The Role of Mission Statement in Strategic Management: A Case of Service Industries in Choma District of Southern Province, Zambia.

The mission statement is an important organizational tool that forms the foundation for

all other organizational objectives and strategies. Furthermore, it helps a firm present itself

favorably to the public and identify and respond to various stakeholders. Mission statements

vary in length, content, format, and specificity. Most practitioners and academicians in strategic

management suggest that an effectively written mission statement exhibits nine characteristics or

mission statement components. Since a mission statement is often the most visible and public part

of the strategic management process, it is important that it includes most, if not all, of these essential components. Hence, the purpose of this research was to establish the role of organizational mission statements in the strategic management process of service industries so as to ensure they are managed better to result in improved and competitive entities in Choma district. This research was premised on the descriptive qualitative method of analysis. The use of the qualitative method allowed the researchers to measure variables and the effects of one variable on another precisely, particularly when the causal relationships between variables are complex. The study sampled entrepreneurs in the service sector based in Choma district. Data was obtained from the respondents by means of questionnaires. Frequency tables, graphs, figures, and pie-charts were used to analyze the research data. Data was also analyzed by the use of software; Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS, version 26) and Microsoft Excel (version 16). The findings indicated that strategic management is considered an integral part of strategic management in most organizations. A clear correlation was established between the existence of the clearly stated written mission statements and the organizational performance.