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Hosted by Financial Advisor Coach, Ray Sclafani, "Building The Billion Dollar Business" is the ultimate podcast for financial advisors seeking to elevate their practice. Each episode features deep dives into actionable advice and exclusive interviews with top professionals in the financial services industry. Tune in to unlock your potential and build a successful, enduring financial advisory practice.
Ray Sclafani (00:00.366)
Welcome to Building the Billion Dollar Business, the podcast where we dive deep into the strategies, insights and stories behind the world's most successful financial advisors and introduce content and actionable ideas to fuel your growth. Together, we'll unlock the methods, tactics and mindset shifts that set the top 1 % apart from the rest. I'm Ray Sclafani, and I'll be your host.
How mission, vision, and values impact your bottom line. You know, for many advisors, concepts such as refining their mission, vision, and values tend to be viewed as secondary concerns. You know, the kind of things that are somewhat useful for the firm, but don't have much impact on revenue and profitability. However, high-performing teams do so much more internal work, not only to talk about their mission, vision, and values,
but to integrate those principles into the daily operations and strategic decision making of the business, ultimately using them to help drive better business results. The ways your firm's mission vision values can positively impact your business are myriad, but I'd like to take a look at seven of the most compelling, along with some real data that points to the impact the work your team can spend on mission vision values can actually drive better business results.
Okay, so let's look at these seven first. First, clear direction and alignment. By regularly reviewing your mission vision values, you'll help ensure that everybody on your team is aligned toward common goals. Research consistently demonstrates that alignment between organizational goals and individual efforts dramatically improves performance. It helps ensure that each member understands not only the what of the work,
but also the why behind the work, eliminating any confusion, misaligned priorities, and wasted resources. High performing teams understand that clarity is a compelling advantage. When teams know the direction and the role in achieving that vision, they make better business decisions and focus more effectively on activities that drive growth. How much better you might ask? A Harvard Business Review article titled,
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companies that truly value their values outperform the rest found that companies that consistently communicate and act on their mission vision values outperform their competitors by more than 30 % regarding employee engagement, retention, and overall growth. Okay, number two, improved decision-making. High-performing teams use mission vision values as a filter for decision-making. Critical during volatile times,
so that they can more closely align these decisions with long-term goals and values rather than relying on reactive short-term thinking. If you're developing next-gen leaders, improved decision-making and focusing on mission vision values are closely aligned. Teams that regularly revisit their core principles tend to be better equipped to make consistent value-driven decisions. When leaders and team members are all clear on their firm's mission and values,
they can more confidently prioritize actions that lead to better business outcomes. A recent Cornell University study found that 85 % of team members in high performing groups reported that their shared mission and values drove better collaboration and decision making. You know, these organizations just don't have mission vision values written on walls or post-it notes or taped up to their computer. They actively engage with the underlying principles that drive alignment.
and better team decisions. Okay, number three, increased employee engagement and retention. Another critical reason to revisit your mission vision values regularly is its direct impact on employee engagement. Gallup's ongoing research reveals that teams with a strong sense of purpose and alignment with their organizational values are consistently more engaged, motivated, and productive.
This directly translates into more firm loyalty, reduced turnover, and greater retention of institutional knowledge. For advisory teams, that's where client-wise we spend our time coaching high-performing teams the most, we see relationships and trust as crucial to client retention, having a stable, motivated, and knowledgeable team. All of this directly contributes to sustained success.
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In its 2017 report on mission-driven workplaces, Gallup found that employees whose company, Mission, makes them feel their job is more important, well, they're 68 % more likely to be engaged at work, and that highly engaged teams show 21 % greater profitability and 59 % lower turnover than less engaged teams. Okay, number four, adaptability and resilience.
