Leading for Organisational Change

Chapter 17The Best Thing You Can Bring Is Heart

Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid.

Frederick Buechner¹

In closing, it seems important to consider, in the light of all we have learned, the key takeaways in terms of how we should aspire to lead, and how we can encourage and equip future leaders of purpose-led, story-driven organisations so that they, their organisations and their people can all thrive.

In 2014, in partnership with Cranfield University's Doughty Centre for Corporate Responsibility and The Financial Times, Coca-Cola commissioned research into current and future business leaders' opinions about the relationship between profit and purpose – now and in the future.² The results are striking. All current and future leaders (people currently operating in the level immediately below the C-suite) who participated in the survey agreed that a purpose-led approach builds engagement, increases trust, fosters innovation and increases an organisation's relevance to future generations. Yet while nine out of ten current CEOs believe that their organisation has a clear purpose, only two out of ten future leaders agree, and ‘management attitudes’ is identified as one of the two biggest barriers to the successful adoption of a purpose-led approach (the other being government policy). Clearly, then, there is a gap between intention and perception that leaders will need to bridge if they are to truly embrace purpose. The stakes are high. ...