Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/111663
from the editors Make It Your Mission 1. McDonald���s; 2. Nike; 3. Amazon; 4. The LEGO Group; 5. Google 6 March/April 2013 BizEd SU NG-I L KI M /COR B IS RAQU ITA H E N DE R SON H ere���s a quick quiz: Which global companies operate by the mission statements below? 1. ���to be our customers��� favorite place and way to eat. 2. ���to bring inspiration and motivation to every athlete in the world. 3. ���to build a place where people can ���nd anything they want to buy online. 4. ���to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow. 5. ���to organize the world���s information and make it universally accessible and useful. A list of the companies that match up with these missions appears at the bottom of this page. Even if you didn���t guess them all, chances are you came pretty close. But not all mission statements are as inspiring as these. In fact, I was surprised to discover how many well-known companies limit their statements to some form of the following: ���Our mission is to sell more widgets than anyone else and maximize our stakeholders��� investment.��� That goal may be good for pro���ts, but does it encourage innovation among employees? Or loyalty in its customer base? I doubt it. In this issue, BizEd explores the art of the mission statement. Many schools want to pursue excellence and produce leaders, but those goals aren���t always enough to differentiate them from their competitors. In the article ���Mission: Imperative,��� we learn how schools have written mission statements that don���t just help them stand apart in the market. They also give them de���ned paths to follow. In the feature ���15,��� we also discuss the new proposed accreditation standards drafted by AACSB International���s Blue Ribbon Committee on Accreditation Quality (BRC). If association members approve these standards, business schools will begin the accreditation process by presenting clear and distinct mission statements. BRC members emphasize that strong mission statements can inspire schools to be more innovative, make greater impact, and engage more fully with constituents. A recent news story shows just how much impact a strong mission statement can make. When a seven-year-old boy wrote to The LEGO Group to say that he���d lost his favorite LEGO mini���gure, a customer service representative sent him not just a replacement, but also several accessories and a humorous letter that entreated the child to protect his toys ���like the dragons protect the Weapons of Spinjitzu!��� Would that rep have responded so well without the guidance of LEGO���s mission, featured above, ���to inspire the builders of tomorrow���? Maybe. Maybe not. But with that letter, the company secured a lifelong fan and generated goodwill worldwide. It���s not easy to capture a business school���s entire purpose and personality in a few sentences. But by identifying its core mission, a school provides a touchstone for every member of its community. It shares with everyone exactly what story it wants to tell the world and how it wants to inspire the leaders of tomorrow.