Purpose 360 with Carol Cone

Zero Zero Zero: zero emissions, zero crashes and zero congestion. This profound goal is CEO Mary Barra’s approach to reinventing General Motors for today, tomorrow, and the next 100 years.Few industries have evolved as rapidly (and sometimes turbulently) as the automotive industry. In its 100-year history, GM has faced challenges, both internal (faulty ignition switches) and external (the recession). Yet today, the company is thriving. That’s in large part to Barra’s commitment to evolve GM’s culture, influence purpose-driven behaviors, and phase out processes that don’t support the company’s evolution.In this episode, Tony Cervone, SVP of Global Communications, shares how GM’s commitment to “moving humanity forward” acts as a north star for the company to chart a bold and innovative path forward for not just GM, but the automotive industry as a whole.Listen for Tony’s insights on:Using GM’s purpose and Zero Zero Zero commitment as filters for decision-making at all levels of the company.Balancing a parent company’s purpose with its consumer-facing brands in an authentic way.Shifting company culture by re-shaping company character and values, and equipping employees with the tools necessary to adopt them.Resources + linksGM Corporate WebsiteGM 2017 Sustainability ReportGM Social Investment PageGM’s Zero Zero Zero EthosConnect with Tony Cervone on LinkedInCruise Self-Driving CarsDetroit Children’s Fund

Roving reporter Carol Cone spoke with leaders in social purpose at the CECP (Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose) Summit last month. A global convening of 300+ of the world’s top minds in purpose, this year’s Summit addressed growing societal and stakeholder expectations that companies serve a purpose beyond profit. Catch a behind-the-scenes “listen” into the Summit in this special episode of Purpose 360.Resources:• CECP – Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose • CECP Summit (01:02) - Lord Dr. Michael Hastings (11:18) - Douglas Conant

Happy chickens are Pete and Gerry’s north star.You’ve likely seen the organic egg brand in your local supermarket dairy aisle. And if you haven’t tried the eggs, add them to your shopping list.Pete and Gerry’s, through a network of 40+ independent family farmers, produces free-range, organic, Certified Humane® eggs. Passed down through three generations, the enterprise puts the health of its hens—and its customers—above all else. In this episode, CEO Jesse Laflamme shares the Pete and Gerry’s story and how purpose helped the company navigate shifting consumer-food relationships, the rise of factory farming, and animal welfare challenges.RESOURCES:Pete and Gerry’sThe AlmanacJesse Laflamme on LinkedInPete and Gerry’s FAQs

Would you sacrifice more than a billion dollars in sales to do the right thing for people’s health and wellness? That’s the decision CVS Health made in 2014 when the company removed tobacco products from all stores nationwide.CVS made this decision because selling tobacco products was at odds with its vision to become a healthcare company with the distinct purpose to help people on their path to better health. Eileen Howard Boone, SVP of Corporate Social Responsibility & Philanthropy at CVS Health and President, CVS Health Foundation, joined Purpose 360 to talk about this bold decision as well as the company’s focused approach to social impact and how their compelling purpose drives the company forward.Listen for Eileen’s insights on:The “extraordinary courage” behind the decision to remove tobacco products—and how that decision was madeFinding an authentic purpose, and then leveraging it to lead change in the rapidly-evolving and increasingly competitive healthcare industryFinding mission-driven partners and building sustainable, long-term relationshipsMerging social impact commitments following CVS Health’s acquisition of AetnaResources + linksCVS Health corporateCVS Health FoundationCVS Health Social ResponsibilityCVS Health 2018 CSR ReportTobacco Free GenerationEileen Howard Boone on LinkedInWhy CSR Should Put Business Imperatives and Social Impact Ahead of Reputation

You probably know the Aflac Duck, but do you know the company behind it? Catherine Hernandez-Blades, Aflac’s SVP, Chief ESG and Communications Officer, joined Purpose 360 to share how Aflac deftly manages reputation in a volatile world and bestowed a new social purpose on its beloved mascot.As a cancer insurance pioneer, Aflac has a now 24-year, $131M commitment to childhood cancer. Two years ago (in partnership with Carol), the company evolved and deepened that commitment by creating My Special Aflac Duck, a social robot and comforting companion for children with cancer. That duck, designed through 18 months of child-centered research at a leading U.S. pediatric cancer center, is now in the arms of 4,000+ children in the U.S., is the recipient of nearly 20 awards, has 4 patents pending, and is soon set to debut in Japan.Listen to hear Catherine’s insights on the My Special Aflac Duck journey, as well as:Aflac’s shift from the “Four Ps” to the “Four Es” – environment, engagement, experience, and exchangeWhy doing good is no longer enough to connect with stakeholders and attract the best talentThe key to keeping long-term cause commitments relevant, engaging, and impactfulResources + linksAflac CorporateCatherine Hernandez-Blades on LinkedInBetween a Cause and a Hard PlaceAflac Childhood Cancer CampaignMy Special Aflac Duck videoSproutel

This Earth Day, we’re joined by Jonathan Propper, Founder and CEO of Dropps. He’s the maverick behind the original laundry pod, and has guided Dropps to a number of firsts, including eliminating detergent dyes and adding bittering agents to deter children from eating pods. Behind all that innovation is a desire to create a healthier Earth. Laundry isn’t going away (as much as we wish it would!), and the ways in which we consume products is becoming more critical. As a social enterprise, Dropps has, from day one, focused on making an everyday chore more sustainable—while raising awareness for how our purchasing choices can impact society and the environment. Listen for Jonathan’s insights on:Building a business that helps the Earth without sacrificing convenience, quality, or priceLeveraging purpose to navigate industry challenges and increasing competitionCreating purpose-built, purpose-driven products—and constantly innovating on themResources + linksMeet DroppsJonathan Propper on LinkedInMeet the Disruptor: Dropps#everydroppscounts

