Developing your organization’s vision

When I was CEO, several leaders periodically asked me how they could develop a vision for their organization. This question always stumped me, in part because, for some reason, I usually seemed to have more ideas than I could keep up with.

I eventually realized that everyone is wired differently and some people have a gift for developing new horizons, even crazy schemes, and some don’t. People who “don’t” are, however, gifted in other ways essential to organizational development, including the ability to take visions and make them come true.

So if you’re more of a “doer” than a “dreamer,” but you’re in a leadership position, how do you develop a vision for your organization?

I’ve heard seminar facilitators answer this question with what sounded like a recipe for a mystical experience. But I don’t think developing a vision is as ethereal as some think. You can be as practical as you want, and you can still identify a strong vision for the future of your organization.

Here are some sources and resources to help you develop a vision for your organization:

Investigate challenges and opportunities through SWOT. “Know thyself”, said the ancient Greeks. Look at your navel. Discover the future of your organization in your own data. Identify your organization’s strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats, and use this knowledge to create a different tomorrow.

Address first things first. Every organization can be better than itself. Create better basics and save the embellishments and sizzle for later. Emphasize what is possible, practical. Find ways to articulate an idealized future step by step. Go for Bronze before going for Silver or Gold.

Take advantage of the personal passion of the CEO. Touch the CEO’s deepest gifts, heart and desires. I once submitted a half-million dollar athletic proposal to a gentleman. He took me by surprise when he said, “What is your passion?” I thought for a moment and said “Leadership”. He said, “Then I’ll write that check to a leadership program,” and so he did. People inside and outside an organization respond to leaders who believe in something that matters. Information, yes, but emotion is also key to crafting a vision.

Leverage the talent of staff, board members, customers, or constituents. Who knows your organization and its possibilities better than the people who are already committed? Don’t be the CEO unable to listen or take advice. You don’t have to feel alone in leadership. As a leader, his greatest joy and perhaps his greatest impact on the organization will come when he celebrates the ideas of his own people.

Identify what leading organizations are doing and improve them. Not every worthy vision has to be “new”. It could just be “improved”. How different, really, is one comprehensive university from another? Little bit. If you don’t believe me, watch your ads on New Year’s Day. In this scenario, your vision is more about Excellence that difference.

Determine what does not exist and invent it. Creativity is always in fashion. Bold ideas are always fresh, they may not work out ultimately; only time will tell but they are still fresh.

Take a risk. It’s okay to be different, to launch into the unknown, to lead when others aren’t yet following. Yes, it’s okay to boldly go where no one has gone before. Risk aversion is not a good leadership trait. You don’t want to be reckless or irresponsible, but you also don’t want to miss the opportunity out of fear of failure.

Develop distinctive, possibly unique attributes. This is a bit different than developing what doesn’t exist. It is about polishing the characteristics of your organization to create a niche in the market. At an excellence level, what can your organization do that is different from what all other competitive organizations could do? It is not as difficult as it seems at first glance. The difference can be nuanced. Distinctiveness can be related to quality, craftsmanship, appearance, service. The potential is infinite.

Identify customer/component needs. First, stop doing what is no longer viable, no matter how long your organization has been doing it. Second, start doing what’s in demand. It is basic free enterprise economics. Fill the needs of customers/members and they will fill the coffers of your organization.

If you run a nonprofit, identify what top donors want to do with top dollars. There is nothing wrong, per se, with following the money. One way the market tests the value of an idea is how much support it gets. Short of taking ethical shortcuts, take ownership of what the top available donors want to accomplish and build your vision around it.

Rediscover the vision of the Founders. Sometimes a new vision is an old vision dusted off and recycled. The beauty of this approach when it fits is that the visions of the Founders can return with immediate public understanding, credibility, and perhaps prestige. The organization has been shaken by storms in the market and is now adjusting its course to ensure it reaches the original destination. Founders’ visions don’t always stand the test of time, but when they do, they’re a great way to reinvigorate an organization with a “new” vision for a brighter future.

Reposition the organization. Maybe your organization has what the old commercial used to call “tired blood.” He’s been doing the same ‘ol, same ‘ol for a long time and has lost his pizzazz. Perhaps the organization has an image problem, a public perception of the organization that is convoluted at best or just plain wrong or unhealthy. You need to send a message that a new wind is blowing. Change things up, throw out old practices and set new goals.

Move. Taking an organization elsewhere is not always appropriate or practical. But sometimes it is. A well-planned new direction can change the entire image of an organization and open new doors to growth and success.

If you’re the CEO, you don’t have to be the all-knowing source of all the good ideas. You don’t have to vision your organization to be a good leader. To be a good leader, you must be open to the best ideas, no matter the source, and create a process where the cream rises to the top. Then you can implement those ideas.

So how do you develop a vision? Look around.