Many people talk about building vision, and I am sure that there will be plenty of definitions for what it means, but what does vision in business actually mean in a practical sense?
The Definition Of Building A Vision
Vision is not a one-time event that you aspire to. The mission might be something that you can hang your hat on – “exit for £3m in 5 years”, for example. The purpose is why you are building this particular business e.g. “To give business owners their time back so that they can spend more time with their families”. Vision is a clear view of what needs to happen to achieve your mission and your purpose.
Once you know the end goal and the time frame for achieving it, you can work back and map out what each year needs to look like in order for the end goal to be achieved. Once you are clear on the vision and the route you are about to take, and you have it written down clearly, then the hard work begins. In order for the vision to be implemented, your whole team has to understand and be driven to achieve what you have mapped out.
Once you have presented the vision to the team, you’ll need to do it again and again and again until it sticks, asking questions to check for understanding. When your team tells you they are sick of hearing about it, you know you are on track.
The best book I have found on this topic is “Traction” by Gino Wickman. Traction provides a framework for building strategy in a business and executing it. The Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) has become a worldwide success on the back of the book and there are trained coaches that help to implement the “system”. I understand that many digital creative agencies in the US are adopting the EOS and it’s starting to show up in more of the UK agencies too.
The basis of EOS is 6 key components that must be managed and strengthened to build a great business. See more here: www.eosworldwide.com/eos-model
There is also a process for embedding the system into your business with quarterly and annual meetings and the tools to use for each throughout the journey.
What The Vision Building Component Consists Of
- 10 Year Target
- Marketing Strategy
- 3 Year Picture
- 1 Year Plan
- Quarterly Rocks
- Issues List
#1 10 Year Target
If you don’t know where you are going, you can’t possibly know how to get there. Create a clear goal that provides energy, inspiration, and focus.
#2 Marketing Strategy
- Build your Ideal Client Profile and a list of the businesses you want to work with
- Define your competitive advantage with 3 string differentiators
- Layout your proven process for getting results for your clients
- Define your brand promise guarantee
# 3 3 Year Picture
Revenue, Profit and other KPI’s that you want to be achieving in 3 years
#4 1 Year Plan
Revenue, Profit and other KPI’s that you want to be achieving in the next year and also specific goals throughout the year
#5 Quarterly Rocks
Revenue, Profit and other KPI’s that you want to be achieving in the next quarter, what the key initiatives are and who is responsible for each of them
#6 Issues List
A live list of all the strategic issues that you are facing. Identify them in order of priority, discuss and solve regularly.
We are operating a very similar model within MAP and if you haven’t already read about this EOS then I highly recommend it.
Get a vision truly running through the business and everything becomes so much more clear, energising, and successful
As part of documenting your vision, you will need to put your financial plan together. See this blog for details of how to build your financial plan.
