Deep Purpose

Thinkers50 Top 10 Best New Management Books for 2022 A distinguished Harvard Business School professor offers a compelling reassessment and defense of purpose as a management ethos, documenting the vast performance gains and social benefits that become possible when firms manage to get purpose right. Few business topics have aroused more skepticism in recent years than the notion of corporate purpose, and for good reason. Too many companies deploy purpose, or a reason for being, as a promotional vehicle to make themselves feel virtuous and to look good to the outside world. Some have only foggy ideas about what purpose is and conflate it with strategy and other concepts like “mission,” “vision,” and “values.” Even well-intentioned leaders don’t understand purpose’s full potential and engage half-heartedly and superficially with it. Outsiders spot this and become cynical about companies and the broader capitalist endeavor. Having conducted extensive field research, Ranjay Gulati reveals the fatal mistakes leaders unwittingly make when attempting to implement a reason for being. Moreover, he shows how companies can embed purpose much more deeply than they currently do, delivering impressive performance benefits that reward customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, and communities alike. To get purpose right, leaders must fundamentally change not only how they execute it but also how they conceive of and relate to it. They must practice what Gulati calls deep purpose, furthering each organization’s reason for being more intensely, thoughtfully, and comprehensively than ever before. In this authoritative, accessible, and inspiring guide, Gulati takes readers inside some of the world’s most purposeful companies to understand the secrets to their successes. He explores how leaders can pursue purpose more deeply by navigating the inevitable tradeoffs more deliberately and effectively to balance between short- and long-term value; building purpose more systematically into every key organizational function to mobilize stakeholders and enhance performance; updating organizations to foster more autonomy and collaboration, which in turn allow individual employees to work more purposefully; using powerful storytelling to communicate a reason for being, arousing emotions and building a community of inspired and committed stakeholders; and building cultures that don’t merely support purpose, but also allow employees to link the corporate purpose to their own personal reasons for being. As Gulati argues, a deeper engagement with purpose holds the key not merely to the well-being of individual companies but also to humanity’s future. With capitalism under siege and relatively low levels of trust in business, purpose can serve as a radically new operating system for the enterprise, enhancing performance while also delivering meaningful benefits to society. It’s the kind of inspired thinking that businesses—and the rest of us—urgently need.

'If you want to be inspired to build more sustainable organizations, Deep Purpose should be your next read' Arianna Huffington, Founder & CEO, Thrive Global 'Insightful, practical, and timely' Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the TED podcast WorkLife 'Deep Purpose points to the conversations we must have right now about how to redefine the role of business in society, restore trust, and enhance our license to operate ... Highly recommended' Paul Polman, former CEO, Unilever Included in the Thinkers50 Best New Management Books for 2022 -------------- Distinguished Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati takes readers inside some of the world's most purposeful companies to understand the secrets to their success Few business topics have aroused more skepticism in recent years than the notion of corporate purpose, and for good reason. Too many companies deploy purpose as a promotional vehicle to make themselves feel virtuous and to look good to the outside world. Some have only foggy ideas about what purpose is and conflate it with strategy and other concepts like 'mission', 'vision' and 'values'. Even well-intentioned leaders don't understand purpose's full potential and engage with it half-heartedly and superficially. Having conducted extensive field research and interviewed leadership at purpose-oriented companies including Etsy, Lego and Microsoft, Ranjay Gulati reveals the fatal mistakes leaders unwittingly make when attempting to implement a reason for being. Moreover, he shows how companies can embed purpose much more deeply, delivering impressive performance benefits that reward customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders and communities alike. To get this right, leaders must fundamentally change not only how they execute purpose but also how they conceive of and relate to it. They must practice what Gulati calls deep purpose, furthering each organisation's reason for being more intensely, thoughtfully and comprehensively than ever before. As he argues, a deeper engagement with purpose can serve as a radically new operating system, enhancing performance while also delivering meaningful benefits to society. It's the kind of inspired thinking that businesses - and the rest of us - urgently need. --------------- 'Purpose isn't a "nice-to-have" in the business world anymore. It's a "must-have". This comprehensive guide breaks down why cultivating purpose isn't just the right thing for businesses to do - it's the smart thing too.' Carmine Di Sibio, Global Chairman and CEO, EY 'Many leaders today strive to align purpose with financial success, but only a few succeed. Gulati analyzes the tough challenges that leaders everywhere must address if they are to save the planet while also delivering strong profits.' Toshiaki Higashihara, Executive Chairman & CEO, Hitachi, Ltd.

Many companies have used purpose as a corporate buzzword to appear virtuous internally, and look good to the outside world. But a poor understanding of the importance of real purpose can have detrimental consequences for the profitability and sustainability of a business. DEEP PURPOSE is the essential guide to putting purpose at the core of a company, and in doing so, understanding its very soul. Drawing together years of research, including analysis of multinational corporations from Danone and PepsiCo to Microsoft and Patagonia, Harvard professor Ranjay Gulati has identified eight conceptual barriers that are dooming leaders and their companies to a more superficial engagement with purpose. In this book, he shows you how to understand and overcome these obstacles, in order to find your company's deep purpose and supercharge its capacity to serve all stakeholders and shareholders. By fusing commercial and social logic, business leaders can enhance financial performance, boost employee morale and retention, and leave a positive mark on society. DEEP PURPOSE has the power to transform the business landscape and usher in a new era of ethical corporate leadership.

