A place for purpose-driven business
Thanks for being a part of Purpose 2015!
LET’S DO GOOD BUSINESS, TOGETHER
It’s 2015 and the future belongs to businesses with purpose.
The kind of purpose that’s baked into the business model. The kind of companies that solve problems, rather than cause them. The kind that have a healthy bottom line, but also a healthy perspective on what the world actually needs.
Purpose brought together purpose-driven people and over two days we met, learnt from and were inspired by the best in the industry. The people who are doing good and doing it incredibly well.
We talked about reinventing business models, shifting corporate cultures and rewriting the role of brands and organisations to be purpose driven. Purpose 2015 is only the beginning – join our community.
Themes
Themes
Different By Design
Good design makes for a better world. It turns waste into a resource, outsmarts the competition... Read more
Different By Design
Good design makes for a better world. It turns waste into a resource, outsmarts the competition and builds beautiful experiences. While the category is gaining momentum, design thinking is still in its infancy when it comes to application to business and our greatest environmental and social challenges. Over two days, we’ll discover how the design process informs the ethos, production and strategies of some of the leading purpose-driven companies in the world. Read more.
Meaningful Work
There’s a growing shift towards work with meaning. While this is tremendous... Read more
Meaningful Work
There’s a growing shift towards work with meaning. While this is tremendous, the cultural change required to offer meaningful careers and relationships sometimes takes hard work to achieve – no matter what stage of business you’re at. We’ll look at strategies to facilitate a purpose-driven life and career for you and your employees, as well as how to hold onto the positive company values and culture you’ve worked so hard to build. Read more.
Business Model Innovation
B Corporations, social enterprise, shared value... Read more
Business Model Innovation
B Corporations, social enterprise, shared value, conscious capitalism and co-ops; it’s a brave new world of purpose-driven business models and we’re here to navigate them with you. Together, we’ll look at the new models that are emerging, new forms of currency and capital, the hybrids and the hacking of traditional models. We’ll share and formulate best practice, explore common mistakes, insights and learnings in this new territory. Read more.
21st century economics
If you look at politics today, it's hard not to conclude the economy... Read more
21st century economics
If you look at politics today, it’s hard not to conclude the economy is being run for the benefit of big business. But there’s push back – a growing recognition of the failure of our existing systems to adequately account for everything that affects our well-being. To explore this topic, we’ll host a discussion of the changing measures of success, the new understanding of value and the glaring gaps in our current economic and accounting systems which have the potential to disrupt capitalism and even democracy. Read more.
Business skills for today’s world
Navigating your way through the wild, new world of startups and... Read more
Business skills for today’s world
Navigating your way through the wild, new world of startups and purpose-driven business models can be daunting – so we’ve given some thought to the skills you need to call this place home. Join us for workshops on; values, frames, mindfulness, crowdfunding, digital marketing, storytelling, branding and design thinking. We’ll make sure you have at least a taste of the skills needed for the fast-paced, agile, purpose-driven business world of the future. Read more.
Companies of the future
Successful companies in the future will be those that solve problems... Read more
Companies of the future
Successful companies in the future will be those that solve problems rather than create new ones. At the same time, technology and social transformation are changing our understanding of work, workplaces, what makes teams tick and what defines a business. So what will organisationss of the future look like? Come with us as we gaze into our crystal ball and talk about flat structures, values-led leadership, remote and flexible working, the ethics of technology, workforce automation and meaningful work. Read more.
Speakers 2015
Speakers 2015
Mark Daniels
Head of Market and Sector Development
Social Traders
Mark began working with social enterprises in 2001 in a community where dysfunction was the norm and unemployment was pervasive. Over the next 8 years he saw the extraordinary impact that that social enterprise could generate when harnessed, nurtured and supported to solve critical social issues. In 2008 he was one of the founders of Social Traders where he continues to work as the Head of Market and Sector Development. His work now centres on opening new markets for social enterprise goods and services through procurement. Over the last six years Social Traders has played a critical role in influencing government and corporate Australia to send tens of millions of dollars from social enterprise. Mark has procured from social enterprise, he has run social enterprises and he has been a supporter and lobbyist for social enterprise. Read more about Mark.
Jason and Kim Graham-Nye
Founders
gDiapers
Jason and Kim Graham-Nye are the founders of gDiapers, the world’s first and only flushable, compostable nappy. Pregnant with their first son 13 years ago in Bondi, they read that not only does one disposable nappy take 500 years to biodegrade, each one is made from a cup of non-renewable oil and they are the third biggest contributor to landfill. There had to be a better way and they found it thanks to a clever Tasmanian inventor. They licensed the rights to the IP, moved to Portland, Oregon, raised capital, received Cradle to Cradle certification (the first FMCG to do so), launched the brand in the US, became a B Corporation, had another baby, launched it in Europe and have now returned home to expand into Asia and prepare for a second nappy product that specifically serves the day care market in a very circular kind of way.
