There is a constant blend needed between your company’s mission and the many components of your business. How you make your product, where you source your materials. Who you hire, how you lead and manage.
Alignment among these elements doesn’t just have the power to make your business more successful, or help you stay true to your mission and purpose. It can also make it easier to operate, scale and grow.
When it comes to stakeholders, it can be particularly challenging. Personalities can clash. Objectives and goals can fall out of sync.
In worst-case scenarios, disagreement between your mission and this group can cause significant conflict. It has hurt many strong and successful companies. It’s alienated and lost customers. It’s run a few into the ground.
But it is possible to create harmony between those who hold interest in your business and the mission and purpose you want to accomplish. Tesla, Annie’s and Honest Tea are great examples:
Lead With Your Mission From Square One.
Tesla was clear from the start that it was going to do something highly challenging and innovative by entering the automotive market with electric cars. There were no surprises to those brought on board, most notably entrepreneur and investor Elon Musk. When you launch with your mission at the forefront, you’ll be more likely to have shareholders who truly support your vision – and will continue to when times get lean or tough.
Integrate Your Mission Into Your Product.
It’s easier to drift from your mission when it’s a secondary piece to your business. This is especially true when you’re under pressure from stakeholders. Companies like Honest Tea have avoided this by making their product DNA the center of their mission and vice versa. The company’s aim was to use sustainable ingredients from the start. Its customers share the same values — they want tea from sustainable sources. This made Honest Tea’s mission the center point of the company’s success. It’s virtually impossible to move a mission when it has this type of root. It simply can’t be changed without changing the product.
Define Your (Clear) Boundaries.
Tesla’s Elon Musk recently told investors that if they didn’t like what the company was doing, to go with its competitors. When facing acquisition interest from General Mills, Annie’s CEO John Foraker was clear that the company would only sell if Annie’s could maintain its purpose and mission. It can be hard to draw your line in the sand. But if your mission is important to you — and especially to your customers — it can better to lose an opportunity than lose who you are and what you stand for.
Say Something When There’s a Bad Match.
Even with the best effort to bullet proof your mission, know that you’re going to struggle with keeping it in sync as you scale and grow. When you have misalignment with shareholders, first try to make a business case for your mission. Know that it may not work — not everyone is on the same timeline and beliefs. If it fails, it’s best to have an honest, straightforward conversation. Be open and optimistic to things working out.
Just the same, know that your business can recover in the event that it doesn’t.
McDonald’s was an early investor in Chipotle, later going on to own nearly 90% of the company. The two later found that they didn’t mesh together. Some say that McDonald’s wanted Chipotle to franchise, add drive-through windows and other initiatives that didn’t fit Chipotle’s approach and vision. In 2006, McDonald’s divested.
Sometimes, things just don’t work out. The two companies went on separately and independently. Chipotle continued to thrive – and your company can too if you and a shareholder decide to part.
The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.