People Inspired By Purpose - Purposely Podcast

Julia Capon joins Purposely to share her founder story starting Do Good Jobs. Julia established Do Good Jobs in 2012, initially as a side hustle, and then later with more intent to commercialise the site. Do Good Jobs is a popular online job board connecting people with job opportunities that create social and environmental change. You will hear how Julia is a serial social entrepreneur that is focused on building businesses that balance purpose and impact alongside profit. Businesses she has co-founded include a social enterprise, Eco Geek Co a low-carbon solutions provider, focused on sustainability and action. Recently a company called Thundergrid, an EV charging infrastructure company which has seen significant growth over the past three years - from startup to a rapidly scaling electromobility partner for government and corporates. Sustainability is a passion of Julia’s and she is driven to do what she can to help solve the climate crisis Julia also helps other purpose-led people to thrive with the beliefs that this will help improve society and the environment. Delivering training, courses and coaching to support the professional development of purpose-led people. Her courses focus on: mindset, vision/strategy and systems. You will hear how Julia came close to burnout when she was balancing starting Do Good Jobs and the pressures of a day job. This led Julia to a period of reflection and the development of strategies and tools that helped her to be more productive at the same time protecting and enhancing her mental health. ‘Sharing my knowledge as a systems and efficiency geek to help reduce burnout, ease workloads and create more time for the for-purpose sector to focus on the key activities that make real change.’ www.dogoodjobs.co.nz www.workshops.dogoodjobs.co.nz

Michael Stevens joins Purposely to share his founder story developing and launching the Rainbow Tick. Michael’s mission was to support the rainbow community in a tangible way, helping the community to gain acceptance and inclusion in the workplace and he had seen similar initiatives abroad. ‘It was about positively impacting people’s mental health and about accepting and valuing people in the workplace, embracing the diversity of sexual and gender identities.’ The first programme of its kind in New Zealand, organisations undertake an accreditation process carried out by an independent assessor receiving the Rainbow Tick a visible sign that business embraces all genders and sexual identities. As a gay man, Michael knew from personal experience how important this initiative would be for future generations. Michael initially struggled to accept his own sexual identity and had to deal with a school culture that wasn’t fully inclusive or accepting. In 1988 Michael was diagnosed as HIV+, he was 27 years old and living in Istanbul, Turkey. The following years were filled with anger, sadness, sickness and acceptance, as he believed he had only a few years to live. That was nearly 30 years ago. Now, he’s in his 60’s. ‘I spent so long thinking about and planning my own death during those years, although it didn’t happen’ In 1988, the HIV/Aids epidemic was sweeping the world. many of his gay friends began to talk about it, and when his flatmate in Istanbul tested positive he decided he should get tested too. Michael travelled to London to receive his test. The doctor at the clinic told him he had HIV, and advised him to go home to New Zealand and prepare to die within the next two years. ‘I felt absolutely devastated and I went into a deep depression, but I decided I wasn’t ready to go home, so I returned to Istanbul.’ ‘When I told my family, they were upset for me of course, but fully supportive. I know a lot of people were cut off, but luckily for me this wasn’t the case.’ In the next few years, Michael said he didn’t feel too bad, but in 1993, he received the news one of his closest friends who was diagnosed around the same time as him, had died. ‘I figured if he'd now died from it, I probably didn’t have much time left. So I decided to go home for his funeral and prepare for my own.” The next year, Stevens became sick. He contracted tuberculosis and Pneumocystis pneumonia, a type of pneumonia often associated with a weakened immune system caused by HIV. He lost a large amount of weight in a short span of time and was constantly tired. He could no longer walk up the stairs at work without getting out of breath. It was at this stage he was told his HIV had progressed to its final stage, known as AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). Michael was in his thirties at this point. Michael was admitted to the ‘AIDS ward’ of Auckland Hospital but later released to Herne Bay House, a residential centre and hospice dedicated to caring for people diagnosed with HIV. Michael believed this is where he was going die. “I had been very angry and bitter about the situation up until this point. My attitude almost got me thrown out of the hospice, but eventually, I came more to terms with it and began to plan my death” Today he describes how the stigma has really decreased around having HIV, it has become much less pronounced as many people have a better understanding of it. “A lot of it was just fear really, people were afraid, and they didn’t understand why it was happening” “If you think of the friends you make in your late teens and early 20s, they’re often the friends that are with you for life. “Nearly all of my gay friends had HIV, and so many died. So many gay men from my youth are not here to turn 60 with me” Michael currently works as a relationship manager for Be.Lab a New Zealand based organisation which helps businesses and organisations to be more accessible. Prior to this he has was part of the AKL Uni Sociology Department.