United Way isn’t new—but it’s creating a new way for NGOs to engage with people around the world through technology.William Browning, United Way Worldwide’s Chief of Digital Transformation and Technology, joined Purpose 360 to talk about the organization’s shift from transactional to transformational.As the world’s largest privately-funded nonprofit, United Way’s scope is vast: 2.9 million volunteers, 10 million donors, and 60 million people served in 2017. Now, the legacy organization is adopting an entrepreneurial mindset to reinvent the dynamic between nonprofits, issues, communities, and employers.Listen for William’s insights on:Remaining relevant (as a 130-year-old organization) in a world rife with pressing social issuesHow United Way and Salesforce teamed to create an all-new technology platform, Philanthropy CloudUnited Way’s business-minded, customer-centric approach to transforming how employers and employees give at workResources + linksUnited Way WorldwidePhilanthropy CloudWilliam Browning on LinkedInWilliam Browning on Twitter

Are you tapping every opportunity to draw power from your organizational culture? In this episode, Henk Campher, VP Brand and Communications at Salesforce, shares insights from a company that challenges its people and customers to do good, especially in the face of challenges.It starts with putting Ohana – Hawaiian for “family” – at the center of Salesforce’s purpose journey. For the company, Ohana includes employees, customers and other stakeholders, and requires focus and the ability to face uncomfortable decisions head-on. With more than 150,000 customers and $10 billion in revenue in 2018, Salesforce is a testament to the power of purpose and collective storytelling.This trailblazing mentality matches Henk’s lifelong goal to never be bored. You won’t be, either, as this activist-turned-business leader talks about:How simplifying operations can amplify impactWhat an activist approach to problems can bring to the business worldHow to stay focused on purpose using hard data from customers and employeesDon’t miss the candid thoughts from our favorite “angry African” on what it takes to bring people together as a purposeful family, change the world, and have fun along the way.Resources + linksSalesforce.comSalesforce.orgConnect with Henk Campher on LinkedInFollow Henk Campher on Twitter

Carol tagged along with her roving reporter — My Special Aflac Duck — to South by Southwest in Austin earlier this month. Together, they celebrated the success of the duck as a finalist for the best invention award.This week, we offer a special bonus episode in which you can learn more about My Special Aflac Duck and hear stories of impact as Aflac works to put the duck in the arms of more kids around the world.Links and ResourcesSee My Special Aflac Duck in action at The Aflac Childhood Cancer Campaign™

The American Heart Association (AHA) launched its Go Red for Women campaign 15 years ago when Kathy Rogers, AHA’s EVP for the Western States Affiliates, was charged with creating a consumer- and patient-facing campaign that would change the way we think about heart health. Did she ever!Since Go Red for Women launched, it has helped more than 2 million women learn their personal risk of developing heart disease by taking the Go Red Heart CheckUp; generated 5 billion media impressions; helped the American Heart Association raise nearly $660 million in 2017; been featured as a Harvard Business School case study; and saved more than 627,000 lives.Download to hear insights on:How you can change popular perception of a cause—such as linking heart disease with women, not just sterile lab coatsWays the social impact landscape has changed in the 15 years since the first Red Dress appeared How to keep a long-term campaign fresh without compromising the relationships that build itCreating interest and awareness around a topic most people try to avoid (until too late). Hint: it involves unlikely pairings and challenging the status-quo at every level. Don’t miss this rare peek behind-the-scenes into the creation of a movement, as Kathy Rogers shares how she worked from the grassroots to the grass-tops to turn a fashion icon into an icon of women’s heart health.Resources + linksGo Red for WomenHarvard Business Review Case StudyProject Baseline—Research Goes RedCVS Go RedKathy Rogers on LinkedInKathy Rogers on TwitterWhat Kathy’s Reading: Leadershift, John MaxwellBecoming, Michelle ObamaBe Fearless, Jean Case

Timberland is well known for its Yellow Boot. You know the one—chunky sole, nubuck upper, black leather collar. It’s a design that has weathered 40-plus years of footwear trends and market shifts, maintaining its position as both a functional work boot and fashion item. It doesn’t get much more sustainable, in terms of product design.Sustainability is at the heart of Timberland. To talk about the footwear and apparel brand’s sustainability and social purpose journey, we welcomed Atlanta McIlwraith, Senior Manager of Community Engagement at Timberland, to Purpose 360.In this episode, Atlanta shared what it means to be an “Earthkeeper,” a term that encapsulates Timberland’s three core CSR foci: creating responsible products, protecting the outdoors, and serving communities around the world. Core to these efforts are Timberland’s global workforce.A few of our favorite insights from this episode:Equip employees to “own” their employer’s mission. Timberland launched its employee volunteering program in 1992 with 16 paid hours of community service. Today, employees get 40 hours of paid time off each year. Timberland has a 45% utilization rate of those 40 hours in North America, with 72% of employees serving at least once per year. Globally, 51% of employees serve once per year. That commitment has an important trickle-down effect: an understanding of the communities Timberland serves and what the company’s mission means results in more sustainably-designed products.Find global social impact champions. Employee engagement programs can be siloed at corporate offices, simply due to lack of people resources. To ensure consistency in programming and engagement across Timberland’s locations, the company has a Global Stewards program. Volunteer “stewards” in 28 locations in 19 countries manage service programs over a two-year term. This keeps Timberland’s mission alive worldwide while ensuring efforts are localized and relevant to the needs of each community.Think global, act local. Timberland’s commitment to its suppliers and manufacturers involves global standards. The company also considers the needs of specific suppliers and surrounding communities on a local level—in one instance, the company found that factory workers lacked access to clean drinking water. That led to a partnership with Planet Water Foundation to install purified water towers in several worker communities. Not only did these efforts result in higher productivity and lower absenteeism rates, but it supported the vitality of the community as a whole.Resources + linksTimberlandEmployee Engagement at TimberlandAtlanta McIlwraith on LinkedInAtlanta McIlwraith speaking at Engage for GoodWillow Brook Farm & Art CenterAtlanta McIlwraith in Sustainable BrandsSocial impact at TimberlandTimberland Smallholder Farmers Alliance in Haiti

