For 17 years, Ford used the tagline, “Quality is Job One.”

Like all great campaigns, this was designed to reach both consumers and employees.

Ford had the courage to admit that their cars did indeed have quality problems, and fixing them was Job One.

Ford also knew that they could not fix the quality problems without the help of their employees.  The advertising campaign was designed to help employees understand the magnitude of the problem, solicit their engagement in the process, and highlight those employees who had signed up to be part of the solution.

The campaign worked.  (Remember, Ford was the only American car manufacturer who did not need or take a bailout.)

The question for you to consider is this:  do your customers and employees know exactly what your Job One is?

Providing this kind of specificity requires what Jim Collins calls “piercing clarity.”

Obviously, only One Thing can be Job One.