Firms that regularly review their mission vision values are also better able to adapt to change as they constantly reflect on whether their strategy aligns with both internal goals and external market conditions. This flexibility fosters a great deal more resilience during crises or unexpected disruptions. The Stockdale paradox we discussed reinforces the idea that high performing teams can balance realism
about current challenges with optimism and focusing on the future. They confront the harsh realities of the marketplace while staying anchored to a long-term inspiring vision. This helps build resilience and ensures that short-term challenges don't derail a firm's long-term strategy. For information about the Stockdale Paradox, check out a previous episode in Building the Billion Dollar Business Podcast. In fact, a study conducted by Deloitte
purpose driven companies evolve faster than others found that organizations with a clear purpose, often linked to a strong mission and vision. They're significantly more likely to outperform their peers. Number five, client experience consistency. Well, when you rarely revisit your mission vision values, you reinforce the core principles that drive how every team member interacts with clients. And the more consistent values based
client experience you deliver, the stronger the relationships you create. Simply put, clients inevitably gravitate towards and show loyalty to firms whose actions are consistent with their stated values, and then deliver that client experience rooted in purpose and values. This is a recipe for higher client retention rates, more referrals and introductions, and increased assets under management. Research into
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customer loyalty conducted by Bain and company reinforces the importance of mission, vision and values. They found that 80 % of clients believe that brands with a strong sense of purpose and values offer better experiences. Well, given the crucial role of trust and long term relationships in this business, the advisory business, the essential connection between your firm's values and its capacity to retain clients successfully cannot be overstated. In fact,
We also know that higher retention rates increases lifetime value of your client, which also drives enterprise value. Number six, building a culture of accountability. Well, regularly reviewing mission, vision, and values fosters that culture of accountability. When team members know that their actions are being measured against the firm's values and mission, well, they're more likely to act in alignment with those principles. But it's more than just checking a box.
You know, these teams are establishing a shared language and a system for holding themselves accountable to the firm's vision and values, reinforcing high standards and ultimately leading to better business outcomes. According to Forbes organizations with strong accountability structures and create this great cultures experience, markedly improved performance, faster execution of strategy and consistently higher revenue growth. So.
Building a culture of accountability is a key part, especially when it comes to mission, vision, and values. Okay, last, number seven, innovation and strategic focus. Consistently reviewing and aligning with your mission, vision, and values also fuels innovation by keeping the focus on your firm's long-term goals and values. It allows your team to be more strategic in their approach to growth and innovation. Rather than chasing short-term gains,
or unrelated opportunities, they can focus on innovations that enhance the firm's core offerings and differentiate your business in this highly competitive and crowded marketplace. A recent study conducted by PWC shows that purpose-driven companies are much more likely to engage in strategic innovation that drives growth. Firms grounded in a clear mission and vision are better at identifying opportunities that align with their core principles
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leading to sustained competitive advantages. The evidence is clear. While no single data set proves a direct correlation between mission, vision, and values in high-performing teams, there are enough studies and collective research across our industry and various industries to show solid evidence of a link. Clearly, teams that regularly revisit and reinforce their mission, vision, and values show better alignment and decision-making.
higher employee engagement and retention, greater adaptability and resilience, stronger client relationships and retention, as well as an overall culture of accountability and innovation. By keeping these core elements front and center, your team can help ensure they finish the year strong and set themselves up for long-term success. Regularly reflecting on mission, vision, and values is not just
and exercise in theory. It's a proven strategy for driving better results, building stronger teams, and creating a sustainable competitive advantage. So here are three very specific coaching questions for you and your leadership team to consider when you're focusing on your mission, vision, and values. Number one, how can you further integrate your firm's mission, vision, and values into your daily operations and enhance team alignment?
and decision-making over the next year? How can you leverage your firm's mission and values to foster innovation and strategic growth that will set you apart in a competitive marketplace? And third, how can you ensure that your firm's mission, vision, and values become even more central to creating a consistent client experience that drives retention and referrals in the future? Here's a little bonus. I've in-
some excellent additional reading recommendations, five highly recommended books for leaders looking to understand and effectively implement mission, vision, and values within their organizations. If after listening this episode, you get it, right? I get it. Mission, vision, values matter. How do we just not make them so rote in our organization? How do we elevate an awareness around this and deeply connect
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to our business. So I'd start with maybe some of the exercises in each of these books. One is by Simon Sinek. Start with why it's a oldie but a goodie. How great leaders inspire everyone to take action. Patrick Lencioni has the advantage why organizational health trumps everything else in business. He outlines all these aspects of building a healthy organization and
including clarity around mission, vision and values has some excellent exercises. One of my favorite by Jim Collins is built to last the successful habits of visionary companies. If we're talking about vision, you've got to read traction, getting a grip on your business by Gino Wickman. And last, one of my favorites is Brene Brown, dare to lead, brave work, tough conversation, whole hearts. She explores
all the role of courage and vulnerability in leadership and ties the importance of clear values to effective leadership, emphasizing how mission and vision can help leaders inspire and connect with their teams on a deeper level. All of these books offer practical insights and strategies, and I hope these help you effectively install and sustain your mission, vision, and values and encourage your next-gen leaders to do the same. The links to these books you'll find in the show notes.
Well, thanks for tuning in. And that's a wrap. Until next time, this is Ray Sclafani. Keep building, growing and striving for greatness. Together, we'll redefine what's possible in the world of wealth management. Be sure to check back for our latest episode and article.