Mission statements by themselves are of very little value. Some companies have good mission statements, but their management teams often lack a sense of purpose. In other companies, management teams have a clarity of vision and enthusiasm that is awe‐inspiring, without having a mission...

Planning review meetings between business unit managers and corporate managers are notoriously disappointing. The main problem isn't the design of the process or the capability of the participants. Rather, it's the lack of an adequate corporate‐level strategy as context for the reviews.