Thought Experiment #43: Why every organisation needs a Chief Missions Officer

Tl;dr:? For future-focused organisations aspiring to be vehicles for positive change, not just to sell more products - we need to create a new breed of an executive role: the Chief Missions Officer.

Before exploring the why and the what of a Chief Missions Officer, allow my co-author, Samar Ibrahim, and me to address three DOTs (Discussion, Observation, or Thoughts) that have led to the penning of this article.?

Dot 1: Executive functions need rethinking

Looking at some of the latest trends over the past 5 years we notice a proliferation of Chief Innovation Officer roles across industries. But have they yielded the results expected of them? With an average tenure of 18 months, most of these innovation executive roles have been set up for failure. They are too broad, too vague, and too aspirational - having resulted in a lot of initiatives (accelerators, labs, etc.), but little impact or ROI for many organisations. The argument is that we need a new breed of executive functions to further organisations’ growth agenda (previous posts explore additional new roles such as Head of Problems | Experimentation | Failure | Platforms | and Storytelling).?

Dot 2: Greater than net-zero

Sustainability is in vogue lately, and it seems every large organisation, from GM to Dell, and even some countries, have ambitions for net-zero or carbon neutrality by 2050. Yet climate change is only one of many systemic problems the world is facing: there is racial and economic inequality across communities; data privacy and protection plaguing companies and governments alike; the dearth of STEM talent supply compared to demand; and of course food and water security to name a few. The solutions to such complex and interconnected problems are not solely the purview of governments. Organisations are as much of a player, for they may well have the resources and commercial alignment to address them. Therefore, sustainability (as it is perceived today) is not enough, so we need to shift to missions, which can be broad and encompassing. Roles such as Chief Sustainability Officers and Corporate Social Responsibility Directors have an opportunity to drive a bigger agenda in the form of Missions.?

Dot 3: Missions are more than goals

Most large organisations have corporate social responsibility goals - say, committing 1% of employees’ time annually to volunteering with local STEM organisations, or offering free financial literacy programs to decrease gender and racial wealth gaps, or, for one notable example, Apple’s financing of a developer academy for underserved students. Without wishing to be pedantic, let’s define the difference between a goal and mission. A goal is something the organisation can do largely on its own. It doesn’t require a myriad of solutions and is quite linear in its undertaking, and can be achieved within a year or so. A mission is a multi-year commitment, not owned by one person, function or organisation - it requires a whole army of people, and the solutions they can provide, to progress towards it. Missions are bigger, bolder, and more complex than goals.?Furthermore, there is a distinction between mission-statements which are a typically verbose collection of words focused on the organisation itself, compared to Missions which are quantifiable and qualifiable intents.

Now, let’s address the why and the what of a Chief Missions Officer role.

We first have to answer the ‘why now’ question. There are early, weak signals of an inflection point beginning to take shape - signs of a shift from ‘Design-Thinking’- which fosters incremental problem-solving, to ‘Mission-Thinking’ -which solves for disruptive problem-solving. This is visible through observations across five areas:?

1) In academia, we see the popularity of Mazzucato’s book on mission-economy: a moonshot guide to changing capitalism?

2) In governments, we see this materialising through the EU’s Horizon multi-billion research and innovation grants focused on grand missions?

3) In human resources, we are on the cusp of the ‘great resignation’, which is forcing employers to address the concern that employees want to connect their work to not just their roles but to a tangible and societal purpose they are contributing to.?

4) In corporations, we see an ever-increasing number of businesses willing to be bold enough to commit to a moonshot ambition, without knowing today how they will get there.?

5) In thought-leaders, we see more conversation starters - For example, Samar’s series on missions - ministeries vs missions, mission cocreators.

What are the main tasks of the Chief Mission Officer? Missions allow organisations to tell a simple story, internally and externally, nationally and globally. Missions should act as a superglue between the different organisation and ecosystem partners so they are collectively building on each other’s work. Missions allow the organisations to streamline investment decisions in projects, programmes, initiatives, and experiments.?

So, with the Why and What outlined for this role, let’s talk about the key focus areas for any Chief Mission Officer. There would be essentially three areas of work:?

Step 1: Mission-Framing

Most organisations (corporates, governments, foundations) don’t have an effective process to frame missions. It’s not just a case of coming up with the words that articulate the mission, especially due to the potential reputational risks that could be tagged to the brand if a mission fails to deliver. Senior stakeholder endorsement is imperative to garner more wide-spread support, and when necessary secure funding.? One suggested criteria for framing is articulated in Samar’s post on conceptualising missions.?

For the purpose of keeping this article short, let’s look at the quantifiable angle only. There are a number of ways for framing a big ambitious target within the mission itself. For example:?

Zero Missions:?

• Zero Carbon Emissions
• Zero youth in NEETs (not in education, employment or training)
• Zero Polio

#1 Missions:?

• Number 1 in ‘ease of doing business’?
• First mission to Mars

100% Missions:

• 100% of citizens have an AI doctor
• 100% of microplastics stopped from entering oceans via rivers?

Million Missions:?

• 15 million vaccinations by May 15
• 10 million out-of-school children in schools?
• 8 million children learning through local community engagement programs

Billion Missions:?

• Billion miles of electric vehicles driven
• Billion trees planted?

Quantifiability alone can be perceived as a goal, but combining it with the other criteria makes it more mission-centric.?

Step 2: Mission Ventures

The surest way to kill off a Missions Department is to turn it into yet another initiative or project run by the organisation - using its existing resources, mindsets, and internal operating models. That’s partly because it will get stuck in organisational politics, constraints, and legacy decision-making. As articulated earlier the difference between mission and goal, is that a mission requires many stakeholders within the ecosystem to get involved. If it’s owned by a single entity, it has a high risk of getting stuck. Missions need an external, entrepreneurial mindset.?

So, if governments are conceiving missions, then they should create and run missions through a Government Venture Studio, where ventures are intended to launch specific missions as ‘Govups’. If corporate organisations are launching missions, they could create a Missions Agency, as an independent venture studio, co-owned by a key set of strategic partners from within their ecosystem.

Step 3: Mission Stories

Missions transcend a single team, department or organisation, therefore the pursuit of a mission requires us to look beyond annual financial and CSR reports to assess progress and growth. Instead, a shared platform is necessary to manage and capture a collective view of the whole organisation, its people, and the impactful actions involved in the pursuit of that mission.

Such a platform can also depict a clear and compelling (shared) story, which can be leveraged to ensure greater visibility for all stakeholders. It is this transparency which could incentive stakeholders to continue supporting the pursuit of the mission. These stories are also a great way to connect with the greater public, sharing successful stories of impact, as well as the inherent challenges being overcome in managing such a long-term project.

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In short, a Chief Mission Officer is required to empower organisations to play a proactive role in addressing the systemic challenges in society.?