We are seeing how the market, investors, consumers and society in general are clearly demanding that companies generate a positive impact on their environment and the planet through their activities. The brands that are doing so are improving their profitability because employees want to work in companies with a Purpose, consumers prefer to buy products that generate a positive impact, investors are betting on sustainable funds, etc.
For those who believe that the world is changing, that there is another way of doing business and that companies have to play a fundamental role in this change, from within, reinventing the way they work and placing social impact at the centre of their activity, we would like to recommend some books. They are books on business purpose that inspire us and give us ideas to get fresh air this summer.
Grow the pie, by Alex Edmans
It is one of the reference books on business purpose for those interested in being part of the new capitalism. Based on academic evidence, but with very practical ideas and under the need to combine profitability with Purpose in business. It was voted Business Book of the Year by Financial Times in 2020.
Grit, the power of passion and perseverance
Written by Angela Duckworth, in this book we learn about passion and sustained persistence to improve our resilience, ambition and self-control on the road to achieving our goals. A journey that can take months, years or even decades.
Her research came about when, as a maths teacher, Duckworth realised that IQ was not the only differentiating factor between successful and unsuccessful students. For years she researched the short- and long-term effects of the grit technique on school performance, work performance and personal relationships.
TrailBlazer by Marc Benioff
What is the secret to growing and innovating a company and making your career Purpose-driven in a world that is becoming vastly more complicated every day? The answer for Marc Benioff, is to adopt a culture in which your values permeate and form part of everything you do.
The author of the book is chairman, founder and co-CEO of Salesforce, named Top Innovator of the Decade by Forbes magazine, one of the top leaders by Fortune magazine and one of the top 10 CEOS by the Harvard Business Review.
"Impact by Sir Ronald Cohen
The social impact guru published his book "Impact" last year. A book that shows how the drive for impact investment is turning our economic system on its head, transforming the private sector from a driver of pollution and inequality to a driver of positive impact, distributing opportunity more fairly and providing solutions to major social and environmental challenges. And according to Cohen, this revolution which he calls the Impact Revolution, is going to be as innovative and disruptive as the Technological Revolution was in its day.
Muhammad Yunus' "A world of three zeros".
It is a book based on three premises: zero poverty, zero unemployment and zero net carbon emissions. Its author, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006, is one of the world's leading figures in ecology and social economy. Founder of the Grameen Bank, the aim is to encourage microcredits for people with few resources in order to promote social and economic development.
Man's Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankl
The psychiatrist Viktor Frankl who recounts in the book his time in the concentration camps, gives us a lesson about self-improvement and the search for the meaning of life. Through the personal construction of personal freedom and human dignity, he manages to remind us of the importance of purpose in what we do.
"The Heart of Business" by Best Buy's CEO
Hubert Joly, former CEO of Best Buy and the architect of Best Buy's dramatic turnaround, presents his personal guide to achieving extraordinary results by putting people and Purpose at the heart of the business.
In 2012, "everyone thought we were going to die," says Joly. Eight years later, Best Buy was transformed when Joy and her team turned Best Buy into one of the nation's employers of choice, dramatically increased customer satisfaction and dramatically increased Best Buy's stock price. They also succeeded in making Best Buy a leader in sustainability and innovation.
The Heart of Business is a guide for leaders willing to abandon old paradigms and lead with Purpose and humanity. It shows how we can reinvent capitalism and contribute to a sustainable future.
Which of these books on business purpose have you decided to start with? Find out more at our blog!
