How To Succeed With Purpose

Our guest contributor this month is Phillip Haid. Phillip founded PUBLIC in 2008 to disrupt the way companies think about doing “good”. Driven by a passion to prove that social and environmental impact is a key business driver to achieve profit with purpose, he set out to build a social impact agency – designing social and environmental purpose brands, strategies, programs and campaigns.

Purpose – a company’s aspirational reason for being grounded in humanity – has come a long way over the past 5 years. It went from something businesses didn’t really think about in any serious results oriented way, to recognizing its critical importance to the present and future success of the business. 

There are many reasons for this, from the heightened demands and expectations of employees, to Boards of Directors looking at their fiduciary responsibilities through the expanded prism of social and environmental impact.

And while I could dedicate this article to the details of this ever increasing shift and deepening of purpose, I am going to focus instead on something more practical – how to live your purpose effectively to achieve both societal and business benefit. 

Below are ten lessons I have gleaned from creating and executing purpose and impact strategies for many companies across North America over the past 14 years. 

#1 – Embed purpose at the centre of your business

This may seem obvious but I am constantly struck by how many companies have a purpose statement that is neither focused nor serves as a compass for how they make decisions and drive their business forward. The key is to develop a purpose that you live everyday, because it sits at the heart of your business strategy and decision-making. A good example is CVS whose purpose is “helping people on their path to better health”. Their purpose drove decisions to no longer sell tobacco, reduce the number of sugar, salt and fat products on their shelves and increase health clinics in their stores. Tony’s Chocolonely is another great example on a smaller scale. They exist to make 100% slave free the norm in chocolate. Everything they do in the sourcing, making and communicating of the business is designed to achieve their purpose. 

#2 – Take care of your people 

This is not a novel idea. It has always been important. But I would argue that how you treat your people has increased in relevance over the past few years for a few main reasons: higher expectation by Millennials and Gen Z for companies to live their values inside and outside the company; blurring of the lines between the private and public (what happens inside your company is now fair game to be shared widely with consumers); and the rise of a more fluid, freelance economy where commitment and loyalty to a company are more fleeting. As a result, what you do to support your people is a critical component of living your purpose. There are many great examples of this including Starbucks, whose purpose “to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time” has driven progressive policies for its employees, including paying for them to attend college. Going above and beyond the norm, like Netflix’s parental leave policy (one year paid time off to new parents) gets attention and drives recruitment and retention efforts.

#3 – Solve a measurable problem

Too often a company’s purpose sits at a very high level of abstraction without a clearly defined problem(s) it seeks to solve. To make your purpose more concrete and actionable for key stakeholders, it’s important to identify, define and map a set of solutions to problems your business seeks to address because they are critical to living your purpose. Volvo has done a great job in this regard. Safety has always sat at the core of their business and it led to the creation of the three-point safety belt which has saved over a million lives. So now they are doubling down with A Million More, their latest safety platform to save another million lives through new technologies like a speed cap and driver monitoring to turn off the car when intoxicated. I also like Dave’s Killer Bread who is working towards reducing recidivism rates through its second chance employment program. 

#4 – Take a stand 

All the data suggests both employees and consumers want CEOs to take stands on relevant issues to their business. They are looking for leadership to speak out and act as a beacon to propel action on important social and environmental issues. The challenge comes in deciding when to speak out, especially on contentious issues within an ever increasing polarizing climate. Abortion being a case and point because no matter the stand a CEO takes on the over turning of Roe v Wade and the protection of reproductive rights, they are likely to upset 40% of the people. So a well defined purpose is critical to both deciding when to lean in and how to engage. Without it, companies are truly lost at sea. The negative example of this lesson is Disney, who’s CEO Bob Chapek tried to navigate the contentious “Don’t say gay bill” in Florida by not saying anything publicly until many of his employees called him out and protested the company’s lack of apparent support for LGBTQ+ families. The positive examples are many including Patagonia (saving our planet), Ben & Jerry’s (social and environmental justice), Levi’s (gun control) and Seventh Generation (eliminating toxins), who have all built their brands around activist stances on issues core to their purpose.

#5 – Innovate with your products/services 

One of the more exciting emergent areas to live your purpose is in the creation of socially and environmentally positive products and services. Increasingly we are seeing companies ask themselves how a product can be reimagined to be more inclusive or environmentally responsible. The more your purpose reflects your products and services (and vice versa) the more powerful your offering becomes to your key audiences. There are many great examples of this including: Master Card’s True Name initiative that allows transgender and non binary people to proudly display their chosen name on their credit card; Barbie’s inclusive line of dolls; Google’s green map to reduce your GHG emissions; and Degree’s redesigned deodorant and Pottery Barn’s new accessible home line for people with disabilities.

