LPL theme of “Make It Your Mission” had mighty impressive results

In order to adopt a more customer-centric culture focused on caring personal service, the largest independent broker dealer in the U.S. needed to feel small. To accomplish this, LPL Financial simplified its seven-year-old mission statement and threw a surprise one-day launch event for its 4,000 employees across four cities. The event theme, “Make It Your Mission,” was integrated into each activity. Employees were asked to fill out postcards with handwritten personal missions of commitment that would be mailed back to them in the future. Bright orange USPS mailboxes remained in the offices for weeks afterward, a visual reminder of their commitments. And 50 large electronic signs spelling out the mission appeared in halls and conference rooms.

Employees received “Making It My Mission” stickers, a journal to chronicle progress toward their goals, and various branded treats throughout the day. Prior to the launch, managers were briefed on talking points and competition between business units before employee involvement ensued.  Pre-recorded video of company leaders’ commitments played on every monitor, ensuring company-wide saturation of the message. Post-event, the video of the launch was broadcast internally and included in recruiting outreach and new hire orientation. 

The results were mighty impressive: 95 percent of LPL employees participated in the mission statement launch event, with more than 2,000 employees hand-writing and submitting postcards with personal commitments.