Druker's advice on how to develop a corporate Mission Statement

To develop a mission statement at the corporate level the following steps are suggested: (Drucker)


1. Establish a mission-writing group The writing group must be able to identify the company’s reason for existing, the primary customer, and what the goals and results should be. Members should include the chief executive, the board chairman or another representative of the board, a writer, a manageable number of additional members who represent different parts of the organization, and a facilitator.

2. Adopt criteria for an effective mission statement. Gather ideas and suggestions for first drafts. The writing group should adopt the criteria they will use to judge the effectiveness of the mission they are about to develop. Following the adoption of criteria, the group moves on to ideas and suggestions for the mission statement. Idea-generating techniques include:

• Open brainstorming: any thought or idea is welcome.

• Each group member finishes the sentence, “The mission should be…”

• Small teams “complete” in a very short time span to draft and nominate the “best” new mission statement

• Go around the group two or three times asking for the one word that must be in the mission statement.

• Each person quickly draws a picture of the mission, then “shows and tells.”

To conclude the exercise, the group:

• Posts and reviews all ideas and suggestions. The facilitator draws a circle around the words or phrases that appear most often.

• Discusses key ideas or themes the must be captured in the new statement.

• Discusses key ideas or themes that must not be part of the new mission statement.

3. Develop one or more draft statements. The writers along or with a small group develops drafts of at least two possible new mission statements.

4. Judge initial drafts against criteria and suggest revisions or new options. To judge drafts and make suggestions:

• The groups reviews the criteria for an effective mission statement.

• The first draft statement is posted in front of the group.

• Group members individually rate the draft for each criteria using the worksheet.

• The facilitator polls and records the group’s response for each criteria to determine the overall strengths and we4aknesses of the draft.

• The group discusses the merits of the draft and makes specific suggestions for how it might be improved. All suggestions are encouraged and recorded.

• The second draft statement is posted and steps are repeated.

• The facilitator instructs each group member to individually write their recommended mission statement. Members read their statement aloud, and give it to the writer.

• The group discusses whether it has developed an effective statement or whether the writer should develop a second set of drafts.

5. Develop second drafts. The writer or small subgroup develops a second draft of one or more possible new mission statements.

6. Gain feedback from outside the writing groups. The board chairman and chief executive decide who outside the writing group will be asked to give feedback. This may includes organization wide input or a few key people inside or outside the organization. Each individual group being contacted for their response is:

• Shown the criteria for an effective mission statement.

• Asked for a rating of each draft, based on the criteria.

• Asked for comments on the merits and weaknesses of the draft(s).

• Asked for ideas or recommendations for improvement.

7. Summarize feedback and distribute second drafts and summary to writing group.

8. Propose a draft mission statement. The writing group meets:

• Reviews the second draft(s).

• Discusses a summary of feedback from outside the writing group.

• Rates the draft(s) against criteria and cites merits and weaknesses

• Attempts group editing or rewriting.

• Approves its proposed mission statement..

9. Presents the proposed mission statement for board approval.