Alaska Airlines is serious about sustainability. For the past two years, the airline has ranked ^1 for North American aviation on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), a coveted honor.To Alaska Airlines, sustainability is more than an environmental or financial decision. Even as more airlines invest in fuel efficient fleets, cut in-flight waste, and adopt “green” biofuels, Alaska Airlines stands out for its commitment to sustainability.Kirk Myers, Director of Sustainability at Alaska Airlines, shared how the company has integrated sustainability into the business to drive innovation, engage employees, and have a meaningful impact on the people and places Alaska Airlines serves—all 115 destinations and 44 million passengers (in 2018 alone).Our favorite insights from Kirk’s episode include:To authentically advance social and business impact, balance hearts and minds. “It’s important to remember that everybody in your organization is a holistic person and has a business mind and an amazing heart of values,” said Kirk. This has helped Alaska Airlines succeed in making sustainability the heart of the business.While more companies are taking a shared value approach to non-profit partnerships, many remain transactional. Alaska Airlines has taken shared value to the extremes by presenting social challenges to two key partners—and then solving them, together. Lonely Whale worked with Alaska Airlines to drastically reduce in-flight waste, including positioning Alaska to be the first airline to eliminate plastic straws. With Neste, Alaska Airlines explored opportunities for the ongoing use of sustainable aviation jet fuels.You might think an airline’s greatest assets are its planes. But as a service industry, employees are as important as the fleet, if not more. Some of Alaska Airlines’ most innovative sustainability programs have come from employees—such as a recent initiative to reduce in-flight waste. When employees have that level of investment in their organization (literally, in this case, thanks to Alaska Airlines’ profit-sharing), customers notice. ResourcesAbout Alaska AirlinesKirk Myers on LinkedInSustainability at Alaska Airlines

Gary Hirshberg, co-founder and Chief Organic Optimist at Stonyfield Organic, started his business with seven cows and funding from a group of Catholic nuns. Today, Stonyfield is one of the nation’s leading yogurt brands, with a commitment to healthier people, healthier business, and healthier planet. If you haven’t caught on from Gary’s title, organic is central to Stonyfield’s history, purpose, and market leadership. It’s not a buzzword—Stonyfield product is currently produced by thousands of organic cows, 200,000+ acres of organic fields, and hundreds of family farmers. Gary joined Purpose 360 to share his company’s history of social activism and how Stonyfield stuck to its values, mission, and culture (get it?!) through two sales and a rapidly-shifting consumer marketplace. Our favorite insights include:Be a supply chain champion: Many purpose-at-the-center companies integrate purpose in every aspect of operations. A fraction of those integrate purpose into their entire supply chain (and, not all companies have the capacity or control to do so). Stonyfield’s success is attributable in large part to the company’s extensive investment in supporting an organic supply chain—key to that is equipping small family farms with the resources they need to thrive.Look for unexpected, but authentic issues: Stonyfield’s support of organic farming and small farmers will never change. But today, the company supports a somewhat unexpected—but logical—social issue: the use of harmful chemicals on community playing fields. The StonyFIELDS #PlayFree Initiative aims to help communities across the U.S. convert playing fields to organic fields.Let your product do the talking: Literally. Stonyfield had limited-to-no advertising budget early on. Instead, Stonyfield used its packaging to tell the company’s story. Lids—the most visible part of the package—educated consumers not just about the company, but about social issues the company supported, from climate change to solar energy.Resources + linksStonyfieldCompany HistoryStonyFIELDS #PlayFreeGary’s book: Stirring it Up: How to Make Money and Save the World

Purpose 360 is about inspiring and empowering the purpose leaders of today and tomorrow. More than that, we’re committed to giving listeners actionable insights they can apply day-to-day along their purpose journey, and that of their organizations. In this episode, Carol and Chris highlight some of their favorite insights and anecdotes from our first ten episodes.

