Do your team members believe in the group’s vision and principles?

What you need to know:

Every family business should have a vision that clearly states where it is headed.
Visions should be challenging rather than being a statement of what would happen even if the venture was left to run by itself.
Vision should be compelling; drawing a picture of a future desirable for all stakeholders, not just for the leader.

Vision and the Family Business
Where there is no vision (no redemptive revelation of God) the people perish
Proverbs 29:18a, Amplified Bible

Every Sunday, almost without fail, Alex Kavita, an officer seconded from BM Security ushers in worshippers and guests into the Nairobi Chapel, Ngong Road. Standing at 6’2”, Alex is the picture of confidence and authority as he directs traffic and manages the flow in and out of the church compound.

While he has repeatedly been acknowledged by Nairobi Chapel’s Senior Pastor Oscar Muriu for his dedication to service, it is only those who speak with Alex who discover the depth of his passion for what he does.

Alex does not work for the pay cheque he receives every month or for the need to do something with his time. Alex, in his words works “because I feel that this is the calling for me at this time; because the Chapel’s vision and mission deeply resonates with my own purpose”. Therefore even though there is no evidence of his seniority or rank on his shoulders, Alex is clearly in charge of security in this church.

Pastor Muriu’s Vision 2020 for his church is clear – containing specific numbers that the church plans to achieve, challenging because it requires great effort by each member of the congregation and compelling because achieving this vision will, quite literally, change the course of history. It is not about making Pastor Muriu rich or famous; it is about bringing a group of committed individuals together to do what could be considered to be impossible.

Individuals like Alex whose hearts resonate with this vision are drawn in, give commitment and work tirelessly to do their part to ensure that this vision is accomplished even though their contribution to its achievement may never be fully acknowledged.

Since the late 1990s it has become the vogue for organisations to develop visions, missions, values and strategic plans to achieve phenomenal results in the next number of given years.

The large majority are copied almost directly from the policy documents of institutions that are considered “world class” while a smaller number are the result of haphazard strategy and vision-casting retreats.

Only a very small minority of the organisations actually go through the rigorous process of crafting a vision, distilling the organisation’s core values and identifying the areas in which they can be the best in the world. Fewer yet actually put these in writing and commit to use them to guide their actions towards actualising the vision.

As a result, most vision, mission and value statements of public and private entities are nice-sounding phrases that are completely disconnected from the day to day actions of the organisation. In some extreme cases, the leaders consistently act in contradiction of these statements, making them even more redundant.

Family businesses are not very different. The large majority have no written visions though Leaders of Family Business claim to know exactly where they are going.

Many exist to aggrandise the founder and the succeeding generations, giving workers and non family members no other reason to show up every day other than the monthly pay cheque. As a result, such ventures suffer from low morale, fraudulent practices and a poor work ethic.

Every Leader of Family Business should have a clear, challenging and compelling vision that aims for more than financial returns. While the process of developing such a vision is time- consuming, emotionally draining and potentially messy, the resulting statement of purpose is more than worth the effort the leader puts into the process.

A clear vision for the organisation makes it easy for family members and staff to know where it is headed, what it does and, more importantly, what it does not do.

A challenging vision for the organisation informs all stakeholders that to do more than just survive and make the founder rich; the venture seeks to fully live out its purpose in the present and future generations.

A compelling vision ensures that people put their hearts and souls into the daily operations.

Mr Mutua is a Humphrey Fellow and a leadership development consultant focused on family businesses. His email address is [email protected]