Mission Possible
How Southwest Airlines and
Microsoft can help you discover
and fulfill your Pool’s true mission
Mission Possible

Outline
– Your Mission Statement should...
– Mission Vs. Vision
– Example Mission Statements
– Southwest Airlines
– Microsoft
– Next step(s)
Mission Possible

Your Mission Statement should…
– Express your organization’s purpose in a way that
inspires support and commitment;
– Motivate those who are connected to the
organization;
– Be articulated in a way that is convincing and easy
to grasp;
– Be free of jargon; and
– Be short enough so that anyone connected with
the organization can recite it.
Mission Vs. Vision

Vision Statement
– Captures the destination of your planning
and implementation process, providing
your constituencies with an inspiring
glimpse of where you are trying to lead
them.

Mission Statement
– Outlines what must happen to realize the
Vision of the organization.
Example Mission Statements

DILBERT
– “A successful Mission Statement is defined
as a long awkward sentence that
demonstrates management's inability to
think clearly”
Example Mission Statements

OMAG
– “To promote the financial security of our
customers by providing highly competitive
insurance products and services designed
specifically for them, in doing so, OMAG
seeks to be the insurance provider of
choice for Oklahoma municipalities”
Southwest Airlines

Mission Statement
– “The mission of Southwest Airlines is
dedicated to the highest quality of
Customer Service delivered with a sense of
warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and
Company Spirit”
Southwest Airlines

Why has Southwest Airlines been
successful?
– Customer Service


Herb Kelleher “We’re not in the airline business,
we’re in the customer-service business, and we
just happen to provide air transportation”
Friendly, fun employee base
– Innovation


Quick turn-around
On-time departure
Southwest Airlines

Why has Southwest Airlines been
successful?
– Innovation


First to provide E-ticket
Low cost, short-haul destinations
– Entrepreneurial Spirit


“Nobody’s going to shoot Southwest Airlines
out of the sky for a lousy $13”
Employee ownership
Microsoft

Mission Statement
– “A computer on every desk and in every
home”
Microsoft

Why has Microsoft been successful?
– Innovation


Recognizing needs of the future
Willingness to change direction
– Entrepreneurial Spirit


Rewards employees for new ideas
Join with other successful operations
Microsoft

Why has Microsoft been successful?
– Customer Service

Support services
– On-line
– Phone support

Anticipating customer needs
– New products
– Enhancement of existing products
What can we learn?

Customer Service
– Are we anticipating the needs of our
customers?
– Are we hiring the individuals that care
about the service we provide?
– Are we making it easy for members to do
business with us?
What can we learn?

Entrepreneurial Spirit
– Do we support new ideas or change?
– Do we recognize, either through
compensation or recognition, the efforts of
our employees that go above and beyond
the call of duty?
– Have we looked at opportunities to form
alliances with vendors or competitors?
What can we learn?

Innovation
– Have we explored new products or services
for our customers?
– Are we taking advantage of technology
enhancements or the internet?
– Have we looked at all aspects of our
business and thought about change?
Next Steps

If you don’t have a Mission Statement Develop one!
– Ensure it includes:

a “Purpose” statement;
– Why does your organization exist?

a “Business” statement; and
– What activity are we going to do to accomplish our
purpose?

a “Values” statement
– What are the basic beliefs that we share as an
organization?
Next Steps

If you have a Mission Statement Review it!
– Consider the possibility of change
Achieve buy-in from stakeholders
 Target the message to your constituents
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