Embedding Purpose with Authenticity for Maximum Impact

Amid the rise of stakeholder capitalism, corporate purpose, or a company’s drive to make a positive impact on the world, has come into greater focus. In September 2020, Nasdaq formalized its purpose to advance inclusive growth and prosperity by reimagining investor engagement, increasing participation in the capital markets and building strategic partnerships. As we continue our purpose journey at Nasdaq, we remain deeply committed to bringing together a range of leading voices and experts to share insights on how we can build more inclusive markets by empowering under-represented communities. We recently held a stakeholder roundtable on the importance of embedding purpose within a company with authenticity for maximum impact.

During the virtual discussion, which was held under Chatham House Rule, participants from several large-cap companies across a variety of sectors shared how they are driving purpose within their organization. They acknowledged that it is essential to meet the needs of the workforce not only for today but for tomorrow, understanding that people want to work for a company that delivers impact with values and culture that go beyond profits and balance sheets.

Given the greater visibility on racial injustice and societal inequities over the past several years, many would like and expect corporate America to play an increasingly significant role in addressing these issues, making it more imperative that a business’ purpose adds value to society, not just to its shareholders. However, participants agreed that how a company responds to these issues needs to be authentic and inclusive for the communities that it serves. As one participant said, “we can’t purpose-wash” the work, especially in light of the increased scrutiny and accountability surrounding deeply-seeded issues of inequality.

That said, the participants warned not to underestimate the work related to a company’s purpose, as it takes every employee to drive these efforts. For everyone to get involved, a company’s purpose needs to be connected across silos. Many participants noted that having a proactive leadership, or founder-inspired with distributed leadership, that connects the future of the business with the success of purpose is critical to creating a unifying structure for a purpose-led organization. Even if gaps exist between a company’s purpose and strategy, it provides an opportunity for innovation, bridging that gap while building capabilities that help achieve short- and long-term goals.

While there is no one-size-fits-all structure for corporate purpose, businesses must have a cohesive way to discuss the impact of their purpose. Part of that narrative includes measuring the impact. While there are no uniform methods of measuring impact today, several participants are leveraging various forms. These can include surveys that provide insights into how employees or suppliers are doing physically, mentally, emotionally and financially with a company’s purpose, as well as analysis of what innovations are moving the needle and consensus of which ESG metrics are needed to measure the impact of purpose.

We all recognize that there is a greater urgency for companies to invest in and develop corporate purpose to ensure a better tomorrow. Although each company’s purpose differs, each is united in its desire to create a net-positive impact for all stakeholders – including employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders and local communities.

To this end, Nasdaq unveiled its impact report for 2021, highlighting how we have advanced inclusive growth and prosperity. We deepened our commitment to purpose by creating a sustainable culture, establishing new partnerships, engaging global stakeholders and reimagining the Nasdaq Foundation. We also recently released the inaugural report covering the progress of the Foundation, detailing the quarterly grant recipients and the work they are doing to amplify and support diverse founders, entrepreneurs and students through sponsorships, coaching and training programs, bootcamps, research and resources.

To stay updated on the Foundation's new quarterly grant recipients and Nasdaq’s purpose work, subscribe to the Purpose in Action newsletter.

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