Strategic Management
Anheuser-Busch
Mission Statement: What it is all about
The Mission Statement is a vital component in the strategic planning of a business
organization. Creating a mission is one of the first actions an organization should take.
This can be a building block for an overall strategy and development of more specific
functional strategies (Abrahams, 1995). By defining a mission an organization is making a
statement of organizational purpose.
Christopher Bart a foremost researcher in the art of mission statements articulates,
“A good mission statement portrays an organization unique and lasting reason for being,
and energizes stakeholders to follow common goals. It likewise enables a focused
allocation of organizational resources since it compels a firm to address some hard
questions: What is our business? Why do we exist? What are we trying to accomplish?”
(Bart,1998).
A mission statement should be inspiring (Bailey, 1996). The reader should want to be a
part of an organization after reading its mission statement. It should be enduring, though
not cast in stone. The statement should project a sense of worth, intent, and shared
expectations and should state intrinsic value of the firms products/services (David and
David, 2003).
Moreover, David and David (2003) suggest that the document should include the
following nine components: overall strategy and development of more specific functional
strategies. By
1. Customers
2. Products/Services
3. Geographic Markets
4. Technology
5. Concern for Survival/Growth/ Profits
6. Philosophy
7. Public Image
8. Employees
9. Distinctive Competence
Anheuser-Busch
Anheuser-Buschs operations and resources are focused on beer, adventure park
entertainment and packaging (Anheuser-Busch, 2003). Anheuser-Busch also has interests
in aluminum beverage container recycling, malt production, rice milling, real estate
development, turf farming, metalized paper label printing and transportation services.
The company vision is: Through all of our products, services and relationships, we will
add to lifes enjoyment.
Anheuser-Busch Mission Statement
Anheuser-Busch mission statement is:
*ƒ‚· Be the worlds beer company
*ƒ‚· Enrich and entertain a global audience
*ƒ‚· Deliver superior returns to our shareholders
After its mission statement, the company enumerates its values in support of the mission
statement. The values are the following:
*ƒ‚· Quality in everything we do
*ƒ‚· Exceeding customer expectations
*ƒ‚· Trust, respect and integrity in all of ourrelationships
*ƒ‚· Continuous improvement, innovation and embracing change
*ƒ‚· Teamwork and open, honest communication
*ƒ‚· Each employees responsibility for contributing to the companys success
*ƒ‚· Creating a safe, productive and rewarding work environment
*ƒ‚· Building a high-performing, diverse workforce
*ƒ‚· Promoting the responsible consumption of our products
*ƒ‚· Preserving and protecting the environment and supporting communities where we do
business
If I were to analyze the company mission statement according to the elements of a mission