During his time at Panera, Jonathan Yohannan, former Vice President, Public Relations*, saw the company’s shift to an all-clean menu. No preservatives. No antibiotics. No artificial ingredients.Just clean food. Food as it should be.That’s Panera’s purpose today, and it’s especially commendable given how price-competitive fast casual chains are. While more chains are adding healthy choices to their menus and eliminating “bad” ingredients, none have completely overhauled their menus like Panera did.These changes are not just to benefit Panera. The company and its founder and former CEO, Ron Shaich, have been vocal about shifting the industry’s approach to food. “Food as it should be” isn’t just about what’s served at Panera, but the options every consumer has, anywhere they eat.Here are some of the insights Yohannan shared in this episode:Be vulnerable. Panera is ahead of cultural conversation about food. But that can be challenging, especially for a food brand – by publicly removing artificial sweeteners from your menu, you’re also admitting there have been artificial sweeteners in people’s food. Panera addresses this by inviting customers into the conversation. “It’s the trust factor. We’re not perfect, but we’re going to at least tell you where we are along the journey.”Consult with a diversity of experts. This trail is not blazed alone. Dietitians, farmers, scientists, policy writers, and other experts guide Panera’s decision-making and adoption of new policies. It’s a communal process that allows new and diverse voices to be heard.Change, don’t replace. Creating an all-clean menu doesn’t have to mean replacing the entire supply chain. Of the vendors that provide Panera’s 460 ingredients, many with sub-ingredients, only one was removed from the supply chain. This is because Panera collaborated with vendors to update their practices and products.Embrace criticism. As with any brand pushing boundaries, there are occasionally critics attacking Panera for going too far or not going far enough. Panera uses that criticism as a metric for success. “If you don’t get criticism, you haven’t stood for anything. And that’s the truthResources + linksPanera Corporate InformationClean Food Promise*Yohannan now serves as SVP, Integrated Communications at KIND Snacks.

McDonald’s serves 70 million people every day, worldwide. As one of the world’s most visible brands, McDonald’s has both an obligation and opportunity to create meaningful connections with those 70 million people and their local and global communities. Today, the company has a focused purpose to use its “scale for good.”Getting there wasn’t easy.Bob Langert, former VP of Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability at McDonald’s, gave Purpose 360 a candid look into the company’s journey from reactive to proactive. It started in the 1980s, when the company was attacked for its use of CFCs in polystyrene clamshell packaging. Langert was tasked with addressing the challenge. Since then, he has helped the company navigate issues ranging from animal welfare and landfill waste to obesity and nutrition. Highlights from the episode include:Considering every touchpoint with society. In transforming the relationship between the business and society, McDonald’s considered macro and micro issues, from nutrition and animal welfare to the environment and the economy. That holistic view helped McDonald’s drive industry-wide change in practices like the treatment of animals.Treat purpose like a mindset, not an endpoint. For Langert, purpose has always been a journey – and one without an endpoint. When integrated within the business – from values to operations – purpose becomes a mindset that guides decision making at all levels of the organization.Partner with your challengers. Greenpeace in particular challenged McDonald’s for its supply chain practices in the Amazon. Rather than shrug off criticism, McDonald’s acknowledged its poor practices and asked Greenpeace for counsel. It took a similar approach to partnerships with organizations like the Environmental Defense Fund. Langert urges purpose leaders to look to partners for expertise and accountability.Support internal ethics. Through years of turbulence, Langert attested to the company’s internal ethics. Stakeholders from the C-suite down to franchise owners wanted McDonald’s to “do the right thing.” And that made difficult decisions easier to navigate, from publicly addressing negative actions to transforming its approach to animal welfare.This episode is just a taste of Langert’s story. Take a look into McDonald’s evolution in Langert’s new book, The Battle to Do Good: Inside McDonald’s Sustainability Journey.Resources + linksBob Langert LinkedInBob Langert on GreenbizMcDonald’s Scale for Good

Let’s talk about toilets.One in three people around the world lack basic sanitation. Of that 2.3 billion people, nearly 892 million relieve themselves in outside spaces. Beyond the obvious health dangers (nearly 800 children die every day from diarrhea caused by inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene), lack of access to safe and clean toilets expose women and children to the threats of violence and harassment, according to UNICEF.LIXIL – the $17 billion global company you may have never heard of – made social purpose a core business driver and is on a powerful path to change millions of lives by addressing some of the sanitation challenges above.LIXIL brands (notably, American Standard, Grohe, Tostem, and Inax) are in almost a billion households around the world. Jin Montesano, Chief Public Affairs Officer, Executive Officer and Senior Managing Director at LIXIL, joined Purpose 360 to talk about LIXIL’s long-term commitment to improve basic sanitation for 250 million people around the world by 2021.LIXIL partnered with UNICEF to achieve this goal through the cheekily-named Make a Splash program. Core to the program is LIXIL’s social enterprise to manufacture and distribute the proprietary $5 SATO toilet. Beyond providing basic sanitation, LIXIL and UNICEF say that the toilet can “transform lives – boosting child survival rates, making communities healthier, and even improving children’s chances of attending school.”In this episode, Jin shares the “three As” process -- Articulate, Assimilate, and Activate -- that guided LIXIL’s purpose journey, as well as experiences in the field that ignited that purpose for her and her team.Here are some of our favorite highlights:Parent companies and their brands can share a unified purpose. LIXIL created a dynamic solution to unify its reason for being among its brands and business units. Jin shares the decisions that led LIXIL to ask: “Why do we need to exist as a company? Why should American Standard belong to this Japanese company versus some other company? We wanted to dig deep and to understand what our purpose is, as a social ‘actor’ around the globe.”Tap your employees’ passions. LIXIL’s unified purpose led to the discovery of two American Standard engineers developing a low-cost toilet, now the SATO toilet. Seeing an opportunity, Jin made an ask to her leadership: “I need these two guys to leave their current jobs to build this into a proper organization, because 2.3 billion people could be served with this product.” SATO is now its own P&L and central to LIXIL’s Make a Splash program with UNICEF.Profit and purpose don’t need to be mutually exclusive. LIXIL’s CEO challenged the SATO team: “I don’t need you to make a profit, but you need to break even” by 2021. With this mandate, the SATO team grew the product into a viable social enterprise, reinvesting profits back into the business to accelerate growth. Their success earned SATO a 5-year grant from the Gates Foundation.Ask your stakeholders to discover your company’s purpose. LIXIL started its purpose journey with an eye toward environmental and gender issues. Yet, when LIXIL asked employees which social issues they were most passionate about, they emphatically named “hygiene and sanitation.” Listening led to LIXIL’s commitment to provide 250 million people with access to basic sanitation.**It’s okay to not always achieve your social goals. **Setting ambitious goals helps focus purpose-led initiatives. Yet, Jin counsels purpose practitioners not to fret if those goals aren’t met – as long as shortfalls are used to readjust and refocus efforts. In response to some of her team’s fears, Jin said: “If we don’t make [the goal], whatever that number we made is the number we achieve. Because if we hadn’t set the 100 million goal, then we wouldn’t have helped improve the lives of the ‘X’ million that we did reach.”Resources + linksLIXIL CompanyJin Montesano LinkedInMake a SplashSATO ToiletsSATO Case Study

