From sense-making to perceived organizational performance: looking for the best way

Abstract

Purpose – Mission statements are a frequent strategic tool, yet little is known about their effects on economic performance. The main objectives of this study are to model and to assess the relationships between sense-making of the mission statement (SM), employee mission engagement (EME), organizational mission fulfillment (OMF) and performance (PER), and a secondary objective is to determine the path that better explains these linkages. Design/methodology/approach – This article reports the results of an empirical investigation drawn from a sample of 132 managers at different levels in two Spanish companies. The data analysis was performed in two steps: the first was to assess the reliability of the measurement scales; the second was to build the causal model using structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis. Findings – The finding suggests that the best path to explain the relationships between the mission statement and performance are SM→EME → OMF→PER, with a full mediation effect of EME and OMF. These findings are consistent with previous research. Practical implications – The managerial implications of these results are discussed. Just having a good mission and effective communication of the mission is not enough. The mission has to be related to employee’s engagement and to be a mission-driven organization. Originality/value – This research provides a new paradigm for understanding the relationships between sense-making around the mission statement (SM), employees’ mission engagement (EME), organizational mission fulfillment (EME), and perceived organizational performance (PER), and it helps to adjudicate among possible outcome paths and better explain the inter-relationships between these constructs.