#6 – Invest and incubate 

Once upon a time charitable contribution was seen as the only vehicle to contribute back to communities. But as the world of social finance and innovation opens up so do the possibilities. Impact and green bonds, incubators, venture funds are all part of the toolkit when it comes to driving social and environmental outcomes in a more sustainable way. Leading the way are companies like Patagonia with it’s Tin Shed Ventures (venture capital fund investing in environmentally sustainable businesses), Starbucks $1 billion sustainability bond, and Johnson & Johnson’s JLabs, investing in startups health innovations. 

#7 – Engage in unexpected way

The days of good deeds speaking for themselves are done. And for good reason. It’s an antiquated notion in the corporate realm. Communicating your purpose and impact initiatives isn’t about being charitable (which drives the need to be humble and pure). It’s about using your marketing channels to advance important issues. But unfortunately, it is harder than ever to get people’s attention. So communicating your purpose requires the same level of creativity and engagement that businesses put into their brand marketing. Most consumers are not asking about your impact efforts so effectiveness requires increased creativity. Examples I love include: IKEA and The Red Cross’ activation to show what the living conditions for Syrian refugees looks like, raising over $22M Euro in two weeks; or Lacoste’s and the International Union for Conservation of Nature Save Our Species campaign replacing the iconic crocodile with the 10 most endangered species on the planet, raising over $30M for the cause; and Fat Tire’s Torched Earth Beer, a campaign and product to engage consumers in the perils of climate change.

#8 – Think collaboration and co-opetition

Five years ago every company wanted to “own” an issue. They were looking for the open space they could occupy that would differentiate themselves from competitors and demonstrate their purpose. But times have changed. The increasing expectations for companies to tackle societal issues, combined with the complexity of the solutions required, necessitates both greater collaboration and co-opetition. Ownership is nonsensical if a company really wants to reduce income inequality, food insecurity or greenhouse gas emissions. And while differentiation is still important, it doesn’t come from going at it alone. Therefore purposeful businesses are increasingly looking to collaborate with both competitors and comparators to tackle the pressing issues of the day. Examples include: The Canada Plastics Pact bringing together major producers and retailers to reduce our reliance on plastics; BlackNorth Initiative, bringing together major Canadian corporations to end anti-Black systemic racism; and the Allbirds/Adidas co-opetition, coming together to create Futurecraft, the lowest carbon footprint shoe in the world.  

#9 – Be transparent and authentic

I almost didn’t include this lesson in the list because it feels like such a given in today’s world. But I changed my mind because many companies (perhaps most) still struggle with finding their authentic voice and position on issues, as well as living their purpose in a truly transparent fashion (both inside and outside the company). And yet it’s critical if consumers, customers and employees are going to believe in you. Several companies have used their transparency as a point of pride and differentiation like Everlane, who’s radical transparency message sits at the heart of their brand, or Lemonade’s transparent pricing model for direct to consumer insurance. 

#10 – Measure, measure, measure

Most companies talk a good game when it comes to measuring their impact but struggle with implementation. And for good reason. It’s hard. We have come a long way on measuring the “E” in ESG (with much further still to go) but have even further to go on the “S”. To truly live your purpose requires a set of key metrics that can be evaluated and tracked over time to ensure what you believe and what you do line up. Creating a scorecard across all your social and environmental metrics is key. Maple Leaf Foods has done a good job of this. More creatively, some businesses are starting to demonstrate the environmental impact of food like Chipotle with its Real Foodprint.

Bonus – Play the long game

Finally, it’s worth noting that companies that are very purposeful play the long game. They do so for two main reasons. They understand that positive social change takes time. The short game doesn’t cut it. And their purpose is led by their values which don’t start and stop over time. The bonus is that the long-term approach also builds huge equity for the brand. Dove’s Real Beauty and The Body Shop’s ongoing fight for a fairer, more beautiful world are two cases in point. 

My hope is that these ten (plus one) lessons have inspired you to lean into your purpose journey. But If you feel overwhelmed by these lessons, don’t be. You needn’t do them all at once. Purpose is a journey with many twists and turns. What’s essential is to live your purpose authentically and transparently, being open to making mistakes and tackling challenges and roadblocks as opportunities to learn and improve. The journey is both exciting and challenging but if you embrace it, the rewards are both purposeful and profitable. What could be better?

If you would like to network with other innovators, please contact Innovators Alliance. Our peer-based membership connects you with other business leaders, bringing together innovators across the country to gain insight into our ever-changing climate.