Gardening is not about immediate success or instant gratification. The same can be said about social purpose.As a company for gardeners, ScottsMiracle-Gro has a succinct purpose: “helping people express themselves on their own piece of the Earth.” Cultivating a thriving garden takes care, commitment, and flexibility to adapt as conditions change. With that, creativity – and expression – can blossom.By taking this approach to cultivating social purpose, Scotts has developed a thoughtful, adaptive, and long-term platform for business and social impact. And that’s no miracle.Jim King, SVP of Corporate Affairs and Chief Communications Officer, joined us to share how Scotts honed its green thumb for purpose.Scotts is the largest marketer of lawn and gardening consumables in the world. The business is healthy, the brand is a household name, and the products enable people to beautify their environments and put food on their tables. Yet, Scotts wanted to do more and be more. Nearly a decade ago, Scotts CEO Jim Hagedorn asked, “What are we here to do?” The answer was not just to help people buy fertilizer.With a mandate from the CEO, Scotts embarked on its social purpose journey. Part of that was probing the company’s existing or potential weak spots – such as the environmental impact of products. One pain point stemmed from the company’s science-based focus. With the largest team of agronomists in the world and field stations across the U.S. and Europe, Scotts had “a tendency to fall back on the science…and defend the science at all costs because it’s fact based.”The average consumer doesn’t want to hear about science, especially in regard to potential negative impacts on the environment. Consumers want to connect with brands that are empathetic and have a sense of humanity. In this episode, King talks about the legislative and environmental hurdles that helped Scotts take a more human – and transparent – approach to its business and purpose.Since that mindshift, Scotts has sponsored a $10M science challenge, the George Barley Water Prize; built 1,000+ community gardens; created the Water Positive Landscapes initiative; built thriving long-term NGO partnerships; and more.Here are our favorite insights from King:Highlight social challenges – even if you’ve played a role in them. Scotts removed phosphorus from its products in 2011 to address the harmful effects of phosphorus runoff and resulting algal blooms, which harm the environment. Even though the impact of Scotts’ fertilizers was minimal, the company wanted to help solve the issue. And not only did Scotts change its products, but it sponsored a $10M prize aimed at addressing the problem.Environmental initiatives don’t need to be siloed. Most large companies have some flavor of environmental initiative, whether it involves supply chain, manufacturing processes, offsetting negative impacts, or other. These efforts tend to be siloed and not tied to a larger purpose or touchpoint – and that’s okay for most companies. But as a company founded to directly (and positively) impact the environment, Scotts integrated its entire environmental approach, from product development to community projects.Consider the relationship between your product and the customer, and how it ties to purpose. True to Scotts’ purpose of helping people express themselves on their piece of the Earth, King understands that the company’s customers are not buying the product because they love fertilizer. They’re buying fertilizer because they love what they can do and produce with it. A ripe tomato, a vibrant garden, a brilliant green lawn – that’s why customers choose Scotts. Understanding this nuance can guide companies on their journey to an authentic and transparent social purpose.RESOURCES:ScottsMiracle-Gro CompanyConnect with Jim King on LinkedInResponsibility at ScottsScottsMiracle-Gro FoundationGeorge Barley Water PrizeWater Positive Landscapes

