology
Concern for
survival,
growth and
profitability
Philosophy
Concern for
public
image
Selfconcept
Concern for
employees
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
Y
Y
N
N
Y
Y
N
N
N
Y
N
N
Y
N
N
Y
N
N
Y
N
N
Y
N
N
Y
Y
Y
N
N
N
Y
Y
Y
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
Y
Y
N
N
Y
Y
N
N
N
Y
N
Y
N
N
N
N
N
N
Y
Y
N
N
Y
Y
N
Y
Y
N
Y
Y
N
N
N
Y
N
Y
Y
N
Y
Y
N
N
Y
Y
Y
N
N
N
Y
Y
Y
Customers
Products
or Services
Y indicates that the companies have mentioned this component in their mission statements.
N indicates that the companies have not mentioned this component in their mission statements.
Appendix-2
Example of Mission Statement:
Mission Statement of American Telephone and Telegraph (AT & T) [taken from Ghosh, 2001]:
1. To strengthen and enhance the profitability and market position of the company's core business. The c o r e businesses include:
The design, manufacture and sale of network communications equipment for operating companies;
The design, manufacture and sale of custom-premises telecommunications equipment, which includes stand-alone computers as well as
component computers in our in our information systems.
2. To build on AT&T's strength and reputation to bring a new generation of data networking solutions to the customers.
3. To establish a major position in the international market for information movement and management. To accomplish this we will pursue
overseas partners that are established in the information industry.