6 ms·

The Power of Company Mottoes

47 points by jcurbo 10y ago

jcbeard 10y ago
So there I was. In the Army now. As a young adult I loved watching Stripes...the real US Army is nothing like that. In Stripes Bill Murray just got orders. In real life, you get orders and a commander's intent. When it came my turn to give orders, I learned that intent and vision were what people followed (assuming your troops have reason at all to follow the leader). Orders/plans are great, but people do best when they have something to rally around and fall back to for direction when everything else goes belly up (was going to use Aussie version, but not appropriate). Mottoes from a company mean almost nothing if they're not backed up by people who can grasp and believe in them. It's all about the leadership and the people who follow the leader, not the motto. Note: there are all kinds of leaders...don't always picture General Patton or Steve Jobs.
Animats 10y ago
Some good ones: Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, which builds most large US warships: ""We shall build good ships here, at a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always good ships." Microsoft mission statement through the 1990s: "A computer on every desk, running Microsoft software". (Slogan retired because mission accomplished.) National Security Agency: "Anything is possible, the impossible just takes longer". US Coast Guard: "You have to go out, but you don't have to come back."
- cvs268 10y ago
  >> Microsoft mission statement through the 1990s: >> "A computer on every desk, running Microsoft software". >> (Slogan retired because mission accomplished.) I know several desks that will always run Linux on their computers. They are open to Windows on their phones though. Maybe its time to bring back the motto?... Update: Whats with the downvotes? A phone is computer too, no?...
- perseusprime11 10y ago
  They all sound good except for the last one. What do they mean by you dont have to come back...
  - jabbernotty 10y ago
    https://www.uscg.mil/history/faqs/LSSmotto.asp https://www.uscg.mil/history/faqs/LSSmotto.asp Basically, you can't know for sure that the sea is too rough to do the rescue until you are already out at sea.
  - CapitalistCartr 10y ago
    They mean be careful. Going out is required; its their job. Coming back isn't a sure thing; the ocean is unforgiving.
- richev 10y ago
  Wasn't the Microsoft mission statement "A computer on every desk and in every home"?
- basseq 10y ago
  Slightly off-topic because it's a mission statement, and an old one at that, but NASA's always gave me chills: To understand and protect our home planet, To explore the universe and search for life, To inspire the next generation of explorers ... as only NASA can.
anexprogrammer 10y ago
I think most mottoes and mission statements are there because someone thinks, or was told, they need one rather than because they actually have a mission. So "Who Dares Wins", "Per ardua ad astra" and "Think Different" work because you can easily believe the group actually believes in it. It matters not whether you share the vision. Things rapidly degenerate to sounding like they came from the Dilbert Mission Statement generator for most companies.
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
ErrantX 10y ago
At work we have a fairly long imperative, which is very nice but difficult to keep in mind at all times. We also have a four-word internal "motto" of sorts which entirely encapsulates what we're aiming to do and is easily remembered at 3am when you need to make a critical choice. It's honest, and I think that's why it gets quoted so much.
douche 10y ago
Is This Good for the COMPANY?
jmus 10y ago
I like the motto for a US waste collection company that operates in the Vail, CO area: "Satisfaction guaranteed or your trash back".
- ISL 10y ago
  Works well until someone accidentally throws out a wedding ring and subsequently wants their trash back....
cheriot 10y ago
On the other hand, after the expensive consultants and off sites result in a motto, what happens next? It's told each new employee during indoctrination/onboarding and then forgotten. Quick, what's your employer's motto? How about your last employer? Effective mottoes and vision statements may be the result superior management, but they don't make management superior.
Fuxy 10y ago
Speaking of company mottoes this reminds me on this[1] talk I was at. It was quit a interesting insight into a small open source company. [1](https://media.ccc.de/v/emf2016-198-my-ubertooth-year#video&t=375 https://media.ccc.de/v/emf2016-198-my-ubertooth-year#video&t...) at minute 36 ish.
jkaptur 10y ago
Linking to a subpage of Google's "about" site enabled the jab about the "real mission" being advertising, but the true mission statement is clearly laid out at [1], and certainly passes the 3AM-in-the-rain test: Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. [1] https://www.google.com/intl/en_us/about/company/ https://www.google.com/intl/en_us/about/company/

