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| | :*Judd Bagley | | :*Judd Bagley |
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| − | Generally, the corporation's purpose is gathering, discussing, analyzing, and distributing news and information. More specifically, its Mission Statement will be along these lines: | + | Generally, the corporation's purpose is gathering, discussing, analyzing, and distributing news and information. The directors communicate to the world via a blog found at '''[http://www.Akahele.org Akahele.org]''' |
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| | ==Mission Statement== | | ==Mission Statement== |
| − | (DRAFT) | + | (DRAFT in progress) |
| | ''The IRC mission is to eliminate unethical practices and content on the Internet by educating the general public about those elements having a measurable detrimental impact on our society. We strive to exercise journalistic excellence to present complex issues to the average citizen, while deepening our commitment to values like respect for others, personal responsibility, attribution of work, and common courtesy.'' | | ''The IRC mission is to eliminate unethical practices and content on the Internet by educating the general public about those elements having a measurable detrimental impact on our society. We strive to exercise journalistic excellence to present complex issues to the average citizen, while deepening our commitment to values like respect for others, personal responsibility, attribution of work, and common courtesy.'' |
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| − | <!-- THESE ARE NOTES FOR THE EDITORS, NOT VIEWED BY READERS OF THE PAGE
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| − | The following concepts are critical in defining "who" your organization
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| − | is:
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| − | The Purpose Statement
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| − | The purpose statement clearly states what your organization seeks to
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| − | accomplish: Why does your organization exist? What is the ultimate
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| − | result of your work?
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| − | Purpose statements usually include two phrases:
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| − |
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| − | * an infinitive that indicates a change in status, such as to increase, to
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| − | decrease, to prevent, to eliminate
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| − | * an identification of the problem or condition to be changed.
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| − |
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| − | An example of a purpose statement is "to eliminate homelessness."
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| − | In defining purpose, it is essential to focus on outcomes and results
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| − | rather than methods: How is the world going to be different? What is
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| − | going to change? Thus, the purpose of a mental health counseling agency
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| − | would never be simply "to provide counseling services," for that is
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| − | describing a method rather than a result. Rather, the purpose might be
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| − | "to improve the quality of life" for its clients.
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| − | The Business Statement
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| − | This statement outlines the "business(es)" (i.e., activities or
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| − | programs) your organization chooses in order to pursue its purpose.
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| − | Specifically, you must answer, "What activity are we going to do to
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| − | accomplish our purpose?" For example, there are many ways to work on the
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| − | problem of homelessness:
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| − | * to construct housing for homeless individuals
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| − | * to educate the public and advocate for public policy changes
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| − | * to provide job training to homeless individuals.
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| − | Each of these are different businesses, but they may be different means
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| − | of achieving the same purpose.
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| − | Business statements often include the verb "to provide" or link a
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| − | purpose statement with the words "by" or "through." For example: "To
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| − | eliminate homelessness by providing job training to homeless
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| − | individuals."
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| − | A cautionary note: If the word "and" is in your purpose or business
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| − | statement, ask yourselves, "Are we really committed to both ideas
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| − | connected by the word" and, "or have we simply not been able to accept
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| − | that one idea is more important?"
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| − | Values
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| − | Values are beliefs which your organization's members hold in common and
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| − | endeavor to put into practice. The values guide your organization's
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| − | members in performing their work. Specifically, you should ask, "What
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| − | are the basic beliefs that we share as an organization?"
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| − | Examples of values include: a commitment to excellent services,
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| − | innovation, diversity, creativity, honesty, integrity, and so on. Values
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| − | may include beliefs such as: "Eating vegetables is more economically
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| − | efficient and ecologically responsible than eating beef." (Vegetarian
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| − | Association)
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| − | Marvin Weisbord writes in Productive Workplaces that values come alive
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| − | only when people are involved in doing important tasks. Ideally, an
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| − | individual's personal values will align with the spoken and unspoken
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| − | values of the organization. By developing a written statement of the
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| − | values of the organization, group members have a chance to contribute to
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| − | the articulation of these values, as well as to evaluate how well their
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| − | personal values and motivation match those of the organization.
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| − |
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| − | The example of a mission statement cited at the beginning of this
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| − | response sheet includes all three elements of what should be included in
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| − | a mission statement. To review:
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| − |
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| − | At the Developmental Studies Center we develop, evaluate, and
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| − | disseminate programs [business] that foster children's ethical, social,
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| − | and intellectual development [purpose]. While nurturing children's
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| − | capacity to think skillfully and critically, we also strive to deepen
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| − | children's commitment to prosocial values such as kindness, helpfulness,
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| − | personal responsibility, and respect for others - qualities we believe
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| − | are essential to leading humane and productive lives in a democratic
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| − | society [values].
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| − |
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| − | Below is another example of a mission statement which includes all three
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| − | elements:
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| − | The YMCA of San Francisco, based in Judeo-Christian heritage [values],
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| − | seeks to enhance the lives of all people [purpose] through programs
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| − | designed to develop spirit, mind and body [business].
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| − |
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| − | In addition to the three elements discussed above, you may want to
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| − | address the following questions in developing your organization's
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| − | mission statement:
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| − | * What is the problem or need your organization is trying to address?
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| − | * What makes your organization unique?
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| − | * Who are the beneficiaries of your work?
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| − | Clearly, the answers to the these questions could be included in the
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| − | mission statement or added as elaboration of the mission statement.
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| − | How To Write a Mission Statement
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| − | There is no formula for finding the wording that best expresses the
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| − | collective intention of your organization. It can be drafted by one
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| − | person alone or after input gathered at leadership retreat. The most
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| − | important issue is that there is consensus on the answers to the
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| − | questions used in developing the mission statement.
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| − | One approach is to use time at a board retreat to discuss these
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| − | questions and find out where the areas of consensus are and where there
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| − | are differences. There is a "process" benefit to hashing over an
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| − | organization's mission statement as well. In the course of discussion
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| − | and debate, new members are introduced to nuances of an organization's
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| − | mission and changes in the environment, and old members refresh their
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| − | understanding of both. As a result, the group will have confidence that
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| − | the mission statement which emerges (whether it is a new statement or a
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| − | rededication to the old mission statement) is genuinely an articulation
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| − | of commonly held ideas.
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| − |
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| − | Groups are good at many things, but one of them is not writing. Have
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| − | group discussions about big ideas and concepts and then let one or two
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| − | individuals draft and redraft the wording before submitting a reworked
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| − | version for the group to respond to. It is important to circulate the
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| − | draft mission statement a few times to board, staff, and other
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| − | stakeholders. Some consultants advise organizations to also seek an
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| − | outside opinion from someone unfamiliar with the organization to see how
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| − | easily the mission statement can be understood.
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| − | Mix with passion, humanity and an eye on the big picture, and keep
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| − | refining the mission statement until you have a version that people can
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| − | actively support.
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| − | -->
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| | ==Bylaws of the Internet Review Corporation== | | ==Bylaws of the Internet Review Corporation== |