Many of our guests are on a journey to social purpose – developing it, finding it, evolving it. What’s rarer are the companies that are founded for a purpose; built from day one to address an urgent social need.Ella’s Kitchen founder Paul Lindley created his baby food company, Ella’s Kitchen, to give babies a healthy start in life – improving their lives and helping them develop a healthy relationship with food. That may not sound unique, but Lindley’s success can be attributed to his approach: to “put children right at the heart of the company and build everything around them.”Further, Lindley adopted a toddler’s way of thinking in building and evolving his business. Between ages 3 – 5, 98% of children think divergently, concentrating on one thing, then another, then another, in a non-linear pattern. Divergent thinking is a measure of creativity. By the time those children mature to 25 years old, however, only 2% think divergently. “I argue that we should grow down more to think like that again,” Lindley says. Toddlers are full of self-confidence, ambition, free thinking, imagination, and determination – traits that today’s leaders would do well to embody.Lindley’s thriving business – which became the UK’s leading baby food brand – went far beyond its products in addressing a social issue. With Ella’s Kitchen, Paul created a platform for the issue of early childhood nutrition, doubling down on critical moments in a child’s development such as the weaning period. The brand and its founder are vocal advocates for childhood nutrition and the healthy development of toddlers, creating reports, commissioning reviews of existing research, convening expert roundtables, introducing legislation to Parliament, implementing pilot programs, and forming coalitions to drive impact. Lindley has since sold Ella’s Kitchen, but his work is far from over. He serves on the board of Toast Ale, which makes beer out of bread that would be wasted; helped launch Equity for Good, where investors dedicate their successful investments to social impact projects; serves as trustee and board member for Sesame Workshop to create educational experiences for children across the globe; and a lot more.What Lindley’s ventures have in common is their drive to unearth new ways to approach old problems. “What drives me every day is climbing new mountains and not believing that the world is limited. It is unlimited.”Here are a few of our favorite insights from Paul Lindley:Focus on the people your business serves. “The heart of business is people. It’s not money. Understanding what motivates people to invest in you, or to work for you, or to buy from you is the trick to a successful business.”Balance the long- and short-term. Ella’s Kitchen provides nutritious options for children and their parents. But Lindley’s company also exists to support a thriving society: “I started my own business because I had an idea that I thought society could benefit from, in that I found a way that I thought children could eat better, therefore be healthier, therefore be happier, therefore contribute to our society better as adults.”Trust starts from inside the company. Building trust with stakeholders is table stakes. But building internal trust in a company’s mission, vision, or purpose is just as important – if not more. “Any brand works from the inside out,” and having trust in your company and its purpose builds trust with external stakeholders.Invite others into your mission. Ella’s was a relatively small, if not mighty, voice in its advocacy efforts. To amplify and accelerate impact, Lindley challenged a range of stakeholders to join in his advocacy efforts – including government, the food industry, society, parents, and even children.Resources + linksPaul Lindley’s WebsitePolicy EffortsElla’s KitchenBook: Little Wins by Paul LindleyVideo: BaByC NewsVideo: Veg for Victory

Carol and Chris wish listeners a purposeful holiday season and a hint at what’s to come in 2019.

LG’s “Life’s Good” tagline is well known, but few people can describe what “Life’s Good” really means. Two years ago, LG started a journey to redefine “Life’s Good” through social purpose, turning a marketing strapline into an ethos with the potential to measurably impact the business and society. Mike Pepperman, Manager, Corporate Social Responsibility and Community Relations shares how LG identified its social purpose, aligned with a relevant and authentic social issue, and developed its Experience Happiness initiative. Through Experience Happiness, LG aims to equip 5.5 million youth with the knowledge and skills to achieve Sustainable Happiness.When school is in session, teens are the most stressed group in the U.S. — nearly one-third of teens struggle with anxiety, the most common mental health disorder in the U.S. And, rates of mental health among teens are growing. Rapidly.Unfortunately, a stigma remains around the issue of mental health in young people. While many nonprofit and government organizations are working to address the issue, corporate support is lacking. It’s understandable – conversations about mental health are hard, and often focus on elements that are challenging to craft a brand narrative around, like suicide hotlines and rehabilitation programs.For these reasons, LG was thoughtful in its approach to the issue of youth mental health, leaning on research, data, and evidence-based partners to find a “white space” the company was best equipped to address. Further, the approach needed to align with and support LG’s “Life’s Good” ethos in an authentic manner, without diminishing the brand. LG discovered an opportunity to empower and enable young people to learn Sustainable Happiness skills on their path to better mental health.The company set a bold but achievable goal: to bring Sustainable Happiness skills to 5.5 million youth in the U.S. over five years. In this episode, Mike shares his insights on how LG identified its social purpose and created a flexible, built-to-last program:Controversial issues may be the most relevant to your brand. LG understood that mental health in young people would be a challenging issue to address, especially for a technology company whose devices could be considered a contributing factor. Pepperman explains how LG anticipated and addressed internal hurdles through candid conversation and the creation of a cross-functional steering committee. The process also included discussions with employees, many of whom are parents of their own teens struggling with mental health issues. “It's been really heartening to be in a wide variety of meetings and have employees stop me mid-presentation to express their appreciation or tell a story about how their child has been bullied,” said Pepperman.**Organically scale programs. **LG designed the Experience Happiness platform for strategic growth. One pathway to scale involves connecting with schools across the country to discuss happiness skills. In Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey (LG’s U.S. headquarters), the company works directly with local school districts to introduce and administer programming. Nationally, other LG offices are equipped to develop relationships with their local school districts, directly engaging employees across the country to rapidly and organically extend reach.Create an ongoing dialogue with employees. To increase awareness about Experience Happiness, LG launched a newsletter that highlights one Sustainable Happiness skill or topic per month. The company hosts a lunch and learn series, convening groups of 25-50 employees and a nonprofit partner to learn Sustainable Happiness skills that families can put into practice. Having more intimate interactions with employees and letting them choose how to engage with the platform has led to increased employee participation at LG – turning them into advocates for the issue and the brand.**Establish credibility and authenticity through partners. **Experience Happiness is grounded in research, data, and evidence-based partners. LG chose to work with two grassroots organizations, Project Happiness and Inner Explorer, because of the organizations’ efforts to help teens incorporate Sustainable Happiness skills into their daily routines. Additionally, organizations like Greater Good Science at U.C. Berkeley and Discovery Education were carefully selected to provide the science-based foundation for the platform.Share your take on this episode using the hashtag #Purpose360 and tagging us at @purpose360pod on Twitter.ResourcesLife’s Good Experience PlatformMike Pepperman on LinkedIn

