DQ: Why is vision essential to facilitating successful change in an organization?

DQ: Why is vision essential to facilitating successful change in an organization?

A vision statement should motivate the organization’s employees and outline its ultimate goals. While a mission statement concentrates on what a company can provide for its customers, a vision statement is more self-focused, outlining the goals of the business for growth and success.

Consider the vision statement as an umbrella description of what is important to the company and how it helps to improve the world around it. This includes not only customers but potential employees as well. When the vision statement is able to connect to our inner values, it can be easy to admire that organization and support it in a variety of ways. We consider this a powerful communication tool in such a short statement.” (Wike, 2021)

In my own life my wife and myself have started a non-profit to aid children fighting cancer. We lost our son in 2013, on Christmas Eve, to Osteosarcoma, or bone cancer. Due to this we formed our organization with the vision every child battling cancer receives a battle pack filled with items unique to them as well as their family receiving financial assistance during these times. With this, we set our standards and goals for not only us, but our stakeholders as well.

Thanks,

Reference:

Wike, E. (2021, September 1). Vision Statements: Tips, Example and Importance. Indeed Career Guide. https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/vision-statements

I am truly sorry to hear of your loss. I imagine that by creating a vision and a plan to help other families and children with cancer, you have found a way to channel your pain and grief and process the loss. It is inspirational and shows great strength and resiliency.

I found an interesting website that talks about vision and how it’s helpful to have one personally and in your work. In the article, they state, “defining a vision adds meaning to our lives and helps us to focus and achieve goals and objectives”. As a nurse, the vision of my hospital to be in the top 1% is inspirational to me and helps me to focus on continual improvement of the care we provide (a work example). For you, you’ve chosen a personal vision that will influence the direction of your life and make an important difference in the lives of others (a personal example). I think the takeaway here is we should all develop a vision! Good things come from having a purpose and a goal to shoot for!

Have a great evening and thank you for your post!

Thank you for the reply and your condolences. In our nonprofit and any companies, the vision statement is our light on the path to know direction. I have found using this as a means of foundation for employees and a standard in customer and stakeholder service set the bar needed for success. The article you read seems very informative, with knowledge that is applicable in real world situations. I like your ending statement of good things come from having a purpose and goal, as this is so true.

According to Huyer (2014), one of the key leadership competencies for success is leading ourselves, staff and organizations through change. As leaders, it is of utmost importance to always be looking ahead to see what is coming and preparing or adjusting based on what is to come (Huyer, 2014). A vision statement, according to Kotter et. al (2012), should have six characteristics: imaginable (conveys a clear picture), desirable (appeals to interests), feasible (realistic and attainable), focused (concise and clear), flexible (general enough to allow for adjustments) and communicable (easily explained and easily understood). Vision is essential to facilitating successful change in an organization because it provides a realistic and actionable goal that can guide the strategy to make a change (Cummins et. al, 2014). A leader’s role/vision is essential to a successful change initiative because the vision is what unifies who will enact the change and those that are impacted by the change behind the single vision. This helps ensure that all actions are made with the intention of fulfilling the vision (Cummins et. al, 2014).

One vision that has inspired a successful change was the establishment of manometry services in our outpatient endoscopy center. There are only two healthcare settings in the islands that provide these services to the whole state of Hawaii. Prior to opening up these services, most patients faced a backlog of these studies as not one site could keep up with the demand. To date, the unit performs over 30 studies a month, with the possibility of doing more, but there are not many nurses who are not trained in the studies, which is a barrier we are in the process of overcoming. The change was a welcomed one to our patients and the staff as it created access to a much needed service for our patients.

References:

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