There is enough evidence supporting the idea that purpose-driven campaigns are ineffective and sometimes even harmful (see Nick Asbury’s book). Nevertheless, purpose is an inherent human driver and important to our psychology. This week, we’ll explore when purpose matters in the context of business.
Individual Purpose
Purpose is a key driver in how we live our lives. Some have a specific statement that drives their day-to-day activities, while others have a vague gut feeling that pulls them in different directions, and then there are several variations in between. No matter where you fall on the spectrum, psychologists have long established that purpose is key to living a long and fulfilled life.
When we don’t live aligned with our purpose, we have a hard time getting up in the morning, or daily activities seem like a drag without much impact on our lives.
Purpose for Employees
In an employee’s lifecycle, we often see excitement and motivation when starting a new role. The first few months are a period of adjustment, learning, and understanding the new workplace. After a few months or years, there will be an inevitable drop in performance unless the role fulfills a purpose in the employee’s life.
It’s easier to justify working 80-hour weeks as a consultant if the pay is high and funds the lifestyle you want. Working for an underpaying NGO can be fulfilling if you see the positive impact your work has on individuals or communities in need. In either scenario, the individual fulfills all or a part of their purpose.
There will come a point when motivation fades. Though, I will leave it up to HR professionals to write about how the link can be reestablished. If you want to retain employees, what matters is that the work they do has a specific purpose in their lives – even if it is as simple as earning money to live.
Purpose for Founders
Founders are an interesting variation of humans. They create a business from almost nothing and have to drudge through being everything for their business until they have enough resources to hire talent. Even then, the game changes to scaling and maintaining.
Many founders start their projects with a clear sense of purpose. That could be solving the climate crisis through land regeneration projects or building a product that will revolutionize the work of accountants.
Now, this is the point where most founders make a big mistake. They turn their purpose into that of the business.
When founders conflate their purpose with the business’s, they often fall into dangerous traps:
- Assuming their team will work for less compensation simply because they share the vision
- Believing purpose alone can drive business strategy without the strategic roadmaps
- Team members are left wondering about the practical path forward, without clear daily actions.
The antidote? Founders can use their personal purpose as an internal compass to measure their business decisions and strategy. A founder’s purpose can be great for the individual to develop discipline and find a grounded strength during tough times. When translating purpose into the business context, you must acknowledge the realities of running a profit-driven enterprise.
A company, as a legal entity rather than a person, doesn’t truly have a “purpose” in the human sense. Rather than prescribing an abstract company purpose, founders can clearly articulate why the company exists and what specific impact it aims to have – essentially, its mission.
Purpose in Business
Let’s abandon the idea of a business’s purpose. (Radical? I don’t think so.) ‘Purpose’ has been appropriated by the marketing world and is now considered a buzzword. Contrary to what some strategists and marketers would like you to believe, purpose statements alone don’t translate to direct business results.
Let’s think less about grand moral purpose statements and more about a clear mission that everyone can rally behind. What will lead to results is having a coherent framework that connects why the business exists (mission), how it operates (values), and what it does daily (actions).
In business, purpose can come into play when you ask:
- How do operations affect an individual’s purpose?
- Are employees able to fulfill aspects of their purpose through their work? Is it financial security, personal fulfillment, social impact, or some combination? The answers should inform internal processes, structures, benefits, compensation models, and leave policies.
- Is the company aligned with its audience’s needs?
- Understanding the purpose of the business’s audience can create avenues for campaigns and marketing activations. It also creates further clarity on product and service offerings.
Overall, purpose matters for business when it creates harmony between individual goals and organizational direction – not when it’s merely a statement on a website or in an annual report.