Pets, education, and community parks – these are feel-good social impact efforts that brands like to support. Rightly so, as they are worthy efforts that are easy to talk about. Yet, not all companies align most authentically with such issues.As a provider of life insurance, New York Life Insurance Company faces a difficult reality each day: that their customers may pass away. This reality often means that children lose parents, siblings, or loved ones, at which point they enter a bereavement period. One in 15 children will lose a parent or sibling before the age of 18, according to a recent study with the JAG Institute and the New York Life Foundation.It’s a sad issue, and one that is under-supported by corporations with the resources and expertise to drive awareness and positive impact. As an issue that directly affects New York Life, its people, and its customers, the company embraced the issue of child bereavement wholeheartedly – making it central for its social purpose.How does New York Life have such a profound impact for children and families that have lost loved ones?They partner with experts. Ten years ago, a child bereavement camp asked New York Life for support. The opportunity resonated strongly with the company. A decade later, New York Life has given $7M+ in grants to more than 230 organizations. Experts at the National Alliance for Grieving Children (NAGC) manage New York Life’s Grief Reach program. In addition, the Foundation launched the Shared Grief Project with Experience Camps, which captures stories from celebrities and athletes about losing a loved one at a young age and how they found motivation through their experience. These partnerships aren’t only with experts in child bereavement. The New York Life Foundation recently partnered with StoryCorps to leverage the organization’s capabilities in encouraging powerful conversation through storytelling.They help smaller organizations scale their capabilities. Since many child bereavement experts are relatively small, they lack the expertise and size to partner with a company as large as New York Life (with 10,000 employees and 12,000 agents). The New York Life Foundation helps these organizations grow. They invite all grantees to special sessions at the National Alliance for Grieving Children Conference each year to educate them on critical elements to growth: board development, fundraising, tax law, and more. Due to New York Life’s extensive national child bereavement network, the organization was positioned to provide rapid relief following the Newtown shooting, establishing the Newtown Resiliency Center. Following the Parkland tragedy, many individuals reached out to the Newtown Resiliency Center, who in turn referred them to the New York Life Foundation. The Foundation was then able to provide 10,000 booklets for members of the community to facilitate conversations about the tragedy.They engage and activate their people from the top down. New York Life deeply integrates the issue of child bereavement into its culture and operations. This starts at the top with buy-in and ongoing support and participation from CEO Ted Mathas, who also acts as Chair of the New York Life Foundation Board. Strategic programming development, management, and evolution is conducted by cross-functional team that taps expertise from across the organization: from the Chief Diversity Officer and people resources to marketing and government affairs. New York Life’s commitment to child bereavement is activated “on the ground” nationally through the company’s 12,000 agents, who are educated on the issue such that they can have nuanced conversations with their customers – whether or not they may be affected by the issue. Agents often hand-deliver claims, which include child bereavement resources when appropriate, and can participate in grief counseling conversations. It’s a thoughtful and human approach that is authentic to New York Life’s ethos to “be there for people when they need it most.”This is only a peek at insights from this powerful – and moving – conversation with Heather Nesle about New York Life’s journey to authentically align with a social issue, embed it in the business, advance knowledge of it, and drive meaningful change. Share your take on this episode using the hashtag #Purpose360 and tagging us at @purpose360pod on Twitter.ResourcesNew York Life Insurance CompanyNew York Life FoundationNew York Life Bereavement ResourcesNew York Life’s Grief-Sensitive Schools InitiativeHeather Nesle on LinkedIn

How do you find your brand’s super power? Kathleen Dunlop, Global Brand VP at Unilever, is back to share the story behind the brand's efforts to take a stand in the market and beyond.With a mandate to “do good” from one of the world’s largest companies, the team behind the Vaseline brand set out to find their eponymous product’s super power. Kathleen Dunlop, Global Brand VP at Unilever, joins Carol to explore the conversations, insights, and “aha” moments that took “The Healing Power of Vaseline” into conflict zones, refugee camps, and community health centers to provide potentially life-saving wound protection.Unilever has long been the bellwether of purpose-driven brands. The company’s 360-degree Sustainable Living Plan acts as a guiding framework for the company’s operations, product development, go-to-market strategies, communications, and growth. Paul Polman, Unilever’s CEO, mandates that all billion-dollar brands must now embrace a social mission. This visionary strategy has paid off tremendously: in 2017, Sustainable Living brands returned 70% of overall turnover growth for Unilever.While brands like Ben & Jerry’s have a legacy as mission-driven organizations, and Dove has the now well-known Campaign for Real Beauty, finding Vaseline’s social purpose took some soul searching. As a product that touches the skin of hundreds of millions of people each day, Dunlop and her team understood the need to imbue Vaseline with a focused, meaningful, and exponentially impactful social purpose.Listen in to hear about that journey – from roundtable conversations to bringing Vaseline Healing Project to Life.Resources:Vaseline Healing ProjectConnect with Katherine Dunlop on LinkedIn

