Developing a Strategic Plan for a Program in Communication Sciences and Disorders

Developing a Mission Statement

Definition

Mission: A statement that indicates what the program plans to do and to whom it will be done. The statement indicates the reason the program exists. The Mission Statement serves as the basis for the development of the program's focus areas/issues, outcomes, and strategies.

Current Program Mission Statement

[Insert current Mission Statement if available.]

Developing a Mission Statement: Some Things to Remember

1. Adoption of the Mission Statement should change the behavior of the program.
2. The Mission Statement should provide the basis for evaluation of the program's outcomes and strategies to determine if the mission is being accomplished.
3. The Mission Statement should differentiate the program from other programs.
4. The Mission Statement should define the "business" the program wants to be in, not necessarily the "business" it is in.
5. The Mission Statement should be relevant to all of the program's identified customers.
6. The Mission Statement should be exciting, inspiring, and motivating.
7. The Mission Statement should be short and concise.
8. The Mission Statement should answer the following questions: Who are you as a program? Why do you exist? What do you do? Whom do you serve?