Creating a clear and well-articulated company purpose can help organisations thrive.
According to Think Parrallax, having a defined company purpose helps set long-term business strategies, creates a competitive edge, inspires innovation, increases brand loyalty and can also help with employee attraction, retention and engagement. Employers can reap multiple benefits from having a strong company purpose, which is something that even those at the top are consciously aware of.
This is supported by statistics highlighted in PwC’s 2016 report Putting Purpose to Work: A study of purpose in the workplace, which found that 79% of business leaders believe that company purpose is central to business success. Whilst having a strong and clear company purpose is good for businesses in a commercial sense, PwC’s research found that Millennials with a strong connection to the purpose of their organisation are 5.3 times more likely to stay at the company. So, having a strong company purpose can have huge benefits for employers.
‘Our purpose informs our policies and decision-making process’
One company which says the company’s purpose has remained true to its roots since the day it was founded is the pet food brand Lily’s Kitchen. Georgina Cameron the firm’s HR Director exclusively told HR Grapevine that Lily’s Kitchen’s purpose has always been to inspire owners to feed their pets properly with high-quality, natural food. “Alongside this is a desire to prove that businesses can be a force for good while also being commercially viable,” she added. And having these qualities has actively helped the brand attract new talent and customers.
The HR lead explained that the company’s purpose informs the organisation's policies and shapes the decision-making process, from everything to product packaging, to remote working arrangements and how they care for their staff, which she added ‘permeates our culture at every turn’. “Moreover, as an accredited B Corp organisation we are required to consider the impact of our decisions on our workers, customers, suppliers, community, and environment,” Cameron added.
Some employers may claim to have a strong purpose, though Cameron said it will only work for a company if it is genuine. “[It] has the power to motivate the company’s people and how they work – rather than the latest top-down idea from the marketing department or just a re-wording of CSR initiatives. This [company] purpose is felt deeply by everyone in our organisation, and that shines through in the way we do business on every level, which is why it has been of such benefit to us. If you want to gauge the authenticity of a brand’s purpose, ask its people,” Cameron concluded.
