Lantmånnen Unibake.

It all started when…

With around 40 industrial bakery plants, employing 6000 people in 15 countries, Lantmånnen-Unibake already had a very strong international presence. In fact, it was already one of the biggest bakers in the world.

However, the chief executive very wisely concluded that this did not make Lantmånnen-Unibake a truly global bakery. And what was needed was a vision that pointed every colleague in the direction of a common goal: producing baked goods on an industrial scale all over the world.

Attempts had been made to articulate this ambition but they had resulted in statements that sounded like boardroom speak.

I have always believed that corporate vision comes from the top and that vision statements are all-too-often an attempt to ‘involve everybody’. Surely, visions are things to look up to.

For this reason, I decided to book a coffee with the CEO.

We sat down and I heard, first hand, what the captain of the ship felt was the long-term destination.

Then, I made things very difficult for myself. I introduced my specifications for a good vision:

1. It should be in language anyone in the company understands - no jargon or business language.

2. It should be short - 8 words or less. This number came from some desk research I’d done about memorability of vision statements.

3. It should enable a strategy that can lead to measurable results - the finance director should like this statement.

4. It should be clear about the value that the business brings to the customer by doing what it does - this is hard because it’s really two things in one.

So, how did I do?

1. My statement works in the boardroom and in the bakery just as well. ‘Tummies’ doesn’t translate literally but every country has its own version.

2. I did it in five.

3. Billions? I actually added up the populations of every country where Lantmånnen-Unibake had an office. The figure came to millions. The client asked for ‘billions’ because it was more ambitious. And the finance director approved this statement whole-heartedly.

4. I think ‘smiling tummies’ is a really nice customer-centric benefit.

Item 4 was particularly difficult in the case of Lantmånnen-Unibake because the business bakes both bread and cakes.

The benefit of bread is satiety - the feeling of fullness.

The benefit of cakes is pleasure - the smile that comes from sweetness.

‘Smiling tummies’ was my way of ticking both boxes.

This statement was underpinned by a mission statement.

(Please note that this client feels that my definition of mission and vision is the wrong way around…)