Purpose as a strategic lever for the leadership of the future

Giovanna Carucci, CEO and founder of #Authenticleader, Director of IGNITE ─ the Leadership Renaissance programme and of POLIMI Graduate School of Management's Purpose & Sustainability Lab

In today’s world, marked by unprecedented economic, technological and social transformations, businesses face a crucial challenge: rediscovering their Purpose, the fundamental reason for their existence. We are not talking about an abstract or merely value-based concept, but a true strategic lever that can guide leadership, inspire innovation, and generate positive, long-term impact. In this scenario, CEOs, other C-levels and entrepreneurs are called upon to question not only what they do, but why they do it: what meaning drives their decisions, what kind of value they want to create for people, society, and the planet.

This is emphasised in our interview with Giovanna Carucci, CEO and founder of #Authenticleader, who is Director of the  “Renaissance” programme at POLIMI Graduate School of Management  and, in particular, of the Purpose & Sustainability Lab, an experiential and transformative path designed specifically for business leaders. The laboratory was created with one goal: to train a new generation of managers and entrepreneurs, capable of integrating Purpose, leadership and sustainability to generate a real impact in organisations and society.

Purpose: what is its real value for organisations and why is it essential for CEOs, other C-levels and entrepreneurs to be able to implement a transformative business strategy driven by Purpose? How does leadership act as the engine that enables Purpose to be implemented and generate real impact?

Leadership is the bridge to making good intentions a reality. It is the human force that enables the transition from intentionality to tangible change. In a complex and uncertain world, mindful leadership is what keeps us on track even when change is difficult, slow or arduous.

In our work, we often talk about “moving change” and “acting change”: two expressions that aptly describe the role of the leader. Purpose calls for change, but it is leadership that drives it and acts on it, creating value and impact.

Today, many leaders risk falling into the trap of adopting too short-term a vision, almost as a matter of survival, due to the constant pressures and complexity of the challenges. Purpose, by contrast, is a compass that extends the strategic horizon and enables managers to maintain a medium- to long-term perspective. It's an anchor that keeps you from getting lost in the daily grind and keeps your vision alive. In this sense, Purpose is not just a value statement, but a meaningful architecture that supports leadership and provides guidance in creating real impact.

In a present marked by increasingly pressing environmental and social challenges, what role does Purpose play in guiding companies towards more sustainable business management, geared towards positive impact?

For decades, companies have operated according to a quasi-mechanistic model, in which the organisation was seen as a machine, programmed to extract value from the planet and generate profit through purely economic relationships. Purpose has the power to break this logic, restoring the company to its most authentic nature: that of being a living human community that generates value for a broader ecosystem.

A company with a clear and well-defined Purpose is no longer a machine because machines have no purpose. Purpose brings the human and relational dimension of the business back to the centre, redrawing the boundaries of its actions. Generating value, in this sense, no longer means simply creating wealth, but contributing to people’s wellbeing, to environmental protection and to shared prosperity.

 This shift in perspective also profoundly transforms relationships: with the environment, which is no longer seen as a resource to be exploited, but as an ally with which to coexist; with customers and suppliers, who become partners in a dialogue of trust; with people, who don’t simply offer their time and skills in exchange for a salary, but find in work a place of meaning and belonging.

I strongly identify with the vision of the Conscious Business movement, which has as a statement “elevating humanity through business.” This is a concept that I find to be deeply true: companies can be extraordinary instruments for collective evolution, because they are born to create value, innovation and progress. Purpose makes it possible to recover this original vocation, restoring a higher and more integrated meaning to the company. It also represents a powerful lever for innovation: while traditional leadership tends to execute and repeat what has always worked in the past, purpose-led leadership is capable of breaking the mould, experimenting with new relationships and value models.

How can we train leaders and managers who can turn businesses into engines of positive change for society and the planet? How does IGNITE, and in particular the Purpose & Sustainability Lab, promote this vision?

 Today's leaders are being called upon to rewrite their idea of leadership. Even those who are sensitive to Purpose have often not been educated for this type of leadership. That is why, at POLIMI Graduate School of Management, we have created IGNITE – the Leadership Renaissance, a path that helps develop conscious leadership, guided by humanity and Purpose.

The IGNITE programme is at the heart of this vision: an experience that unites Purpose, leadership, and sustainability in a coherent and profoundly transformative approach. The Purpose & Sustainability Lab, in particular, stands out for its ability to offer an immersive learning experience, built on dialogue, reflection and action.

In the Lab, sustainability is not understood as being a set of environmental techniques or practices, but as a way of thinking and acting. It is a sustainability that becomes human, capable of building long-term relationships and generating shared value. Participants – experienced managers and leaders – find a space for authentic exchange here, where their experience becomes a resource for others.

In what way?

The journey is divided into two phases: Inspire and Make. The Inspire phase aims to broaden the vision, bringing new influences, fresh perspectives and stimuli that help open the mind to innovative insights. The Make phase is where these insights are transformed into concrete actions, through coaching and personalised support.

It is a highly experiential and relational programme, made up of small groups, peer-to-peer discussions, authentic conversations, and a learning experience that comes from human dialogue, not from lectures. This year, the Purpose and Sustainability Lab is taking place in a location immersed in nature, as a retreat: two days of shared living, where you rediscover your own way of being a leader, reconnecting with yourself and, indeed, with your Purpose.

This methodology allows you to join the dots between Purpose, leadership and sustainability. It is what makes IGNITE a programme unique on the international scene: not just a course, but a transformative experience.

In a context where leadership still tends to be overly oriented towards "doing”, with IGNITE, we aim to train leaders who are  aware, inspired and guided by Purpose, to build businesses that are true agents of positive change for society and for the planet.