Innovation is hard...Why Purpose Matters. Aligning purpose from the top down and bottom up allows individuals and organizations to tap into their full creative potential, deep energy resources, and top talent.

1. Innovation is Hard…
Why Purpose Matters
Shannon Lucas

2. Think of a time when
you were crystal clear on what you wanted to accomplish,
something that you believed in deeply,
and were in flow towards achieving that goal.

4. Innovation is hard…

5. Innovation
[ in-uh-vey-shuh n ]
noun
• something new or different introduced
• the act of innovating; introduction of new things or methods.

7. Corporate
Team
Individual
Challenges of Backend of Innovation
• Organizational structure (in or out)
• New Business model difficulties
• Fear of customer retaliation
• Resource alignment
• Incentives
• Culture change

8. Results in:
Lack of belief in top level commitment
leading to limited bottom-line impact and
potential brand damage

9. Challenges of Backend of Innovation
• Lack of clarity of success metrics
• Misalignment of right skill sets on team
• Challenge of engaging other
stakeholders and buy-in
• Resistance to new ways of working
• Different risk appetites
• Limited resources
Team

10. Results in:
High activity, confusing, high stress
environment… resulting in limited success,
wasted resources and high turnover

11. Challenges of Backend of Innovation
• Lack of clarity of role
• Lack of support and proper skill set
development
• Emotional rollercoaster
• Fear of unclear job progression
• Long hours and high stress
Individual

12. Results in:
Burnout and high turnover

13. That’s a dark picture….
Why do we do it?

14. Not your parent’s “disruption”
We have to…

16. Purpose is the answer

17. Purpose
[ pur-puhs ]
noun
• the reason for which something exists or is done, made, used, etc.
• an intended or desired result; end; aim; goal.
• determination; resoluteness.

18. Leaders on Purpose

19. Business Roundtable
“Since 1978, Business Roundtable has periodically issued Principles of Corporate
Governance. Each version of the document issued since 1997 has endorsed principles
of shareholder primacy – that corporations exist principally to serve shareholders.
With today’s announcement, the new Statement supersedes previous statements and
outlines a modern standard for corporate responsibility. ”
Signed by 181 Corporate CEOs
August 2019

20. Business Roundtable…what it means:
• Delivering value to our customers
• Investing in our employees (including D&I)
• Dealing fairly and ethically with our suppliers
• Supporting the communities in which we work
• Generating long-term value for shareholders

21. The value of Purpose

23. Purpose Pays
$12,000,000,000,000
Business and Sustainable Development Commission

24. The Power of Purpose

25. Image the worst human conditions
possible…

26. Viktor Frankl
Man’s Search for Meaning
1946

27. “Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear
almost any ‘how.’”
Friedrich Nietzsche

28. Power of Purpose
• Happiness Trifecta
• Longer Life
• Clarity & Alignment
• Improved Performance

29. Happiness Trifecta
Dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin

30. Longer Life
People without a strong life purpose are more than twice as likely to die compared with those who have one.
Those who expressed a greater sense of purpose were 2.4 times less likely to develop Alzheimer’s.

31. Clarity & Alignment
Purpose provides clarity for how to organize one’s day, what to say yes to and what to say no to.
Leading to…

32. Improved Performance

33. EY: The Business case for Purpose

34. EY: The Business case for Purpose

35. EY: The Business case for Purpose
Have made a change in last 3 years:
• Strategy Development
• Business Model
• Operating Model
• Product/Service Development
• New Business Development/Market
Exploration

36. What is Purpose?

37. Authentic Purpose
3 Janitors

38. Different Types of Purpose
• Survival
• Familial/Communal
• Adopting a Pre-Existing Framework of Purpose and Meaning
• Personal Accumulative
• Altruistic/Idealistic
• Personal and Spiritual Development

39. Start with Why

40. Start with Why
Why. Purpose - Why we are here, what we are here TO BE
• Purpose creates a collective identity and makes people willing to throw themselves in

41. Purpose is the Why
Why. Purpose - Why we are here, what we are here TO BE
• Purpose creates a collective identity and makes people willing to throw themselves in
What. Vision - What WE SEE as possible for ourselves, for others, for community and
for the world
• Vision is about what you see as possible.

42. Purpose is the Why
Why. Purpose - Why we are here, what we are here TO BE
• Purpose creates a collective identity and makes people willing to throw themselves in
What. Vision - What WE SEE as possible for ourselves, for others, for community and
for the world
• Vision is about what you see as possible.
How. Mission - What we are here TO DO
• Mission is the specific actions, tasks or goals to realize our vision and purpose; our strategy and path to our vision
and purpose

43. Purpose and Innovation
Purpose plays an important role in innovation. Innovators can evaluate not just technological
insight, customer need, and competition but also identify whole new feels of opportunity.

44. Purpose Applied

45. Corporate
Purpose and the Backend of Innovation
• Organizational alignment
• Openness to new business models
• Stronger internal collaboration
• Alignment with customers
• Openness to new ways of working
• New metrics for success
• New potential incentives
• Culture change

46. EY: The Business case for Purpose
Purpose drives:
• Employee satisfaction
• Business transformation success x2
• Higher quality products and services

47. EY: The Business case for Purpose
• Strategic transformation
• Guide for innovation
• Must focus on innovation and
continuous transformation

48. EY: The Business case for Purpose
53% of Prioritizers said their business
is successful with innovation and
transformation.

49. Leads to:
Stronger performance

50. Purpose and the Backend of Innovation
• Clear connection with work and impact
• Stronger sense of community
• Cross-organizational buy-in and
support from key stakeholders
• Dedicated resources
• Openness to new ways of working and
risk models
Team

51. PWC: Putting Purpose to Work: A Study of Purpose in the Workforce

52. Leads to:
Engaged, motivated, resilient,
successful teams

53. Purpose and the Backend of Innovation
• Personal and professional alignment
• More flow state (better problem solving)
• Clarity of role and impact to organization
• Increased job satisfaction
• Better health, happiness, and resiliency
Individual

54. LRN: The How Report
Inspired employees
outperform purely engaged
employees

55. Leads to:
Healthy, satisfied, inspired, successful
individuals

56. Pitfalls of Purpose

57. Pitfalls of Purpose
• Personal purpose isn’t aligned with team or corporate
• Purpose creates drive to overcome organizational
challenges leading to burnout & health problems

58. How to “get” purpose

59. Defining Purpose
Holistic Approach
• Understand your history, DNA, and
stakeholder needs
• Systems approach
• Consider SDGs
• Risk to opportunity mindset shift
• Crowd source employee input
• Apply new purpose to ways of working,
metrics/KPIs, incentives
Corporate

60. Team
Defining Purpose
• Understand the corporate purpose
• Co-create your team’s purpose
• Invite other stakeholders for input
• Create team metrics and rewards
aligned with purpose

61. Individual
Defining Purpose
• Think about what brings joy in your life.
• When are you most in a state of flow?
• What do you want to be known or
remembered for?
• What gets you out of bed on even the
hardest days?

62. My Purpose
To make the world’s largest organizations more
sustainable in every sense of the word; for people,
planet, and profit.

63. How to bring it into the world? Make a plan.
• What does it look like when it’s fully realized?
• What does it look like 2 years from now?
• 1 year?
• 6 months?
• Next month?
• Tomorrow?

65. Support your Purpose
• Plan time each week, month, or each year to reflect on your why
• Share your why with your employees, teammates, family
• Connect with your end users or customers and understand how your purpose
supports theirs
• Find a peer group, support group, or community that holds a similar purpose

67. Shannon Lucas
Shannon@catalystconstellations.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonglucas/
@sglucas