At its very core, SPM helps answer the all-important question: Are we achieving our social goals? Formulating a social mission is the first step towards defining these goals. The social mission also provides the foundation for day-to-day operations, decision-making and performance monitoring.
A good mission statement will be short and clear. It will summarize your social goals and answer three key questions:
- Whom do you want to reach (target population)?
- How do you intend to serve them?
- What changes do you hope to influence?
Your board and senior management should be involved in creating your mission. You should also consider involving field staff and clients in the creation of the mission in order to get full buy-in. Your mission is also the foundation for monitoring performance.
Once your mission statement has been agreed on by all stakeholders, enter it into the Social Performance Workbook. This workbook will:
- breakdown the mission statement into social goals and objections
- define indicators
- set targets
- list activities to reach your goals
Please update this workbook now and save it in a easy-to-access location as we will refer to it throughout Dimension 1 of the Universal Guidelines.
Mission Statement Resources
Practical Material – Social Performance Workbook
Technical Material – SPM Board Manual (MicroSave) (25 pgs)
SPM HUB 
Leave a Reply