The roadmap for finding purpose, meaning, and success as we age, from bestselling author, Harvard professor, and the Atlantic's happiness columnist Arthur Brooks. Many of us assume that the more successful we are, the less susceptible we become to the sense of professional and social irrelevance that often accompanies aging. But the truth is, the greater our achievements and our attachment to them, the more we notice our decline, and the more painful it is when it occurs. What can we do, starting now, to make our older years a time of happiness, purpose, and yes, success? At the height of his career at the age of 50, Arthur Brooks embarked on a seven-year journey to discover how to transform his future from one of disappointment over waning abilities into an opportunity for progress. From Strength to Strength is the result, a practical roadmap for the rest of your life. Drawing on social science, philosophy, biography, theology, and eastern wisdom, as well as dozens of interviews with everyday men and women, Brooks shows us that true life success is well within our reach. By refocusing on certain priorities and habits that anyone can learn, such as deep wisdom, detachment from empty rewards, connection and service to others, and spiritual progress, we can set ourselves up for increased happiness. Read this book and you, too, can go from strength to strength.

CSR for Purpose, Shared Value and Deep Transformation focuses on a new type of CSR, which includes entrepreneurial innovation, sustainable goals and shared and integrated value in a systems-oriented approach for deep transformation. All topics are backed by case studies, academic literature and future research opportunities.

'Dynamic and transformative... a roadmap for following your dreams.' Malala Yousafzai 'Touching, deeply inspiring and thought-provoking.' Jack Edwards, YouTuber and author of The Uni-Verse: The Ultimate University Survival Guide From experiencing grief and leaving her home country of Zimbabwe for the UK, to attending disruptive state schools and working long hours to support herself and her mother, Vee Kativhu has faced much adversity. But through personal hardship, she has triumphed, using her experience to help people from all over the world recognise their own talent and achieve their goals. From attaining a bachelor's degree from Oxford and a Master's from Harvard to spreading her message of education, equal access and opportunity and empowerment to a global audience of over 300,000, Vee's incredible journey has inspired young people around the world in need of a boost of confidence, motivation and practical life advice. In Empowered, Vee draws from her own journey to teach you how to: - Set your life goals, career aspirations and actually achieve them - Stay motivated in the face of rejection and hardship - Learn from your mistakes - Take chances, live your best life and don't let hardship define you - Cultivate feelings of self-love and self-empowerment This book will inspire you how to live a more fulfilled, motivated and empowered life in everything you do.

Like movies, television, and other preceding forms of media, video games are undergoing a dynamic shift in its content and perception. While the medium can still be considered in its infancy, the mark of true artistry and conceptual depth is detectable in the evolving styles, various genres and game themes. Doris C. Rusch’s, Making Deep Games, combines this insight along with the discussion of the expressive nature of games, various case studies, and hands-on design exercises. This book offers a perspective into how to make games that tackle the whole bandwidth of the human experience; games that teach us something about ourselves, enable thought-provoking, emotionally rich experiences and promote personal and social change. Grounded in cognitive linguistics, game studies and the reflective practice of game design, Making Deep Games explores systematic approaches for how to approach complex abstract concepts, inner processes, and emotions through the specific means of the medium. It aims to shed light on how to make the multifaceted aspects of the human condition tangible through gameplay experiences.

Discover and fulfill your God-given purpose by joining the more than thirty-five million others who have embarked on a spiritual journey that started with this #1 New York Times bestselling book by Pastor Rick Warren. Before you were born, God knew what your life had in store for you. His hope for you is to discover the life he created just for you--both here on earth, and forever in eternity. Let Rick Warren guide you as you learn to live out your true purpose. The Purpose Driven Life is more than a book; it's a road map for your spiritual journey. Combining thoughtful verses from Scripture with timely stories and perspectives from Warren's own life, The Purpose Driven Life will help you discover the answer to one of life's most important questions: What on earth am I here for? Throughout The Purpose Driven Life, Warren will teach you to spend time getting to know yourself and your creator in order to live your life to the fullest. Unlocking your true purpose will also reduce your stress, simplify your decisions, increase your satisfaction, and, most importantly, prepare you for eternity. Designed to be read over the course of forty-two days, The Purpose Driven Life will help you see the big picture, giving you a fresh perspective on the way that the pieces of your life fit together. Every chapter of The Purpose Driven Life provides a daily meditation and practical steps to help you uncover and live out your purpose, starting with exploring three essential questions: The Question of Existence: Why am I alive? The Question of Significance: Does my life matter? The Question of Purpose: What on earth am I here for? Each copy of The Purpose Driven Life also includes thoughtful discussion questions, audio Bible studies that go along with every chapter, and access to a supportive online community, giving you the opportunity to dive even deeper into each life-changing lesson.