By Matt Davis
Credit unions have mission statements all wrong. Missions have clearbeginnings and clear endings. They either start or don't start. Theycan fail or be completed.
It's easy to know when you've started a mission. An action takesplace. Your crew marches forward. Successes and failures and learningand growing happen.
Endings are easy to decipher as well. When Apollo 11 left earth forthe moon, there was no mistaking the difference between a win and aloss—a success and a failure. The same is true in a game of chess, amarriage, or cleaning a bedroom. You either accomplished it, or youdidn't. You have work left to do, or you don't.
A quick search of the web finds credit union mission statements like"To empower members to achieve their financial goals" and "Buildbetter lives through world-class service and convenience." The problemwith these isn't in their aim. These are perfectly legitimate reasonsfor existing. The problem, instead, is that the outcomes areimpossible to objectively measure. Subsequently, they're impossible toachieve.
