Purpose and Profit: How Business Can Lift Up the World
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-08-06 08:16:33
- Update Date：2025-09-23
- Status：finish
- Author：George Serafeim
- ISBN：1400230357
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Are purpose and profit in conflict， or can both be achieved simultaneously with the right mindset and tools？
What are the forces that are reshaping the relationship between the two？ What can we all do to strengthen the relationship between purpose and profit as entrepreneurs， managers， employees， consumers， and investors？ Backed by cutting-edge research， Purpose and Profit provides answers to these fundamental questions that are increasingly defining the business landscape all around the world。 Distinguished Harvard Business School Professor George Serafeim takes readers on a research-driven journey to understand:
How and why environmental and social issues are becoming increasingly relevant for organizations worldwide;
The ways that companies can design and implement strategies that generate greater impact;
The six archetypes of value creation enabled by these new trends;
The role of investors in driving greater recognition of ESG issues; and
How we can all look at the choices we make and careers we pursue in a way that maximizes purpose and profit in our own lives。
What are the forces that are reshaping the relationship between the two？ What can we all do to strengthen the relationship between purpose and profit as entrepreneurs， managers， employees， consumers， and investors？ Backed by cutting-edge research， Purpose and Profit provides answers to these fundamental questions that are increasingly defining the business landscape all around the world。 Distinguished Harvard Business School Professor George Serafeim takes readers on a research-driven journey to understand:
How and why environmental and social issues are becoming increasingly relevant for organizations worldwide;
The ways that companies can design and implement strategies that generate greater impact;
The six archetypes of value creation enabled by these new trends;
The role of investors in driving greater recognition of ESG issues; and
How we can all look at the choices we make and careers we pursue in a way that maximizes purpose and profit in our own lives。
Reviews
Gary Barnes
，
Sorry， I really wanted to like this book。 I really wanted to finish it and think to myself， "That was really enlightening"。 Unfortunately I found it tedious and facile， flimsy， lazy even。 At times I felt as if I was being spoken to as a four-year-old。 This important topic deserves a lot better。One more thing。 Are authors of these books contractually obliged to mention that they teach at Harvard every few pages？#netgalley#honestreview Sorry， I really wanted to like this book。 I really wanted to finish it and think to myself， "That was really enlightening"。 Unfortunately I found it tedious and facile， flimsy， lazy even。 At times I felt as if I was being spoken to as a four-year-old。 This important topic deserves a lot better。One more thing。 Are authors of these books contractually obliged to mention that they teach at Harvard every few pages？#netgalley#honestreview 。。。more
MasterofMyStory
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ACTUAL RATING: 4。5I loved it。 There are a million things I can say， but the one thing that stands out for me… this is the first non-fiction book that made me cry 😊 Not only is it wonderful to see how companies around the world are standing up for their employees， their countries， and the environment but the way Serafeim allows the ‘everyman’ businessperson to learn the secrets to achieve the same – amazing。The book is easy to read， and the information is presented in a way that makes it not only ACTUAL RATING: 4。5I loved it。 There are a million things I can say， but the one thing that stands out for me… this is the first non-fiction book that made me cry 😊 Not only is it wonderful to see how companies around the world are standing up for their employees， their countries， and the environment but the way Serafeim allows the ‘everyman’ businessperson to learn the secrets to achieve the same – amazing。The book is easy to read， and the information is presented in a way that makes it not only actionable， but almost imperative to take those instructions to heart。 And why wouldn’t I if the outcome is purpose AND profit？This is a game-changer for anyone who is serious about building better business and I would HIGHLY recommend this book！ 。。。more
Nilguen
，
„Purpose + Profit， How a business can lift up the world“ by Georg Serafeim is divided into two chapters: one， the alignment: creating opportunity for greater corporate purpose， and， two， execution: how to implement purpose-driven initiatives。 （You can tell I love clear structures ☺️）The book follows a red path leading the reader through the why， what and how of putting purpose at the core of a corporate strategy。 The idea is to convince the reader that purpose and profit could coexist and that c „Purpose + Profit， How a business can lift up the world“ by Georg Serafeim is divided into two chapters: one， the alignment: creating opportunity for greater corporate purpose， and， two， execution: how to implement purpose-driven initiatives。 （You can tell I love clear structures ☺️）The book follows a red path leading the reader through the why， what and how of putting purpose at the core of a corporate strategy。 The idea is to convince the reader that purpose and profit could coexist and that corporates who fail to put purpose at the core of their strategies may fail in the long run。 Purpose has long been in discussion at enterprises making it appear as if creating an impact on society fulfils the idea， such as corporate responsibility activities or donations。 Serafeim， however， takes the topic further to the compelling ESG issues （environmental， social， and governance issues） that enterprises will have to comply with in the future。 What I like is that the read is backed by more than fifty research papers and field studies from reputable professors， which makes the urgency for ESG standards tangible。 A great example of leaders who infuse purpose into everything the enterprise does is， for instance， Nadella at Microsoft， who follows one goal strictly， which is to enable people to improve lives through technology。 He is a forerunner by advocating for cloud computing on the innovation side and mixing race and gender on the talent side to foster diversity。 In my humble opinion， many companies have a great set of values defined on their webpages， however， they fail to walk the talk。 We are witnessing a value shift from physical capital to human relationships， which means that companies can no longer afford to ignore the human factor。 Serafeim emphasises this element with various examples that showcase some company scandals （harassment， bribery， discrimination etc。） in this matter and their diminishing success in the market therefore。 Purpose + Profit is one the best books I have read in the last years around implementing purpose in corporate environments。 I feel it is an impetus to turn good behaviour into a competitive advantage in the market。 Great read！ #Netgalley 🙏 #HonestReview 。。。more
