In this episode, Lee picks up from the prior episode on seeing the trends in your business environment to seeing where you want to be. He summarizes the origins and value of a good mission/vision statement; and also the perils of how poorly and painfully it can be to create them. He provides an alternative approach to creating Rapid Organizational Unit Statements (affectionately referred to as ROUS in a nod to The Princess Bride). The ROUS technique is an engaging and collaborative method that helps teams quickly create clear, concise, and compelling missions. Lee outlines the criteria and a step-by-step process for engaging a group of leaders to create or update your overarching mission and vision. The episode concludes with a preview of the next topic: OKRs (Objectives and Key Results).

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Key Takeaways:

• Crafting mission and vision statements is essential for strategic planning.
• Avoid the traditional painful and time consuming "You're killing me, Smalls" approach.
• The ROUS technique allows for rapid creation of effective statements.
• Mission statements answer "Who are we and why are we here?" They should not focus on the services and activities (the what and how).
• Vision statements answer "Where do we want to be/Where are we going?"
• Good Mission/Visions focus on the destination and strive to be clear, concise, and compelling.
• Engaging the team and perhaps key suppliers or customers in the process fosters ownership and alignment.