Elina Ashimbayeva joins Purposely to share her founder experience starting Storyo. Storyo is loosely based on the ‘Humans of New York’ a famous photo blog shining a light on the people of New York, people of all genders, race and class. Storyo’s mission is to contribute to a culture shift that improves societal attitudes, behaviours and narratives. The inspiration came after she was scrolling online and was tired of the same “success” stories. Elina and her partner Steven wanted to share the journeys of their amazing friends. They wanted to celebrate people who are social workers, local artists, local politicians, sex workers and teachers. They also wanted to celebrate gender diversity because these narratives are so rarely shared in the media. They did their first interview for Storyo in June 2019 and have been hooked developing it ever since. Elina’s driven by the privilege she feels from moving to New Zealand from Kazakhstan and getting a great education. Her mission “to live a life that is useful to others,” guided her through all her different roles and study. Drawn to help people in the health sector Elina studied biomedical sciences and became a research assistant working in the immunology field. It was through this job, she realised she wanted to work more closely with people, and directly see the outcomes of her work. She utilised the short breaks between lab experiments and started listening to podcasts. She was fascinated by business gurus who showed her there are all sorts of ways of helping people outside of science.

Dr. Carol Homden CBE joins Purposely to share her leadership story. Carol is a renowned professional and volunteer charity leader, guiding some of the UK’s largest, and most respected nonprofits. Professionally she is the CEO of Coram and voluntarily she is the Chair of The National Autistic Society and Diabetes UK. Carol is a self confessed workaholic, driven by purpose to help children to live healthy, and happy lives. Her purpose is motivated by her upbringing as well as her experience as a parent. Carol's eldest child has severe autism and both Carol and her husband have first hand experience of the challenges this brings.  Carol started her career setting up print media enterprises in East Anglia before moving to London as a freelance arts journalist and editor. She then became director of marketing and development at the University of Westminster, later moving to the British Museum in 1999 as its first director of marketing and public affairs. Carol became the commercial director of The Prince's Trust for four years, working on incredible projects such as Party in the Park and Fashion Rocks. She then became CEO of Coram in 2007,  revitalising the charity and aligning it to meet the needs of disadvantaged children, young people and their families. Established by Thomas Coram as The Foundling Hospital in 1739, Coram is the UK's oldest children's charity and has been supporting vulnerable children for 280 years. Leaving The Prince’s Trust for Coram, Carol wanted to be the boss, to be CEO, and knew the importance of helping children early in their lives, "It is crucial for a child's wellbeing and development that attachments are formed as soon as possible." Carol sheds light on the charitable work of Coram in supporting the rights, welfare and education of children throughout its 280 year history.   Carol’s super power is her ability to combine commercial acumen and skills with social empathy and knowledge for the greater good. You will hear how she transformed the fortunes of Coram, The Prince’s Trust and The British Museum ensuring they could deliver on their charitable missions on a much larger scale. Carol was awarded a CBE in 2013 for her contribution to services for children and families.

