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In the business leadership community, we put a strong emphasis on the importance of company vision. Many entrepreneurs possess their vision long before they ever launch their business. While identifying a clear and achievable company vision is essential, it is a big mistake to consider this important work as a one-and-done.
Many great business leaders and the wildly successful companies they once ran ultimately failed due to aging visions that simply could not keep up with the ever-evolving marketplace. A company’s vision needs to be dynamic, forward-thinking and, perhaps most importantly, adaptive.
In other words, your vision needs to be visionary.
A cautionary tale of an aging vision
A once successful and dynamic vision can wither away if business leadership fails to recognize and address emerging trends, evolving market norms and changes in consumer preferences. One of the most poignant examples of this is the rise and fall of movie-rental giant Blockbuster.
Blockbuster was founded in the 1980s and reached its heyday around 2004 when it hit over $6 billion in revenue, a 31% market share, and around 9,000 stores nationwide. Almost certainly, the company’s vision was to dominate the video rental industry, become a household name, and be a go-to destination for family movie nights. And they manifested that vision for nearly two decades. The only problem was that the industry was innovating like gangbusters, and formidable competitors like Redbox and Netflix were disrupting the market with self-service video rental kiosks and a mail-based business model, respectively.
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Blockbuster attempted to maintain its competitive edge by acquiring some of its smaller competitors, but the market and consumer preferences were quickly evolving, and the company’s vision just wasn’t keeping up.
As a side note, Blockbuster declined on a $50 million purchase of Netflix in 2000, which many believe was its downfall. Netflix continued to disrupt the market by offering monthly subscriptions, no late fees, and strategically pivoting their business model to the streaming platform we know it as today. In the meantime, Blockbuster continued to lose market share and eventually filed for bankruptcy. After years of struggling and the failure to reinvent itself, the last remaining brick-and-mortar closed in 2013.
Did Blockbuster have a vision? Of course it did. But was that vision responsive, fluid, and forward-thinking? Was it visionary? Its demise would suggest otherwise.
The story of the rise and fall of Blockbuster acts as a powerful reminder of the importance of including innovation as a key component in your company’s vision.
Is your vision visionary enough?
Every business owner should possess a clear, compelling and motivating vision, not just as it relates to their company, but also to their life. I like to say that company vision and personal vision are like the two wheels of a bicycle, where personal vision is the front wheel that steers the company vision in the right direction.
Switching the order of those wheels just doesn’t work, or at least it doesn’t result in both a thriving business and a gratifying personal life. And sticking with that bike analogy, those wheels should always be in motion, transporting both visions to new and enriching places. Which is to say that vision should be visionary, capable of standing the test of time, and able to evolve with the world around it.
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Future-proofing your vision for long-term success
Company vision is ideally designed to identify and adapt to market or consumer changes. This is referred to as future-proofing your vision, which ultimately supports the long-term success of your business. But the work requires a willingness to question the foundation the business was built on, even when that means altering the vision that once felt inseparable from you as the business leader.
The following are some questions that may help you challenge and future-proof your current vision:
- Could emerging technologies potentially disrupt or make your vision obsolete?
- Does your current vision reflect timeless customer needs like great service, quality, and speed?
- Will your vision resonate with the next generation of customers, your future market?
- Does your vision allow for flexibility to adapt as culture, technology, and customer preferences evolve?
- And finally, is your vision truly visionary? Does it push the boundaries of what is possible and where you want to go?
These reflections aren’t just for big companies. They are relevant for every business owner who wants to remain competitive and stay ahead of the curve.
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Reinvent your company vision with these actions
If you are a business leader who senses that your company vision needs a little tweaking or maybe even a complete overhaul, first and foremost, pat yourself on the back, because you are at a pivotal moment for opportunity and growth.
Every leader’s journey to identifying, embracing and executing their vision is unique. But there are key actions to consider as you transform your company vision into something more visionary.
1. Start with what still works. Are there aspects of your current vision that still resonate with you and your business? Recognize those goals and ideals you are not willing to alter or let go.
2. Reflect on how the market and industry is changing. Look beyond your sector at the emerging trends in technology, customer behavior, societal norms, or any number of dynamics.
3. Stand for more than your offerings. Consider the impact your company has (or wants to have) on your customers and community that exist beyond the transactional nature of your business.
4. Consider back-casting as a vision strategy. Imagine, from a multitude of levels, what you would like your business to look like in five years. What has changed? Now work backwards from there to determine what steps you need to make it happen.
5. Ask for insight from others. Involve valued employees and customers in your company vision development. You might be surprised by their connection to the core values and future goals of the business.
If your current company vision is showing its age, why not put in the work now to ensure it remains adaptable, impactful, and visionary for years to come?
