Let’s hold each other and humanity close. Soon, hugs will be allowed. When we hug each other again, let’s also hug our planet and our deep human nature. And let this be the great pivot that puts society on a sustainable course in which we realize well-being for all within nature’s limits, powered by an economy that speaks for us, not against us.

What did I find on my way through the pandemic? An insight that society is ready for a fundamental reset. We are at the precipice of reinventing the economy. When life goes back to “normal”, we should not settle for that. Before the pandemic I would have settled for a future in which business had a social purpose as the reason it exists. Now I am pushing for a future in which the economy plus whole sectors, professions and every project or undertaking in the world have a purpose as the reason they exist. We should settle for no less than that. Humanity depends on it.

Here are the tools, trends, and tips I’ve been working on over the past year to bring these ideals to life. Take a few minutes to check them out and amplify them within the organizations, sectors, and professions you love and want to see succeed. Let’s hug them with these ideas. And let’s hug each other.

If we can beat a pandemic, we can do this!

Coro

News and Resources

Future of Business in Society

The intersecting crises of the pandemic, the climate emergency, and growing inequality have accelerated questions about the role of business in society. Here is a compelling report of global thought leaders’ views on the business playbook for social change. It is a necessary read for anyone interested in understanding how to put business and society on a sustainable course. It is an essential resource for companies and those who advise them when defining or updating their sustainability strategies. A key finding? Future-forward leaders transition both their businesses models and entire ecosystems to more sustainable and just outcomes.

Future of Industries and Professions in Society

Many dismiss industry, trade, and professional associations as self-interested organizations, lacking a social vision or mandate. I don’t. Association staff are concerned about societal trends, and their boards are questioning the implications of those trends on their memberships. That is why I wrote this report for the federal government on the Sustainable and Just Association. It unearths the pathway for associations to serve not just their members, but society. It was exciting to research what seven Canadian associations are doing to advance sustainability and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Check my findings here.

Finally, all this led to a Sustainable Association Benchmark, which your association can use to map its gaps and opportunities. Please share these materials with associations in your network and encourage them to use these tools to put their members and society on a sustainable and just path.

Propelling the Purpose Economy

As COVID-19 brought down the global economy it also created the opportunity to rethink it. Thus, the idea of creating a Purpose Economy – an economy whose raison d’etre is to foster well-being for all within nature’s limits – was born. It is an idea championed by the Social Purpose Institute at United Way which I am helping to host the first-ever Canadian conference on the Purpose Economy on November 17-18, 2021. It’s an historic opportunity to define a national strategy to accelerate social purpose in business. I hope you can join me at it! Details here. For a 30 per cent discount before July 23, use this code when registering: SP-21.

Interested in the Purpose Economy pivot? Here are the purposeful resources I developed during the COVID lockdown:

Advocating to Create the Future We Want
Watch this 45-minute GreenBiz video where I moderate a panel of three social purpose business leaders sharing the story of how their businesses pivoted to purpose and became a force for good.

Scoring your Social Purpose
Check out this Social Purpose Scorecard to rate your company’s progress on its social purpose journey. These 25 practices can help you – or the companies you advise – find your successes and gaps and put your company on a positive course.

Measuring the Purpose Business Case
Use this Social Purpose Business Case and Workbook Tool if you need to convince others of the business benefits of social purpose and the merits of using a company’s assets, resources and platforms for the betterment of the business and society.

Transforming Marketing in a Purpose-Led Brand
Read this brief paper to learn how marketing changes in a purpose-driven brand. With more consumers identifying as belief-driven buyers, purpose companies transform their customer relationships for good.

Keeping Up with the Social Purpose Action
Follow the organizations and people in this Social Purpose News Feed I put together to keep up with the latest in social purpose thought and action leadership in Canada and around the world.

Propelling the Circular Economy

Not only do we need a Purpose Economy, we need a Circular Economy! HP is a company I admire for its circular commitment. I was pleased to write this case study of its circular product pivots which show how its circular solutions yield dramatic environmental benefits.

Propelling Purposeful Boards

Canadian company boards are awakening to the idea that their fiduciary responsibilities are being redefined to encompass the company’s social and environmental performance and impact, and to include oversight of the company’s reason for being and acting. Here are two reports that put these developments in context.

• The Rise of Boardroom ESG (aka board oversight of the organization’s sustainability performance)
• The Rise of Purpose Governance (aka the board’s role in organizational purpose beyond profit)