Next Step has 2020 Vision!

Last year, I met Ari Weinzweig, co-founder of the famous Zingerman’s Community of Businesses in Ann Arbor, MI. Ari and his partner Paul Saginaw have built many thriving businesses, all around common themes, including food and culture.

I asked Ari how they went from being just a small deli to creating a thriving community of businesses. He said it was all because of their vision. He and Paul, at a crossroads of whether to expand the deli nationwide or not, opted to grow within Ann Arbor instead and create a community of related and exceptional businesses.

The mission was to create a vision that described the company in 20 years. They did that and actually finished their vision years ahead of schedule.

Ari told me that the important thing to remember is that the vision is not how to get there but what it looks like. It’s a destination of where you want to be.

So, I came back to Rochester and started the first draft of Next Step’s 2020 vision. It’s for the year 2020 but also ties in nicely to having great vision! I asked my managers to dig into it next and then the rest of our coworkers. It’s been a collaborative effort that began more than six months ago.

The goals are simple:

1. It is inspiring? Does it excite and motivate?
2. It is strategically sound. Is it challenging but attainable?
3. It is well documented? Is the vision written well, handed out to the team and reviewed frequently?
4. Is it communicated effectively? Are we clearly and regularly communicating the vision to coworkers, customers and to the community at large in both direct and indirect ways?

The Next Step 2020 Vision is finally complete and I am very passionate about it! It’s very bold, yet very doable. If you’d like to take a look at it, e-mail me at David@nextSTEPmag.com.

I hope it inspires you to think about your own vision. It could be about your company or your life.