For Love & Money

EPISODE 10: James Bartle on denim for freedom

My guest on this episode of the FOR LOVE AND MONEY PODCAST is JAMES BARTLE, the founding CEO of Outland Denim, a fashion company on the vanguard of the socially conscious manufacturing movement. James is passionate about denim and the craft of jean manufacturing, but also the unique ability of the garment industry to drive change.  

Outland Denim employs young women seamstresses who’ve been impacted by human rights abuses and gives them a hope and a future through sustainable employment and career progression in their Cambodia-based production facilities.

 

This interview is packed with insights and inspiration. But honestly, the central theme to this interview is the power of love to create change. I dare you to listen to it and not be inspired to act.

 

I really hope you enjoy listening to this episode. Here are just some of the topics we covered. 

• James’ journey from freestyle motocross rider to CEO of Outland Denim
• The power of love in business and how purpose gives you a superpower
• How, by approaching the human sex trafficking industry as an economic problem, Outland Denim is empowering a cycle of freedom
• The four pillar approach Outland Denim are taking to create social change in the lives of their employees
• The power of consumerism and the opportunity for business
• The investment challenges that social impact-led businesses are facing in Australia and the role of risk in holding back progress
• The connection between tackling slavery and climate change
• The Meghan Markle effect on Outland Denim and how celebrities are using their influence to drive change

 

Contact James

https://www.instagram.com/bartle.james/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bartle-17b6b6103/

https://www.outlanddenim.com.au

EP 9: Carolyn Tate on the Practice of Purpose

Our guest for Episode 9 is Carolyn Tate, a Purpose and Storytelling Expert. She’s author of multiple books, an inspirational speaker and a highly respected leader of the purpose movement in Australia. 

 

In 2010, Carolyn came to the crashing realisation that her career was at a dead-end. After 20 years in banking and 10 years in her own marketing consultancy, her work was no longer meaningful. So, she closed the business and took a writing sabbatical in Aix-en-Provence, France with her son Billy.

It was the beginning of her search for a new livelihood and it led her to discovering her twin passions for writing and teaching. Ten years on, she’s published five books, including 'The Purpose Project', and taught more than 10,000 people on the power of purpose and story.

Her own purpose is to help you bring your purpose to life, so together we can build a better world. When she’s not working, she's a dedicated community-builder and committed Birrarung (Yarra) river-swimmer.

'The Purpose Project' is a trusted guide to thousands of leaders and her focus is on working with school and corporate leadership teams.

 

I really enjoyed exploring “the practice of purpose” in this interview. We didn’t even have time to get into the topic of women in leadership, so we will be doing a second interview on that topic down the track. In the meantime, here are some of the themes we did explore:

 

• Carolyn’s own path to purpose. Her journey from her epiphany in her corporate marketing career, to where she plays today
• Carolyn’s work in the educational sector, working with principals on their purpose as a leader
• The three levels of purpose and the opportunities for organisations and individuals when they can align the three
• Carolyn talks about the opportunity to BYO your personal purpose to work. She shares a wonderful example and references a blog she wrote on it which you can read here https://carolyntate.co/when-two-worlds-collide/
• Storytelling and its connection to purpose. Stories incite action and create movements for change. We talk about the TED Talk “How to start a movement” – a brilliant 3 minute talk you don’t want to miss https://www.ted.com/talks/derek_sivers_how_to_start_a_movement/up-next
• How purpose connects to community. Carolyn shares her wonderful story about discovering river swimming in the age of Covid and finding her community.

Find out more about Carolyn Tate at carolyntate.co and sign up to her weekly Purpose in Action stories. You can also find her books here https://carolyntate.co/books/

EPISODE 8: Dave Dahl, creator of Dave’s Killer Bread on second chances and transformation

My guest on this episode of FOR LOVE & MONEY is a man who describes himself as ”a four-time loser before I realised I was in the wrong game”.

 

He is Dave Dahl. Creator of Dave’s Killer Bread, the USA’s number 1 organic bread. If you haven’t heard of Dave’s Killer Bread, I can’t wait to share the story behind it. If you have, then you know you’ll want to listen to this episode.

