How businesses create value for people and planet - The importance of purpose-driven leadership (Insights from IMAGINE)

“We find ourselves at a crossroads of our planet and humanity. But if we stay back and do nothing, we are not in charge of our future: Unless we act, we don’t shape our future.”

Ian Goldin’s words still echo in my mind when I think back to the incredible week I spent recently at University of Oxford as part of the IMAGINE Community. 

IMAGINE is a community of purpose and power for corporates, entrepreneurs, and civil society leaders committed to positive impact by accelerating systems change. Valerie Keller and Paul Polman founded the initiative to unite leading change-makers, both true visionaries.

We discussed how businesses create value for people and the planet and the importance of purpose-driven leadership. 

It was a profoundly humbling experience being surrounded by people who impact the lives of millions every day. Each of these individuals had their own story of why they were doing what they were doing. And it made me grateful, like so many times in my life, to be among leaders who don’t just stay idle to our world's challenges but take action, sometimes at a great personal sacrifice. 

Let me share some questions and share some insights with you: 

What does it mean to you to team up with the “right” people? 

This is what we discussed with Jean Oelwang, CEO of Virgin Unite. In her recently published book Partnering, she examined the importance of partnerships.

“You might know the proverb If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together. (...) What’s been missing is the how. It’s not about shoving a group of people together and hoping for the best. It’s about building the Deep Connections that act as scaffolding for larger-scale collaborations. (...) In reality, it is the people we surround ourselves with who make us.”

Do you know who holds systems around you together? Or who breaks them?

From Christine Lloyd, the Director of Dynamic Systems Associates, we learned the importance of relationships and ‘key people’ in any setup (personal or private). Regardless of power and position, some people hold a system together and make it work…or break it. Identifying those ‘key people’ can help to achieve more, empower one another and remove unnecessary boundaries in the system.  

If you look into your own systems, do you know who the most important people are? 

Do you listen enough to others? And if so, does that help you to make better decisions?

Ian Goldin, Director at Oxford Martin School (Oxford University) and advisor to many leaders worldwide, took us on a journey throughout mankind and relevant changes in the last 500 years. 

He outlined why we live in times of unprecedented opportunities and challenges. For example, in 1980, only about 200 Million people worldwide could share ideas; today, it is (in theory) everyone.  

But to shape this future, it is vital to ‘make our circles’ bigger. In our complex world, we need to think and act multi-dimensionally. 

The pandemic is a good example that highlighted that. And the next pandemic will come sooner or later.  

Ultimately, politics is people and when we talk about polarisation, we need to work on the underlying issues and understand ‘where the anger is coming from’. He is right when he points out that the world can become dangerous when ‘good people’ stand by and stay idle. 

But to get things done, we must create positive examples and be ready to broadcast failure to extract the learnings. 

When he advised Nelson Mandela during his presidency, he was impressed by Mandela’s listening skills:

“Mandela listened to everyone and he kept on asking and asking until he understood everyone.”

Is there enough silence in your life? Do you make time for it?

My old friend Olivier Oullier, a brilliant mind, brain scientist and DJ, taught us the importance of silence and helping the people around us find silence. Silence increases dopamine and serotonin and decreases cortisol. These are vital for our well-being, lowering stress levels and fighting depression. 

Do you believe in the company/cause you are working on? If so, what is the essence of that? 

Paul Polman, the former CEO of Unilever and Co-Founder of IMAGINE, spoke several times about the importance of a collective purpose in companies and systems. A company should ensure it is working from the inside out and not from the outside in. That is when great people want to join a company. It is a mix of purpose, clear leadership and vision. Paul stressed the importance of unlocking the possibilities in everyone and focusing on strengths. 

People want to work for companies/organisations they believe in, which can tell a story about the difference they make and the future they care about. But to do so, we need to become collectively more conscious. It’s a move from selfishness to togetherness, from competition to collaboration. Therefore, collective consciousness and common ground that enables dialogue are needed. 

Do you have friends and people around who help you to see the light at the end of the tunnel?

Valerie Keller embodies a wonderful mind and heart who understands how to foster and elevate impactful connections. Her unbroken positivity and optimism shine through every one of her words and actions. She recognises the pieces missing from the puzzle. Valerie reminded me of a conductor who helps a group of people understand that their only mission is to imagine a better future and make the necessary changes happen! 

How do you build your opinion of others? How well can you distinguish facts from your own (emotional) perceptions?

We learned about ‘power speaking' from Perch Dakote, a highly experienced leadership coach. 

If you think about it, we easily become biased about people and situations. Our perceptions blur the lines between facts and who/what we really have in front of us. It takes us away from recognising the real being in the person before us. But to find that being, we may use the four ‘blessing steps’:

1. Appreciation
2. Acceptance
3. Confidence
4. Commitment

Will what you did in the past help you to accelerate in the future?

From Richard Olivier, Actor and Co-Founder of Archetypes at Work, we learned that evolution/change usually happens under stress. We live in times of great stress that also bear great opportunities. To change the course of a story, you need to bring a new character to the stage (from his experience as an actor). That’s the beauty of evolution in any system. But any evolution requires change:

“What got us where we are, does not bring us where we want to go”.

The true beauty of the IMAGINE leaders emerged when we started to brainstorm and tackle real-world issues with a focus on sustainable food systems. The group worked on new ideas, defined an action plan, forging innovative partnerships. 

If you think of the scale of today’s global food crisis, it is clear that we have to change and adapt systems and develop new ways of bringing food to our plates. The global hunger and malnutrition crisis is beyond imagination, with an expected 345.2 million people projected to be food insecure – more than doubled in 2020.  This constitutes a staggering rise of 200 million people compared to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. (Source: WFP)

Tomorrow will come, and many challenges we experience today may become bigger or change in size and shape. And that is why we need to adapt our responses to those challenges permanently. 

I want to end my reflections and thank my fellow IMAGINE ‘travellers’ with this brilliant quote by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry:

“Intelligence is only valid when it serves love.”