Simon Lucas joins Purposely to share his founder story launching executive search firm Society. We hear how Simon stumbled into a career in recruitment in the UK, eventually taking a leadership role in the industry. He innovated when he went out on his own with a distinctly responsible, ethical and sustainable approach to executive search. Founded by Simon in 2005 Society is a B Corp Certified executive search firm that has a dual focus of both purpose and profit. Now a global company It was set up to add value to society and make a positive difference to people’s lives. Simon explains his thinking and how the power of meeting people’s needs rather than just sales can lead to commercial success. We hear how his team thrived despite the challenges presented by the pandemic and the long lock down. Society’s headquarters are in London with offices in the United States and New Zealand. Each year they donate 10% of their profits to good causes through their own Foundation. The foundation is an independent charity dedicated to tackling issues of workforce inclusion. Simon grew up in South Wales, and read Philosophy and Politics at the University of Warwick. Along the way, he was Head Boy of Olchfa Comprehensive School in Swansea, and President of the Students’ Union at Warwick. Before setting up Society, Simon was an employee of executive search firm Perrett Laver for several years. He is now a founding Trustee of The Society Foundation and a Trustee of Hitchin Girls' School in Hertfordshire. Simon lives in North Hertfordshire with his wife and his two children.  His company website describes him as having, ‘a ridiculously large collection of DVDs and a bit of a history and politics buff, with a soft spot for what he calls 'classic' rock.

Qiulae Wong Joins Purposely to share her story. A passionate ‘business for good’ advocate Qiulae points to her upbringing, ‘My family really drummed into us the importance of the collective’. ‘It wasn’t about individual gain although that’s not to say they weren’t incredibly hard working and could see the importance of making money’. In many ways this combination of influences helped to get to where she is today. A belief that business success can be measured by profit as well as the positive social and environmental impact. We discuss Qiulae’s return home after a transformative decade in London where she crystallised her career aspirations and became a mum, ‘the UK was great but made less sense when we had our daughter and returning and re connecting with family became a priority’. Quilae is excited to be back home, landing dream job as Head of B Lab New Zealand. ‘I was so excited about the opportunity, I really wanted it and I did a lot of prep for the interviews, almost too much prep which left me a bit sleep deprived’. Qiulae is B Labs first full-time employee in Aotearoa and the decision to hire reflects the increased popularity of ‘business for good’ with more and more businesses choosing B Corp certification. B Lab is a nonprofit network transforming the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet. They certify companies — B Corps — who lead the way. They are aiming to build a movement to change our economic system. B Lab began in the United States in 2006, and the network has grown across the world ever since. Qiulae will be busy collaborating with businesses, government, and academic institutions to grow the movement.

Andrea Brewster joins Purposely Podcast to share her career journey including her passion for sustainable and responsible business. Head of Sustainability and Social Impact at payments software company Xplor, Andrea is a great example of someone who has aligned her professional and volunteer goals. Her mission is to create positive change in the world where she believes business can be a powerful force for good, describing herself as ‘a change maker’. Andrea has spent 10 years working with charities, NGOs, government departments, social enterprises and corporations. Roles have included strategy as well as doing… ‘getting her hands dirty’. She played a role in the rebuild of Christchurch following the devastating earth quake and has also helped start-up entrepreneurs to launch and scale their businesses. Andrea has travelled extensively, and been involved in international development which helped to shape her purpose as well as given her perspective on life. Andreas passion for making a difference started early in life, she has been recognised as an influential young leader in the New Zealand Women of Influence Awards, Women on Boards Awards Impact Awards and Champion Canterbury Business Awards. Andrea is also a Fellow of Leadership New Zealand, and a regular conference speaker and thought leader. You'll hear Andrea talk about things like millennials and the future of work, feminism, finding purpose, and diversity for the 21st century. Andrea is also on the Board the YWCA’s Young Women’s Fund.

