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The real mission of the mission statement: A systematic review of the literature

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 February 2018

Inés Alegre ,
Jasmina Berbegal-Mirabent ,
Adrián Guerrero  and
Marta Mas-Machuca
Inés Alegre
Affiliation:
IESE Business School, Barcelona, Spain
Jasmina Berbegal-Mirabent*
Affiliation:
Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
Adrián Guerrero
Affiliation:
Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
Marta Mas-Machuca
Affiliation:
Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
*
Corresponding author: jberbegal@uic.es
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Abstract

A mission statement is a widely used strategic tool that emphasises an organisation’s uniqueness and identity. It was in the early 1980s that academics, managers, and consultants recognised the need for explicitly formulating a mission statement in organisations. Since then, mission statements have remained as a popular strategic tool in organisations. This article conducts a systematic literature review to synthesise research on mission statements. The analysis of the 53 articles selected includes a bibliometric and content analysis. According to their perspective, the works selected were grouped into four thematic areas: (1) mission statement development, (2) mission statement components, (3) mission impact on employees, and (4) mission impact on performance. The overreaching conclusion is that mission statements are widely used in practice but poorly researched in theory. Most articles adopt a managerial phenomenon-based strand, lacking a deep theoretical foundation. The article ends with suggestions for further research in terms of theory, practice, and methodology.

Keywords

missionmission statementliterature reviewbibliometric analysisfirm performance
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Management & Organization , Volume 24 , Issue 4 , July 2018 , pp. 456 - 473
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2018 

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