What's the meaning of all this?

In the past two decades, organization leaders have begun to speak with religious zeal, using words like 'mission', 'vision' and 'values'. They refer to 'purpose', 'strategic intent', 'practices', as Chart 2.1 shows. But still they hang on to the simple 'goals', 'objectives' and 'strategies' of earlier times. Some of these terms are used interchangeably. Most are ill defined. This section establishes how they will be used in this book.

Based on interviews with 125 organization leaders, there was broad agreement on three issues for every organization. These are also the fundamental questions of life:

• What are we here for?

• Where are we going?

• What beliefs will guide us on the journey?

That's where the consensus ended. The fun began in selecting the words to describe the answers. Many people cringe at the word 'mission', preferring 'purpose'. 'Mission' and 'vision' are often confused or combined. Life would be a lot simpler if there were fewer words to choose from and Chart 2.1 illustrates some of those in use. However, as long as all three fundamental questions are addressed, the words chosen don't matter. Each organization should adopt those it feels most comfortable with.

For consistency, this book will use 'purpose', 'vision' and 'values' to...