With a mandate to “do good” from one of the world’s largest companies, the team behind the Vaseline brand set out to find their eponymous product’s super power. Kathleen Dunlop, Global Brand VP at Unilever, joins Carol to explore the conversations, insights, and “aha” moments that took “The Healing Power of Vaseline” into conflict zones, refugee camps, and community health centers to provide potentially life-saving wound protection.Unilever has long been the bellwether of purpose-driven brands. The company’s 360-degree Sustainable Living Plan acts as a guiding framework for the company’s operations, product development, go-to-market strategies, communications, and growth. Paul Polman, Unilever’s CEO, mandates that all billion-dollar brands must now embrace a social mission. This visionary strategy has paid off tremendously: in 2017, Sustainable Living brands returned 70% of overall turnover growth for Unilever.While brands like Ben & Jerry’s have a legacy as mission-driven organizations, and Dove has the now well-known Campaign for Real Beauty, finding Vaseline’s social purpose took some soul searching. As a product that touches the skin of hundreds of millions of people each day, Dunlop and her team understood the need to imbue Vaseline with a focused, meaningful, and exponentially impactful social purpose.Listen in to hear about that journey – from roundtable conversations to bringing Vaseline Healing Project to Life.Resources:Vaseline Healing ProjectConnect with Katherine Dunlop on LinkedIn

True to our name, at Purpose 360 we believe purpose must be embedded throughout an organization to maximize impact. Kohler takes this ethos a step further – integrating the company and its purpose with the world.Laura Kohler, Vice President of Human Resources, Stewardship and Sustainability at Kohler – a fourth-generation family executive – joins us for the second episode of Purpose 360 to explore the firm’s evolution as a privately-held company that believes better business and a better world go hand-in-hand. Kohler is an ever-present brand, with products in homes and businesses around the world. Yet, how many of us stop during our morning routine to think about the brand’s reason for being? The reality is, the organization behind our sinks, faucets and bathtubs is changing lives around the world.The authentic use of collaboration, employee engagement and storytelling to drive business and social impact outcomes has been critical to Kohler’s growth over the past 144 years. Kohler takes a long-term view of purpose with Innovation For Good – the company’s award-winning innovation incubator – being their most recent initiative. Innovation For Good has fostered engagement between engineers and designers, created external partnerships with organizations such as the Gates Foundation, and empowered employees to volunteer worldwide.The Kohler model is one to emulate. Here’s why:Kohler celebrates and builds on its brand history. In Laura’s words, “take care of it, highlight it, and make sure people know what an important legacy you have” as you look forward on your social purpose journey. Creating awareness of the history of your brand can guide you into the future, garnering the attention of the “pivot generation” – millennials, Gen Z, and your new workforce.“To whom much is given, much is expected.” This applies to both the individual employee and the company. If we can really say, “how can I make a difference in my work every day with my company? In my work, in my community, as an individual?” then we have the power to improve some of the world’s biggest problems.Stewardship and sustainability drive engagement, and engagement drives productivity and retention. Disengaged workers are more likely to leave their place of work, driving massive drops in productivity that result in losses between $450 and $500 billion a year. People come to Kohler to be part of the stewardship and sustainability journey – and they stay.Global storytelling v. local storytelling. “Authentic storytelling from the point of view of the person who experienced it is very powerful.” Don’t forget the power of local communication and internal (employee) storytelling as you amplify your global initiatives.Finesse in change management. When driving change inside an organization, it is vital to communicate with the most engaged employees. They are your champions and influencers within the organization. If you provide your engaged workforce with a challenge and the tools problem solve, they can help your company navigate change.ResourcesKohler.comInnovation for GoodLaura Kohler on LinkedIn

Welcome to Purpose 360.We’re thrilled to make our debut, and even more so because our first guest is celebrating the fourth anniversary of one of the most disruptive and successful social purpose campaigns: REI’s #OptOutside.But first, you might want to know a little about us. Purpose 360, hosted by Carol Cone and Chris Noble, unlocks the power of social purpose to ignite business and social impact. Why listen to us? Carol created the field of social purpose in the 1980s, linking Rockport with the walking movement – creating a billion-dollar retail category while inspiring people to walk for fitness and health. Chris is a digital and cause marketing savant, having created leading campaigns for brands and NGOs, raising $150 million for causes. Every week, we’ll speak with the leading minds and practitioners of social purpose from Fortune 500 companies, social enterprises, and world-changing non-profits to answer the question: What’s your purpose?Back to REI: one of our favorite purpose-driven brands. We were honored to speak with Alex on the eve of #OptOutside’s fourth year, and encourage you to spend some time in nature while listening to this episode. Here are our favorite insights from Alex:Align on a really clear, focused societal goal: for REI, that’s “leaving the outdoors better than we found it.” Social purpose initiatives, especially when operationalized throughout the business, can be multi-faceted and complex. Keeping the end goal simple and compelling will serve as a north star for all the moving parts.Need inspiration? Find a challenge your organization is uniquely equipped to address. REI found that 50% of people in the US aren’t going outdoors once a year for outdoor recreation. That 50% of people are unlikely to shop at REI and unlikely to experience the mental and physical health benefits of the outdoors. REI embraced that staggering statistic, putting the full force of the company’s purpose behind it through #OptOutside and other community engagement initiatives. And they are beginning to turn the tide.Never forget where you came from. REI was founded as a co-op by a husband and wife with a passion for nature. The company remains a co-op, giving every customer the opportunity to buy into the company and its mission. That’s a powerful asset that REI was a steward of throughout the company’s massive growth. The customer has always come first.To hear more from Alex Thompson, including how the brand inspired more than 15 million people to go outside on the country’s biggest shopping day, we invite you to listen to our debut episode today.Links & NotesREI #OptOutsideAbout AlexAlex Thompson on LinkedIn