Rui Peng joins Purposely to share his founder story with circular economy start- up Critical.  This New Zealand start up is focused on achieving environmental sustainability through waste reduction - repurposing plastic even if it has been contaminated. Rui shares his vision for the future of Critical and how he and his co-founder Adam Ransfield overcame some incredible challenges to stay the course. Incredibly they lost their brand new factory to a tornado in 2021. That followed a reshaping of their business model from pure social enterprise to a ‘for purpose’ business focused on sustainability.  We talk about Rui’s heritage, the son of Chinese immigrants - a first generation New Zealander. He talks about his parents in glowing terms describing them as hard working, determined people doing their best to make a new life for their family. Rui is passionate about his roots and mindful of his responsibility to protect Aotearoa's environment, reduce plastic waste, and help other nations around the world follow suit. Peng maintains ‘Our life's work is to care for the environment by developing technologies and circular solutions.’ Rui is a family man... 'Besides serving the 4 rangatira of our household including my wife and our three tamariki, I'm obsessed by the challenge to end plastic pollution - starting with the 252K tonnes NZ sends to landfill each year, and building pathways towards meaningful work for the 183K New Zealanders who are unemployed or underemployed.'

Tim Jones joins Purposely Podcast. Episode 2 of 2 with Tim Jones, founder of The Grow Good Guy.  In this episode we talk purpose and identity. Tim is full of energy and is a great communicator as you will hear. As well as guiding clients to gain their B Corp certification, he delivers consults trains and coaches individuals and organisations. His aim is to help them achieve meaningful goals in life and work, by tapping into the potential of their purpose fuelled performance. We haven't met in person but have read a description of you that caught my attention, it said that you have the thinking ability of Russell Brand, the energy of Tony Robbins and the humour of Greg Davies - who is the real Tim Jones? ‘That's a great question. I think the version of me now is not who I've always been. I went to a strict private school in England where there wasn't really much realm for artistic creation. It went along the lines of yes sir, no sir. You were basically told what to do. I spent 10 years in a sales role and time in the British Army. I'm not a complete introvert and I would probably an ambivert, which is when you're comfortable with silence and your own energy, but equally, you don't mind being in an extravert position where you might have to talk or you might be surrounded by people.’ I would like to talk about purpose and identity, this is something you have really focused on? ‘I think it's massive and think this is one of the big contributors to the general modern mental health malaise, I think, it is at the core of it. Purpose is something that is not mentioned, when we talk about mental health crisis. This lack of meaning that a lot of us get through the work that we do. However, a big part of that purpose journey is identity, who are you? And there's a couple of good expressions on that one. This is a bit of a tongue twister and I can't remember who coined it but it's basically, ‘I am not who I think I am. I am not who I think you think I am. I am what you think, I think I am’. ‘You need to know who you are today and why you’re that person. To do that you need to go back and work out what has led you to be who you are today. Self-exploration is the journey that we all need to go on find our purpose. Who am I? Why am I who I am, and what has led me to be who I am today. Working out who you are and what has constructed you is massive. Most people don't want to do that because it's hard and you must go and fight some demons and you must go and challenge everything that you hold to be true, you need to go and challenge and not many people want to do that.’ So, there's, I think that's a big part of it, the other part of it of identity. So again, in front of me here, I have a big Welsh dragon flag, because, you know, I'm a Jones, let's face it, and, you know, as far as Welsh is you can get.’

Tim Jones joins Purposely Podcast. Episode 1 of 2 with Tim Jones, founder of The Grow Good Guy. In this episode we explore ‘business for good’ and the exciting and growing B Corp Movement. We also explore Tim’s career and his dissatisfaction with profit only or at all costs paradigms. Tim was New Zealand’s first qualified B Corp consultant and he has helped more than 50 companies from around the world successfully navigate the B Corp Impact Assessment, and is working with new businesses every month to take them through the process. So what is a B Corp? Put simply it is a company that prioritises purpose, positive social and environmental impact along with making a profit. Companies gain certification B Corp (short for Certified B Corporation) is the term used for any for-profit entity that is certified by the nonprofit B Lab as voluntarily meeting higher standards of transparency, accountability, and performance. Tim is full of energy and is a great communicator as you will hear. As well as guiding clients to gain their B Corp certification, he delivers inspirational, motivational, memorable and impactful consulting, training and coaching to individuals and organisations. He helps them achieve meaningful goals in life and work, by tapping into the potential of their purpose fuelled performance. Beware… the episode ends on an unanswered question and you will need to listen to episode 2/2 out on the 4 May 2022.