The reality is that having a vision and having a ‘why’ does not maketh for success. The truth is that sometimes people can get stuck in the ‘why’ that they don’t know where to go from there.
Quite simply, it is not enough anymore to simply have the vision because the marketplace demands relevance.
- Your employees expect you to be an employer of choice;
- Your customers expect you to be an accurate replica of your brand promise;
- You require your leadership team to represent your vision with the same passion you do; and
- Your vision requires you to continue growing in your leadership to meet new demands.
I remember my very first business planning sessions in 2002 as a young leader with a Franchise giant. I had been with the organisation for at least 4 years in an operational capacity and had moved through the ranks quickly into a strategic management role when I was in my early 20’s.
One of our Executive Directors was facilitating the ‘frontline brand experience’ session and begun posing questions that sought to understand the brands’ customer experience strategy. Questions were raised pertaining to:
- Sales structures;
- Service policies; and
- Customer service standards amongst other issues.
All of which challenged our execution of the ‘why’.
And very quickly I learned from this woman that it’s not the ‘why’ or the ‘vision’ in isolation that creates the success but instead it’s about integrating that vision with all strategic initiatives – which means reviewing the way ‘things have been done in the past’.
Unfortunately, that ‘utopia’ of business where the vision is ‘all that matters’ requires daily work. To achieve this, new Leadership Rituals need to be put into place which means new habits must be adopted and new attitudes are required to be formed.
Over the years there have been many thought leaders who have re-ignited the conversation around ‘vision’ – mostly because the daily stresses and demands of doing tactical and operational tasks have caused leaders to become too entrenched in the minutia of detail.
But statistics don’t lie. And the fact remains that 65% of organisations will develop a strategic plan to serve their brand vision but less than 15% will see it through to actualisation.
Which means that your strategic direction must be brought into alignment through:
- Team performance;
- Executive training;
- Brand identity; and
- Cultural values
And over the last 20 years has been in business in across the Franchising, Retail & Professional Services sectors – in hindsight it is clear that those who had and continue to have success are those whom we helped strategically align their people, their culture, their brand and themselves – with their vision.
The success or failure of any enterprise is how successfully you can lead others to translate the vision through the core filters of 1. Management Teams; 2. Employee Culture; 3. Customer Experience and 4. Leadership Development.
Every leader should complete a Vision Alignment Diagnostic at least once a year to determine how well your people and your strategy is aligned with the vision. Contact Ilse on 0427 355 138 or e-mail ilse@purposesync.com to arrange a meeting.