47 points by jcurbo 10y ago

So there I was. In the Army now. As a young adult I loved watching Stripes...the real US Army is nothing like that. In Stripes Bill Murray just got orders. In real life, you get orders and a commander's intent. When it came my turn to give orders, I learned that intent and vision were what people followed (assuming your troops have reason at all to follow the leader). Orders/plans are great, but people do best when they have something to rally around and fall back to for direction when everything else goes belly up (was going to use Aussie version, but not appropriate). Mottoes from a company mean almost nothing if they're not backed up by people who can grasp and believe in them. It's all about the leadership and the people who follow the leader, not the motto. Note: there are all kinds of leaders...don't always picture General Patton or Steve Jobs.

Animats 10y ago

Some good ones: Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, which builds most large US warships: ""We shall build good ships here, at a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always good ships." Microsoft mission statement through the 1990s: "A computer on every desk, running Microsoft software". (Slogan retired because mission accomplished.) National Security Agency: "Anything is possible, the impossible just takes longer". US Coast Guard: "You have to go out, but you don't have to come back."

cvs268 10y ago
>> Microsoft mission statement through the 1990s: >> "A computer on every desk, running Microsoft software". >> (Slogan retired because mission accomplished.) I know several desks that will always run Linux on their computers. They are open to Windows on their phones though. Maybe its time to bring back the motto?... Update: Whats with the downvotes? A phone is computer too, no?...
perseusprime11 10y ago
They all sound good except for the last one. What do they mean by you dont have to come back...
- jabbernotty 10y ago
  https://www.uscg.mil/history/faqs/LSSmotto.asp https://www.uscg.mil/history/faqs/LSSmotto.asp Basically, you can't know for sure that the sea is too rough to do the rescue until you are already out at sea.
- CapitalistCartr 10y ago
  They mean be careful. Going out is required; its their job. Coming back isn't a sure thing; the ocean is unforgiving.
richev 10y ago
Wasn't the Microsoft mission statement "A computer on every desk and in every home"?
basseq 10y ago
Slightly off-topic because it's a mission statement, and an old one at that, but NASA's always gave me chills: To understand and protect our home planet, To explore the universe and search for life, To inspire the next generation of explorers ... as only NASA can.

anexprogrammer 10y ago

I think most mottoes and mission statements are there because someone thinks, or was told, they need one rather than because they actually have a mission. So "Who Dares Wins", "Per ardua ad astra" and "Think Different" work because you can easily believe the group actually believes in it. It matters not whether you share the vision. Things rapidly degenerate to sounding like they came from the Dilbert Mission Statement generator for most companies.

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

ErrantX 10y ago

At work we have a fairly long imperative, which is very nice but difficult to keep in mind at all times. We also have a four-word internal "motto" of sorts which entirely encapsulates what we're aiming to do and is easily remembered at 3am when you need to make a critical choice. It's honest, and I think that's why it gets quoted so much.

douche 10y ago

Is This Good for the COMPANY?

jmus 10y ago

I like the motto for a US waste collection company that operates in the Vail, CO area: "Satisfaction guaranteed or your trash back".

ISL 10y ago
Works well until someone accidentally throws out a wedding ring and subsequently wants their trash back....

cheriot 10y ago

On the other hand, after the expensive consultants and off sites result in a motto, what happens next? It's told each new employee during indoctrination/onboarding and then forgotten. Quick, what's your employer's motto? How about your last employer? Effective mottoes and vision statements may be the result superior management, but they don't make management superior.

Fuxy 10y ago

Speaking of company mottoes this reminds me on this[1] talk I was at. It was quit a interesting insight into a small open source company. [1](https://media.ccc.de/v/emf2016-198-my-ubertooth-year#video&t=375 https://media.ccc.de/v/emf2016-198-my-ubertooth-year#video&t...) at minute 36 ish.

jkaptur 10y ago

Linking to a subpage of Google's "about" site enabled the jab about the "real mission" being advertising, but the true mission statement is clearly laid out at [1], and certainly passes the 3AM-in-the-rain test: Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. [1] https://www.google.com/intl/en_us/about/company/ https://www.google.com/intl/en_us/about/company/