This is a question we ask many of our clients. Purpose and the related strategy seem to be more accidental than driven, by the people we chat to. So what does it mean to have a Purpose Strategy for your business?

Defining the purpose of a business comes from a number of different purpose statements. The first is for the reason for starting a business. Many people start their business due to financial reasons. They need to earn money. This is true for all businesses but there are often underlying reasons such as wanting more personal freedom, to do good in the community or to gain fame and fortune. What is yours?

The second purpose statement comes from the long-term purpose. Where is the business destined to go in 10 or 20 years from now? This may be a very long-term view and often too far ahead for any clarity, but knowing an idea goal determines the actions of today. Is your business going to be handed down to family members to build a legacy? Do you want to sell it in a few years and do something else? Are you planning to franchise or list on the stock exchange? Each of these options is key to the actions of incorporation that you take when registering your business.

We can now progress onto the initial problem you want to address as a business. This purpose statement is now more focused as you define the attention of the business. This needs to clearly define the problem, the people you address and the proposed solutions you will implement, sell or offer in order to address the defined problem.

Join us on Wednesday for more explanation of these and others on this week’s webinar