Contrasting Vision and Mission Statements of Leading Corporations

The essay delves into the vision and mission statements of two Fortune companies, Walmart and General Motors. It highlights how these statements serve as a foundation for corporate strategy and success. Walmart's vision aims to be the best retailer in consumers' hearts and minds, while its mission focuses on saving people money to improve their lives. In contrast, General Motors seeks to become the world’s most valued automotive company, with a mission centered on earning lifelong customer loyalty through innovative technologies and community service. The essay compares these statements, noting differences in focus and approach, while also discussing how both companies use their vision and mission to guide strategic decisions and achieve business success.

Running head: VISION AND MISSION 1
Vision and Mission.
Student Name
Institution

VISION AND MISSION 2
In the process of incorporating a company, the company comes up with a vision and
mission statements because they play a critical role in the success of the business (David, David,
& David, 2014). Vision statement highlights where a company wants to be in the coming years
and the initiatives which can be taken to ensure the company achieves its vision (Epstein, &
Buhovac, 2014). It acts as the source of inspiration for the company as it helps to vividly form a
mental picture of where the company wants to be. On the other hand, mission statement refers to
a formal summary that tells why the business is in existence by highlighting the values and aims
of the company. It also highlights what the business helps its customers, employees and even
stakeholders (Babnik, et al.2014). This essay is written to compare and contrast vision and
mission statements of two fortune companies.
Walmart and General Motors vision statements will be compared and contrasted. Vision
statement of Walmart is ‘To be the best retailer in the hearts and minds of consumers and
employees’. General Motors' vision statement is "to become the world’s most valued automotive
company.” The principle value of the two vision statement is to ensure that the companies are the best
in their industry and be accepted by their customers all over the world. This helps to position the
business in a better position than its competitors. The two vision statements shows which industry the
company belongs to just by reading the vision statement. This helps investors to realize which industry
the company belongs to and if they were looking to invest in that certain industry, they will consider
investing in the mentioned companies (Baumgartner, 2014). The vision statement also shows that
Walmart and General Motors want to become leaders in their respective industries. Consumers always

VISION AND MISSION 3
wants to be associated with the best and they will consider purchasing products of the company which
wants to be the in the world.
The two vision statements are also different in some aspects. Walmart’s vision is to ensure that
it is the best retailer in the minds and hearts of the employees and customers. General motors’ do not
specify the people who are to regard it as the most valued automotive company in the world. Walmart's
vision statement aims to use different strategies to influence minds of the consumers and employees to
be regarded as the best retailer. General Motors does not highlight which variables will be used to
measure the value of the company.
Walmart and General Motors mission statements will also be compared and contrasted. Mission
statement of Walmart is “Saving people money so they can live better.” General Motors vision
statement is to earn customers for life by building brands that inspire passion and loyalty through not
only breakthrough technologies but also by serving and improving the communities in which we live
and work around the world.’ the principle value of the two mission statement is improving the lives of
the people who are associated with the two companies. The two vision statements are very important
to the companies as they highlights how the companies want to help its stakeholders and that is by
improving their lives. The two vision statements are also made by highlighting the aims and purposes of
the company. The mission statements are important as they help the companies to walk the talk.
The two mission statements have some contrasts. Walmart’s mission statement is composed to
relate with the companies slogan while General Motors' mission statement is not related to the slogan.
Walmart's mission statement highlights how it intends to improve the lives of the people and that is by
offering products at low prices which will help them to save their money. General motors mission
statement does not highlight how it intends to serve the community and people. The importance of the
Walmart's mission is to help. Walmart's mission is short while General Motors' is very comprehensive.

VISION AND MISSION 4
Mission and vision statements help companies to select the strategies because the statements
highlights want the company wants to achieve and this will help the company to choose the strategies
which will help the aims and vision of the company (Shahmehr, et al.2014). The mission statement is
for providing the broad qualitative aims of the organization and quantifying it will not achieve the
purpose. Being specific will also limit the creativity of the management and this will hinder the growth of
the company (Drtina, & Kyle, 2014). The mission statement should also allow for the generation of
various strategies which can be used by the company to achieve its aims and quantifying the mission
statement will prevent the company from using alternative strategies.
In conclusion, companies should enact vision and mission statements that highlight the industry
of the company and the aims of the company. The vision and mission statements are important as they
help organizations to choose strategies. Having a comprehensive mission statement does not guarantee
that the company will perform better because company success depends on many factors.

VISION AND MISSION 5
References
Babnik, K., Breznik, K., Dermol, V., & Trunk Širca, N. (2014). The mission statement:
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Baumgartner, R. J. (2014). Managing corporate sustainability and CSR: A conceptual framework
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PRACTICE: A CONTENT ANALYSIS AND NEW DIRECTION. International
Journal of Business, Marketing, & Decision Science, 7(1).
Drtina, R., & Kyle, M. (2014). How do nonprofits win foundation grants. Strategic Finance,
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Epstein, M. J., & Buhovac, A. R. (2014). Making sustainability work: Best practices in
managing and measuring corporate social, environmental, and economic impacts.
Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Shahmehr, F. S., Safari, N., Jamshidi, M. J., & Yaghoobi, N. M. (2014). The impact of
performance management on mission statement and operational goal setting.
International Journal of Business and Management, 9(11), 189.