Abra Kurt
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Prior to starting my own business， I spent 6。5 years in corporate communications for a Fortune 500 financial services company， mainly charged with their headquarters region Corporate Social Responsibility PR。 I read this book both through the lens of someone who had worked on the inside of a major corporation investing in purpose-driven activities and organizations as well as someone who wants to leverage my own entrepreneurship for philanthropic outcomes as well as personal livelihood。 Firstly， Prior to starting my own business， I spent 6。5 years in corporate communications for a Fortune 500 financial services company， mainly charged with their headquarters region Corporate Social Responsibility PR。 I read this book both through the lens of someone who had worked on the inside of a major corporation investing in purpose-driven activities and organizations as well as someone who wants to leverage my own entrepreneurship for philanthropic outcomes as well as personal livelihood。 Firstly， I applaud Serafeim's tackling of the subject matter to make the case for the business world to do good in the world。 Furthermore， a traditional C Suite will appreciate the research- and data-driven approach that underlies the theories presented here。 It's a sound addition to the increasing number of books in this niche。 For me， however， the book was too pedantic。 It lacks the spark and visionary feel for a book about how to "lift up the world。" This is where academia often does a disservice to reading that should be equally inspirational。 The additional resources provided are a bit thin on diversity as well。 I'd recommend this book for someone needing deep research to build a case or understand investor trends， but those also seeking something more inspiring， books by founders like "Start Something That Matters，" "Let My People Go Surfing，" and "Do the KIND Thing" provide a more aspirational， entrepreneurial read。I received a digital pre-publication copy of this book in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Stephanie
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My MBA was focused on "doing good while doing well" and this book accurately and fairly succinctly summarizes the key points of such an education and presents it in such a manner that many businesspeople and entrepreneurs will find approachable and thought-provoking。 Of course， this is just one book covering a wide variety of topics， but I do believe that those who are truly interested in finding ways to do good while doing well in their business ventures will find this to be a useful foray into My MBA was focused on "doing good while doing well" and this book accurately and fairly succinctly summarizes the key points of such an education and presents it in such a manner that many businesspeople and entrepreneurs will find approachable and thought-provoking。 Of course， this is just one book covering a wide variety of topics， but I do believe that those who are truly interested in finding ways to do good while doing well in their business ventures will find this to be a useful foray into the subject matter and will encourage further research on the topic。 In addition to the sources in the endnotes， the book offers a bibliography in the back for further reading for those who are truly invested in learning more。 My only gripe is that George Serafeim has written or co-authored every single one of them with the exception of only one title。 Surely there are other worthy sources he could recommend （and there are）。 。。。more
Juana Sánchez-Ortega
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What I appreciate more about this book is that the author doesn't limit it to the diagnosis of the situation。 He provides evidence and examples of companies that have to assume the challenge of improving their impact on society。 Not only in terms of shareholders' profits but also regarding ESG （Environmental， social， and governance issues）， improving the treatment of their employees and integrity。Beyond that， Serafeim provides a strategy， a guide to start the process to add purpose to the profit What I appreciate more about this book is that the author doesn't limit it to the diagnosis of the situation。 He provides evidence and examples of companies that have to assume the challenge of improving their impact on society。 Not only in terms of shareholders' profits but also regarding ESG （Environmental， social， and governance issues）， improving the treatment of their employees and integrity。Beyond that， Serafeim provides a strategy， a guide to start the process to add purpose to the profit goal， and the arguments to convince other stakeholders to join the effort。 It's a book written to be slowly read。 It requires analysis and deepening of business strategy and growth。 The six archetypes exposed demonstrate how you can make money and be good with the planet and humanity at the same time。 And even be more profitable because of it。 Finally， it's not a CEO issue， as the author says leadership matters at every level。 It requires an environment open for change with a strong corporate purpose to endure the process。 Thanks to Netgalley， HarperCollins Leadership and the author for my ARC。 。。。more
Karren Hodgkins
，
The title is a great indication of the focus of the book。 You can have a Purpose AND profit and the author includes much evidence to support this conclusion。 In addition， leadership has to care enough to make the change; within themselves， their leadership， their choice of investors and so on。Essentially， the excuse that having a purpose for the business will result in lower profits， and so is not the way to go into the future， is debunked。 You can make the world a better place， and you can make The title is a great indication of the focus of the book。 You can have a Purpose AND profit and the author includes much evidence to support this conclusion。 In addition， leadership has to care enough to make the change; within themselves， their leadership， their choice of investors and so on。Essentially， the excuse that having a purpose for the business will result in lower profits， and so is not the way to go into the future， is debunked。 You can make the world a better place， and you can make a profit doing so。！ Such a positive and encouraging message for all of us。 Some of the detail was just too much for me， and irrelevant to the businesses I am involved with and advise， but for others， I am sure that this content and the many and detailed examples， actions and references will be both reassuring and point them in the right direction， as well as help them move forward。My thanks to Netgalley， HarperCollins Leadership and the author for my advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review 。。。more
Darya
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