Eleanor Glenn
Values, framing & comms strategy
Common Cause Australia
Eleanor helps organisations to engage the values that motivate us to care for each other and for the planet. She has worked across the sustainability field in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Her fascination with what makes us tick led to a shift in focus to the psychological and societal dimensions of sustainability. She is a communicator and qualitative researcher, having recently completed her PhD on climate change communications and engagement.
Eleanor’s favourite pastimes are picking mulberries in the park with her husband Fil and six year old son Aiden, and having deep and meaningfuls about how to make the world a better place. Read more about Eleanor here.Â
Jason Clarke
Mind Worker
Minds at Work
Celebrated author, adventurer, gold medal Olympian and popular TV chef; Jason is none of these things. He is, however, one of the most sought-after creative minds in the country.
As founder of Minds at Work, he’s helped people ‘think again’ since the end of the last century, working with clients across Australia in virtually every industry and government sector on issues ranging from creativity and trouble shooting to culture change and leadership. Read more about Jason.
Tom Dawkins
CEO & Founder
StartSomeGood
Tom Dawkins is co-Founder and CEO of StartSomeGood, a crowdfunding platform for social benefit projects. He was previously the founder of Australian youth non-profit Vibewire, the first Social Media Director at Ashoka in Washington DC and the founding Director of the Australian Changemakers Festival. He has organised dance parties and film festivals, youth journalism projects and new media conferences, co-working spaces and Burning Man theme camps. Tom has supported numerous nonprofits, governments and arts organisations to build community using technology and culture. He has been recognised with awards and fellowships from the Sydney Morning Herald, World Summit Youth Awards, The International Youth Foundation and Nexus Australia. Read more about Tom.
Malcolm Rands
CEO
ecostore
When Malcolm and Melanie started ecostore in 1993 they had a dream to create a healthier more sustainable world and set a new model of how to fund a not-for profit, the FairGround Foundation. ecostore produce Australasia’s leading range of healthier, eco friendlier household cleaners, body care and baby products with a focus on looking after the health and wellbeing of people as well as the planet. The ecostore range of over 100 products are available in supermarkets and health stores throughout Australia, New Zealand, the USA and Asia. Malcolm has been active in the sustainable scene for over 33 years. He co-founded New Zealand’s first permaculture eco-village in 1986
Karen James
Author
On Purpose
Fast-talking, funny and pulling no punches, Karen James is a Jersey girl turned social entrepreneur who has risen through the ranks of the global corporate world while honouring her most important role in life as a proud single mother and humanitarian. From building with her team a 10,000-strong community of women within a leading bank, to integrating not-for-profit leadership lessons into corporate boardrooms and growing a company from a turnover of $9 million to a turnover of $100 million, Karen is a fixer and a doer who matches head with heart—and makes it everyone’s business to do the same. See more here.
Kyra Maya Phillips
Writer, Reader, Listener & Speaker
The Misfit Economy
Kyra Maya Phillips is a reader and a storyteller. She is the co-author of The Misfit Economy , a book which chronicles stories of creativity from informal and dark markets around the globe. Research for this book has taken her to pirate prisons in Somalia, tunnels networks deep below the city of Paris, Amish camel farms, ganglands in Cape Town, and into the history books to study 18th century pirate ships. Alongside The Misfit Economy, Kyra is a co-founder of The Point People, a collective of innovators, artists, and entrepreneurs committed to driving systemic change for a more equitable society. She has written for and appeared in publications around the world, including BBC, NPR, The Economist, The Financial Times, TIME, Newsweek, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Wired, Forbes, Dazed and Confused, The Irish Times, Le Monde, and The Guardian. Read more about Kyra.
Dr Jason Fox
Motivation Strategy & Design
Dr Jason Fox is a motivation strategy & design expert who shows forward thinking leaders how to influence culture & build for the future of work. He works with Fortune 500 companies such as Toyota, Microsoft, Gartner, and Sony. Jason is the director of The Future of Leadership Melbourne, the founding director of Clever Happenings and a global ambassador for the ideas execution conference 99U. He is also the bestselling author of The Game Changer, and his research has been featured in the likes of Smart Company, BRW and The Australian Financial Review. When not liberating the world from poorly designed work, Jason enjoys partaking in extreme sports like coffee snobbery. Read more about Dr. Jason.
Low down
Purpose is a curated and intimate two day event. Held in two of Sydney’s most unique locations, this is the chance to learn from some of the top, purpose-driven, business leaders around.
- Meet like-minded people in the B Corp, social enterprise, conscious capitalism and purpose-driven business communities
- Share some of the challenges and triumphs
- Interactive and immersive learning experiences
- Purpose-driven people who also have serious clout, reach and influence
- A broad range of sessions and a flexible format – full program soon to be announced
Eternity Playhouse
Eternity Playhouse is a state of the art theatre in a heritage building. Home to Darlinghurst Theatre Co, the theatre is fast becoming an iconic Sydney destination.
The Commons
The Commons is a local eating house in a 160-year-old sandstone cottage and will play host to workshops, meals and conversation over the two days.
Partners 2015
Partners 2015
MEDIA
SUPPORTING PARTNERS
CO-CURATORS
