Is Leading for Purpose Really Different?
By Joanna Davies, Associate, The Leadership Trust
It’s a funny thing, but we do like to classify things. We tend to put them in boxes, build parameters around them and assign characteristics to them. And that goes for the organisations we work with too – the private sector, public sector, the charities sector, the Education, Health or Third sector and so on. It’s easy for us to think organisations across these different sectors are like chalk and cheese, and let’s be honest, each has their own way of doing things, their own language even! But when it comes to leadership, is there really a difference? Is it true that you’re only driven by profit in a more ‘commercial’ organisation, where leaders must lean heavily into generating more and more income, but if you work for a charity, well income matters less and it’s all about that higher purpose, regardless of commercial drivers?
Maybe it’s far more nuanced than that. During Leadership Trust’s recent Great Debate (our online series of events where we bring sector leaders together to debate current leadership issues) we were provided with some fascinating insights.
We posed the question ‘Is leading for purpose really different’ and it would seem the answer is simply no, it’s not. Core pressures run across all sectors – the bottom line consideration, will we bring in enough income, what are our cash-flow pressures, how do we build sustainable growth, alongside satisfying stakeholder groups, and keeping staff engaged and motivated towards a common purpose. One of the strongest themes from the discussion was that purpose is not simply found in charitable or third sector organisations. Every organisation has a purpose. The difference lies in how consciously leaders use that purpose to guide decisions, shape culture and inspire action, and in whether your ‘purpose’ is a living, breathing entity, not simply a statement on a website or a slogan in an annual report. Purpose becomes meaningful only when it influences behaviour. As Alison Thorne, Chair of Barcud (Social Housing) in mid-Wales reflected from her experience across both commercial and purpose-led organisations, “The purpose is the heart of every organisation. It's the why of every organisation.” and it starts with culture. And people.
Lindsay Wood, Chief Executive of Andium Homes on Jersey described leadership through a deliberately human lens. She outlined the work she and her team have done in creating a culture where colleagues can thrive. “Leadership is about people - it's all about people and people are emotional beings.” Lindsay discussed how leadership is becoming less about directing and more about creating the conditions in which colleagues can succeed. She perfectly illustrated this through sharing one of her guiding principles: “Ask, don't tell. Influence, don't force.” Lindsay talked about culture being the engine that drives purpose and observed that leadership is fundamentally about “creating alignment and then setting people free.”
For Catherine Evans, Head of Communications at Trivallis (Social Housing, South Wales), purpose becomes most powerful when teams can see the direct impact of their decisions. “When you know the people that you're accountable to, you know their stories, you know what brings them joy, you know what causes them pain, you see the impact of your decisions firsthand.” Catherine added: “I think what helps drive purpose for me is actually looking in the eyes of the people that you're there to serve.”
So where are the similarities with more ‘commercially’ driven leadership? As Alison Thorne explained, every sustainable organisation must address two fundamental questions: how to generate resources effectively and how to deploy them wisely: “Strong, sustainable organisations have to tackle two key areas to really deliver their purpose. Number one is make money effectively with care. The second one is spend that money wisely and effectively.”
So, is leading for purpose really different? In many ways, no. Great leadership has always been about people, trust, alignment and accountability. What purpose-led organisations perhaps demonstrate more visibly is that when people understand the why, contribute to the how and can see the impact of the what, they bring extraordinary energy to their work.
