“Everyone wants to feel that tomorrow is better than today. Whoever can create that vision of how the future might be, people will follow.”

Chris Burnett, FAIM

Where is your business headed? Where are you hoping to lead your team?

Do you have an answer? Is it clear, concise, aspirational, shared? Does the team get it? Are they on board? Well done, you’ve got vision nailed. Move along. Nothing more to see here.

If your answer sits somewhere along the spectrum from ‘maybe’ to ‘don’t know’ or an outright ‘no way’, you have work to do.

Fewer than 30% of employees surveyed by the Harvard Business School were able to articulate the strategy of the company they worked for. Strategy dictates what employees actually do, day-to-day. How many people can define their company vision, why the business does what it does? It’s likely to be a lot lower than 30%.

What is vision?

Vision is two things for leaders. It’s a core capability for success, the ability to see new possibilities, to define a future and inspire others to share it.

Vision is also a leadership tool, a key piece of corporate collateral and an anchor point for strategy. A vision statement is an aspirational image of the future. It defines what a business stands for and where it is headed. But more than that, a vision serves to inspire, motivate, and engage the whole team. It provides meaning and purpose and encourages people to work together towards a clear, shared goal.

In this month’s issue of Insight Edge we are looking at vision; why it matters, how you create one, and what you do with it once you have it. We also look at company vision in the context of start-ups, family businesses and rural and regional audiences. Read these articles and let us know what you think:

• What’s your genius? Building a company vision
• Ten tips for communicating your vision
• Do start-ups need a vision statement?
• Vision: naming the elephant in the room in family businesses
• Communicating your vision to rural and regional audiences

We’ve also pulled together a list of useful resources from around the web that we think you’ll enjoy if you're keen to explore the theme further. And our library team have collected some of the research resources that you, as an AIM Member, can access online, or by coming into one of the AIM libraries around Australia. (Have a coffee on us while you’re there.)

All the best for a vision filled New Year,

Kirsten

Editor, Insight Edge