Carol Cone: Purpose in Business is at a Crossroads

In episode 29, we tour the evolution of purpose with Carol Cone, internationally recognized “purpose queen” (by the BBC) who has dedicated 35+ years to steering the purpose movement, 250 purpose programs and more than 30 research studies with major brands like Unilever and Microsoft to name a few -- ranging from social purpose, ESG strategies and communications, cause branding, nonprofit positioning, fundraising and stakeholder engagement. Her innovation (“My Special Aflac Duck”) to have Aflac sponsor the build of a social robot and comfort pediatric cancer patients during their first 1000 days of treatments was named one of Time Magazine’s Best Inventions, Best in Show at CES and winner of 2 Cannes Lions.

Presently, the purpose conversation is at a crossroads -- as a brand, are you on the side of operationalizing purpose authentically or riding the trend at the expense of ‘purpose washing’ (intent externally without real impact internally)? With impact front and center, brands have the power to tap into the $12 trillion opportunity should they walk their talk and align with one of the UN’s seventeen SDG goals. Carol highlights a core insight of purpose -- that as a market segments, it also matures (think: how brands unite purpose across storydoing and storytelling matters even more). Helping us unpack the 4 C’s of purpose driven leadership (commitment, culture, colleagues and collaboration), she makes the case that purpose architecture touches all stakeholders and isn’t just good for business, but also people and planet. To reaffirm what we already know to be true in line with Paul Krugman’s wisdom, “every social and environmental issue is an economic opportunity in disguise.”

• Discerning between authentic purpose vs. purpose washing with brands like Avon, Audi, P&G, PNC Bank and Aflac

• The evolution of purpose from cause marketing to stakeholder capitalism 

• How George’s Floyd’s murder and the subsequent BLM resurgence accelerated the purpose conversation in business

• The gold standard of purpose and how the B Corp certification fits into the picture

• Why operationalizing purpose is a present challenge for B2B companies

• How the marketing, advertising and comms industries will need to shift to do purpose right

• The brilliant impact of “My Special Aflac Duck” in connecting business + innovation + pediatric cancer patients 

Carol Cone On Purpose: https://www.carolconeonpurpose.com 

What will be your organization’s authentic purpose in 2021? https://www.carolconeonpurpose.com/post/what-will-be-your-organization-s-authentic-purpose-in-2021 

More about the show: https://www.digseedgrow.com/thealtnormal-podcast

Produced by Resonance™, the creative practice of Dig | Seed | Grow

This show is hosted at Destination Outpost, a coliving and coworking community based out in Bali.