 

Dave’s story IS the story of Dave’s Killer Bread. It is a story of a family bakery that became the business behind the USA’s number 1 organic bread. It is a story of transformation and inspiration. Dave’s Killer Bread has a purpose behind every loaf;  a purpose about second chances. It may not be as well-known a brand in Australia as other purpose-led brands like Patagonia or Zambrero. Yet every time I share a bit of this story, people connect with it and want to learn more. Its power I believe is that it is a very HUMAN story. Quite the antithesis of what we have come to expect of business.

 

Our interview covers Dave’s backstory and how it connects with the business that was sold in 2015 to Flower Foods for US$@275 million. Here are some of the things that Dave shares in this interview:

• Dave’s early life leading to four stints in prison
• How a prison workshop initiative helped Dave to connect to his purpose and feel like he belonged for the first time
• How Dave used a second chance to build the USA’s number 1 organic bread
• The power of story in bringing a purpose to life
• How Dave’s Killer Bread became a supporter of the Second Chance Initiative
• Dave’s work with his charity Constructing Hope 

 

You can learn more about Dave Dahl here at his official website https://davedahl360.com

 

If you would like to learn more about or donate to Constructing Hope, you can do so here https://www.constructinghope.org

EPISODE 7: Dane O’Shanassy on Patagonia and doing the right thing

Like many people who value purposeful organisations, I love Patagonia. They are an unconventional business that is difficult to categorise in traditional business terms. Their purpose is a hugely ambitious one - they’re in business to save our home planet.

 

In this episode I speak to Dane O’Shanassy, Country Director for Patagonia. 

 

Dane shares stories about this extraordinary company from its origins to where it is today. Along the way he shares the philosophies that has guided the business over the last few decades. What I loved about our chat was Dane’s view that Patagonia’s approach isn’t complex. It’s really simple. In fact it boils down to doing the right thing. 

 

As Dane says in the interview, he is fortunate to work for people who simply want the people who work for Patagonia to figure out how they can use business as a tool for environmental protection. 

 

I hope you enjoy this episode and the insights that come from it. There are some great learnings here. We did have some connection issues during this recording, which we’ve done our best to edit out. I hope it doesn’t affect your listening experience too much.

 

Here are some of the stories and themes we cover in our interview:

• Patagonia’s origins and the climbing experience that inspired Patagonia’s founder, Yvon Chouinard to start the business back in the 1950s
• Patagonia’s journey towards 100% organic cotton including the employee experience in this changeover
• How Yvon practices his own version of an MBA - Management By Absence - giving people opportunity
• Putting people first is the most important thing we can do as business leaders and colleagues
• Dane shares Patagonia’s purpose and values and explains how they go deep into the culture and beliefs of the organisation
• How transparency and being accountable for mistakes as well as successes has built trust in its brand
• The story behind Patagonia’s traceable down certification (it’s a great lesson on how the way leaders respond to a crisis can be a way to build brand equity)
• What attracts potential employees to Patagonia. And the diversity of employees it attracts
• How Patagonia’s focus on quality supports their purpose by making things that last
• Patagonia’s commitment to pledging a 1% “Earth Tax” and how it has built partnerships and collaborations in service of its mission to save our home planet
• Some examples of Patagonia’s activism, including how a film made by Patagonia led to the biggest environmental petition to the Tasmanian State Parliament; and how a campaign for protection of The Great Australian Bight against oil drilling led to a Norwegian oil company to rescind their drilling permit
• How marketing for Patagonia is an opportunity to tell stories about things they care about

About Dane O’Shanassy

Since August 2013, Dane has been leading Patagonia in Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia, supporting growth in sales and brand awareness, alongside steering our regional environmental impact. He finds joy and satisfaction through building strong teams and creating business strategy that can be disruptive and transformational. A Master’s in Business Administration at Melbourne’s Deakin University underscores more than 20 years working with some iconic Australian brands including Rip Curl, Bellroy and Colorado.

 

Now in his role at Patagonia, Dane has the opportunity to demonstrate that business success and positive environmental impact don’t have to be at odds, in fact, they can be harmonious and profitable. Dane finds his passion in the surf, the mountains, and through spending time with his family at home on Victoria’s Surf Coast.

About Patagonia

We’re in business to save our home planet.

