This document outlines 5 steps to activate purpose in an organization: 1. Leaders activate and model purpose to inspire employees. 2. Define an organizational purpose and strategy aligned with that purpose. 3. Activate employees' individual purposes and connect them to the organizational purpose. 4. Structure the organization and craft culture to reinforce the purpose at all levels. 5. Advocate for the purpose internally and externally. The presenters argue that connecting employees' work to an inspiring higher purpose improves motivation, productivity, retention and other benefits. They provide research-backed practices for purposeful leadership to implement the 5 steps.

1. So Your Business Needs Purpose. Now
What?
5 Proven Steps to Activate a Purposeful Organization
Brandon Peele
Author, Planet on Purpose
Shavon Lindley
CEO, ion Learning
Zach Mercurio, PhD
Author, The Invisible Leader

2. Overview
1. Introduction
2. This Historic Decision & The Purpose Advantage – Brandon Peele
3. The Practice of Purposeful Leadership – Zach Mercurio
4. Scalable Culture Change – Shavon Lindley
5. 15 minutes of Q&A
6. Next Steps to Access Whitepaper Early

3. Shavon Lindley
● CEO ion Learning - an enterprise eLearning and mentoring
technology platform that elevates advanced workplace learning into
scalable, deep cultural change at companies such as
Ancestry.com, Evolution Hospitality, and Walmart
● Creator of Women Evolution® and Inclusion 360°®
● Interviewed over 200 executives as Forbes Contributor and former
ESPN Radio Host

4. Zach Mercurio, PhD
● Purposeful leadership and meaningful work researcher, Affiliate
Professor in the Center for Meaning and Purpose in Colorado State
University’s Department of Psychology
● Bestselling author of “The Invisible Leader”
● Serves clients such as The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, Crocs,
The National Park Service, & The Alzheimer’s Association
@ZACHMERCURIO@ZACHMERCURIO@ZMERCURIO

5. ● Led purpose activation work for thousands in
over 50 countries
● Served leaders and teams from Tesla,
Smithsonian, Apple, EPA, Google, Morgan
Stanley and the US Marine Corps
Brandon Peele

6. This Historic Decision: Capitalism on the Move
2010’s
2000’s
1990’s
1980’s
1970’s
1970 “The business of business is business.” Milton Friedman

7. 99%
Of people who
are not fulfilled
at work are not
fulfilled in life.1
1. 2019 Imperative Workforce Purpose Index
This Historic Decision: Careers on the Move

8. This Historic Decision: Climate Change on the Move
Yale, 2019

9. ScienceOfPurpose.org
The Opportunity
SOCIETY:
● 2x learning
● 50% civic participation
● 50% increase in inclusivity
HEALTH + LOVE:
● Longer life +7 years
● +64% fulfilled
● Attraction, intimacy, +31% love
CAREER:
● Higher levels of income and wealth
● +63% leadership effectiveness
● 7.4 months longer tenure
ORGANIZATIONS:
● $9.1k productivity pp/yr
● Outperform market 15:1
● 3x growth rate

10. The Pathway
STEP ONE: Leaders Activate and Model Purpose
STEP TWO: Organizational Purpose and Strategy
STEP THREE:
Employee Purpose Activation
Practicing Purposeful Leadership
STEP FOUR:
Organizational Structures
Culture Crafting
STEP FIVE: Advocacy

11. The Practices of Purposeful Leadership: The Research

12. The Practices of Purposeful Leadership: The Opportunity
79%
of leaders think that connecting their people to an inspiring purpose is
critical to success.
27%
say they regularly enact purpose when with their teams.
PwC (2016), survey of 502 organizational leaders

13. The Practices of Purposeful Leadership: The Opportunity
Having purpose Being purposeful
Mercurio, 2019

14. The Practices of Purposeful Leadership: The Opportunity
Being purposeful is contribution-centered
thinking, being, and doing.
Purposeful Leaders enable and facilitate the
ongoing connection between people, their work,
and their contribution.

15. Practice I: Instill and maintain the belief that the work matters
1. Routinely collect and tell stories of the work’s
ultimate impact
2. Provide ongoing evidence of people’s work’s
meaning
3. Collectively reperceive routine or mundane
work
Increase in motivation
when people are
regularly connected to
the human being their
work benefits.
400%
Grant et al.,, 2005; Hackman & Oldham, 1976

16. Practice II: Ensure a clear line of sight to the bigger purpose
1. Generatively craft a clear, authentic
organization and individual purpose
statement
2. Ensure individual and team tasks are tied
to measurable objectives which are
directly tied to delivering the purpose
3. Make the connection between person,
task, and purpose a daily discussion
through purposeful delegation,
communication, and feedback
Carton (2016) archival study of NASA; Mercurio (2018)

17. Practice III: Make contribution goals more important than achievement
goals
What you nurture GROWS.
Crocker & Canevello, 2008

18. Gaping Void Culture Design Group, 2018
1. Ensure contribution goals are
more prevalent than
achievement goals
2. Reward for contributing,
“prosocial” behaviors
Practice III: Make contribution goals more important than achievement
goals

19. Practice IV: Know individuals’ values, strengths, and purposes and
connect them to the work’s long-term outcomes and impact.
1. Create the space for individual self-
awareness of values and strengths
2. Connect people’s values and
strengths to their tasks, their teams,
and the bigger purpose
3. Ensure individuals craft a purpose
statement and connect it to the
organization’s purpose
Mercurio, 2019; Pattoni, 2012

20. Practice V: Plan a culture that aligns beliefs, values, behaviors, and habits
with the bigger purpose.
Mercurio, 2019; Schein, 1990)

21. Traditional Strategy for Scaling Culture: Trickle-Down Effect

22. What is Employee Experience?

23. Fight, Flight, and Freeze Response is Easily Triggered
=
Stress
Worry
Overwhelm
Exclusion

24. Why Your Employee Experience Matters

25. Start With Small Group Diverse Mentoring
OXFORD UNIVERSITY RESEARCH | SMALL GROUP LEARNING | OCT 2013

26. Scaling Culture Change

27. Next Steps
Step 1: Download Whitepaper:
https://bit.ly/2n2p92y
Step 2: Read it
Step 3: Share it
Step 4: Reply to email with subject line:
Purpose Driven Consultation
Brandon Peele | BrandonPeele.com | bpeele04@gsb.columbia.edu
Shavon Lindley | ionLearning.com | shavon@ionLearning.com
Zach Mercurico, PhD | ZachMercurio.com | zach@zachmercurio.com

28. So Your Business Needs Purpose. Now
What?
5 Proven Steps to Activate a Purposeful Organization
Brandon Peele
Author, Planet on Purpose
Shavon Lindley
CEO, ion Learning
Zach Mercurio, PhD
Author, The Invisible Leader