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empowerment of employees requires a common understanding of what is
needed at their level in order for the organization to achieve the quality it
seeks. Furthermore, one way to ensure that vision formation is a
continuous process is by spreading the leadership role throughout the

organization at every level, so that every operating unit is encouraged to
develop its own vision. 249 This will be further discussed in Chapter 11.

One of the more important criteria for selecting leaders below the level of
top management should be their ability to create and implement visions for
their particular area of responsibility. Once an individual has been selected

for a leadership position, his or her visioning skills can be enhanced with
well-designed training and development programs. People can be put in
positions where they observe other visionary leaders in action or where
they are mentored by such individuals. These emerging leaders should be
encouraged to develop and articulate visions appropriate to their level of

operation. The experience gained from the ongoing efforts to envision will
facilitate the development of these leaders and help them move into more
responsible and higher-level positions. 250

An organizational-wide vision is shared within the organization when
everyone has a similar picture of what the organization is and where it is
going, and they are committed to ensuring that it is truly shared. When

people share a vision, they are connected and bound together by a common
aspiration. Just as personal visions gain their power from an individual’s
deep caring for that vision, so shared visions derive their power from a
common caring throughout the organization. 251

A shared vision provides an overarching goal – a statement of what the
ideal future looks like. This provides:
• A focus, purpose, and direction. Something the organization’s
members can strive to achieve, which leads to smarter choices in
their decision-making.

249
Bert Nanus. Visionary Leadership. San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1992, p. 164.
250
Bert Nanus. Visionary Leadership. San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1992, p. 166.
251 Peter M. Senge, The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization (New York NY:
Currency Doubleday) 1994, p. 206.
David Kolzow 246