Leading with Noble Purpose

Chapter 1Profit is Not a Purpose

When I grow up, I want to claw my way into middle management.

—Said no 10-year-old, ever

Do you remember the Monster.com Super Bowl ad?

Monster's iconic “When I Grow Up” campaign featured kids saying, “When I grow up I want to be a Yes-man” or “Yes-woman” “Yes, sir. Anything for a raise sir.” The Monster ads juxtaposed the dreams of childhood with realities of adult work. Watching an earnest 10-year-old boy say, “When I grow up, I want to claw my way into middle management,” reminded people, work was supposed to be better than this.

The rise and fall, and subsequent rebirth, of Monster.com illustrates why a profit focus erodes business, while a purpose focus brings the business to life. Monster.com was founded on the belief that helping people find jobs was a noble endeavor. In their iconic ads, Monster made it clear: “You deserve a better job, and we want to help you find it.” Monster founder Jeff Taylor's mantra was “It's half about a better job, and half about a better life.” In 2006, Monster.com was one of the 20 most visited websites in the world.

Yet by January of 2011, five years later, Monster Inc. was rated the worst stock of the year. By 2014, things were worse. In that year alone, Monster's shares dropped 43 percent.

What went wrong?

Analysts suggested that Monster's free fall was due to their inability to compete with newer, more nimble, connected solutions like Indeed and LinkedIn. The analysts were right about the outcome, but they ...