INSIGHT Derek Owen - Totem
“The key aim is to drive to have the majority of employees becoming real
advocates of your purpose.” Derek Owen, MD - Totem
Does your business have real purpose?
According to Totem Consulting over 66 per cent of businesses don’t have a clearly defi ned business Purpose. In this
article Derek Owen, MD of Totem, looks to uncover what is meant by purpose and how businesses can fi nd theirs
Most companies’
executives will say
they have a company
purpose but in fact
what they really mean is that
they feel they know where their
company is heading. is isn’t a
real purpose – more of a feeling
or desire.
From the results of
companies taking the Totem
Health Check, we can see that
over 66 per cent of businesses
don’t have a clearly de ned,
focused and company-wide
accepted purpose.
It is clear that of this 66 per
cent a large proportion of the
results come from across the
whole company and therefore
also provides a clear example
that there are a fair amount
of executive teams that don’t
currently communicate their
purpose or update their teams
on whether the business is on
target to achieve its purpose
and goals.
Ernst and Young surveyed
over 1000+ executives in 2019
and the results were similar,
with fewer than 40 per cent
stating that their company had
actually articulated a strong
sense of purpose.
Even when the Totem
Health Check results are
more positive, it’s clear that
companies need to do more to
embed their purpose into their
organisation, in areas such
as leadership development,
training, employee recognition
and rewards. e key aim is
to drive to have the majority
of employees becoming real
advocates of your purpose.
Some key points to take away
from these results:
1. Strategy: “Purpose” should
be a pivotal part of your
overall business strategy and
goals. Having a crystal-clear
purpose enables the whole
company to be aiming for
the same results.
2. Empowerment: It’s
important for employees to
own the Purpose. 90 per
cent of people who work in a
purpose-driven organisation
stated that they felt much
more engaged in their work.
3. Communication:
Communicate your purpose
to the masses - whether
that’s through your content
creation, social media,
blogging, branding or
making sure it’s on the walls
throughout your o ces.
4. People: More and more
companies are becoming
socially and ethically
responsible, with one
important distinction that
these companies have a clear
purpose not just for their cause
but also for their people.
5. Improvement: Strive for
constant improvement.
Being purpose-focused is no
easy task and takes constant
education. Remember, it’s a
business process, so remind
your employees often about
how the purpose of the
business is developing.
6. Growth: Purpose-driven
companies grow faster,
with over 58 per cent of
companies with a clearly
de ned purpose have grown
more that 10 per cent
over the past three years,
compared to 42 per cent of
companies where purpose
is not well understood or
communicated.
A powerful way to bring
a company’s purpose to life
is to allow it to steer crucial
decisions. e company’s
purpose provides a consistent
guide for all decisions and
should always be aligned with
the overall company goals and
objectives.
Whether your purpose is to
grow customer or shareholder
value, make a social impact
in your market, drive
sustainability or develop new
and recognised innovations,
whatever your direction,
developing your purpose is
never an easy task.
Ask yourself the question,
“Do we really have a clear
company embraced purpose
that is discussed regularly
with our employees?”. If the
answer to this question is no,
then the lack of having such
a purpose will impact the
growth and sustainability of
your business.
Derek Owen, MD of Totem
Does your company
lack ‘purpose’? take the Totem
Business Health Check online to
see where you could improve your
business.
https://healthcheck.totemcg.org/
46 | Comms Business Magazine | March 2020 www.commsbusiness.co.uk
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