Founded by Yvon Chouinard in 1973, Patagonia is an outdoor apparel company based in Ventura, California. A certified B Corporation, the company is recognised internationally for its commitment to product quality and environmental activism – and its contributions of more than US$145 million in grants and in-kind donations to date.

 

EPISODE 6: Sarah Downie, CEO of the Shared Value Project Australia and New Zealand

Our guest on Episode 6 of the For Love & Money podcast is Shared Value Project CEO, Sarah Downie.

 

Sarah is an accomplished executive and strategist, with a particular talent for transforming, leading and activating purpose-led organisations.

 

As CEO for the Shared Value Project Australia and New Zealand (SVP), she builds on 20 years’ experience in the for-profit and not-for-profit sectors to champion a better future for business and society collectively, through shared value. Driven by the belief that corporate assets, resources and innovation can unlock unrivalled social progress – whilst increasing business prosperity and sustainability – Sarah is committed to advancing a new kind of capitalism; fit for the times.

 

A member of the Shared Value Global Steering Committee, she directs the SVP team to deliver the evidence, tools, education and inspiration required make this urgent shift. Established in 2014, SVP has grown into a thriving and influential network of members including AIA Australia, IAG, NAB, PwC Australia, Nestlé Oceania and Optus.

 

This episode is a must listen especially for people working in the corporate sector. Here are just some of the topics we get into:

• Sarah’s journey from brand marketing to the non-profit sector to Shared Value and her awakening about the power of business to create scaleable change
• Shared Value’s story – how it started and the meaning behind the name
• Co-founders Michael E. Porter and Mark R Kramer’s vision of Shared Value. We touch on their 2011 HBR article and it’s absolute relevance today 10 years on 
• Sarah shares some examples of Shared Value companies to demonstrate how Shared Value creates value for society and drives business success and profitability
• She also shares an example of an initiative coming from a Shared Value approach -  HSBC Hong Kong’s “No Fixed Address” product
• We talk about how the pandemic has changed things fundamentally; how Shared Value organisations are approaching business differently with a whole new mindset on “value”
• The opportunity and the need for businesses to become collaborators in change
• “The Purpose Playbook” – Sarah shares Share Valued Project’s new initiative which gets into the ‘how’ of an organisation’s purpose across their strategy and full value chain
• The power of one individual acting and how it can make extraordinary change 

 

Connect with Sarah:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/downiesarah/

 

Connect with Shared Value Project: https://sharedvalue.org.au

EPISODE 5: Paul Tierney on starting a new business unit and brand in the age of climate change

My guest on this episode of For Love & Money is Paul Tierney, General Manager of Business Development at TPG Telecom (previously Vodafone Australia). Paul has spent 15 years in the telecommunications industry in a range of roles from Finance to Strategy to Sales and Marketing. In his current role he is responsible for the Lebara and Felix consumer brands. Paul also recently led a piece of work which led to TPG Telecom committing to power their operations with 100% renewable electricity by 2025. The felix brand is the newest brand in the TPG Telecom family having launched in November 2020 and has a strong focus on sustainability and on driving positive impact.

 

One of the things I want to achieve with this podcast is to share a diverse range of stories from businesses and brands at different stages of their purpose journey; as well as from different perspectives - small, medium and corporate.

 

This episode is a good one for getting an insight into how a new business unit and/or brand can start their purpose journey within a corporate organisation.  Clearly there are challenges, but also potential opportunities. A great message comes out of this episode for me - it's all about just getting started and recognising that perfection is the enemy of progress.

 

Here are some of the areas my interview with Paul covered:

• The secret that our mobile phones are hiding
• How TPG Telecom’s new brand felix started their journey that led them to becoming a brand driven by a higher purpose
• How the personal beliefs of the start-up team influenced the decision to become a purpose-led brand
• Navigating the challenges and opportunities of being part of a big corporate business 
• How felix is contributing to the momentum within the movement to broaden commitments from the telco industry
• Balancing the need to be financially-stable and driving impact
• How Felix uses partnerships to ensure that the supply chain of tree planting is authentic and effective
• felix’s 2-year social impact goal and Paul’s 5-year ambition for the business 

EPISODE 4: Simon Sheikh, co-founder of Future Super

My guest on this episode is Simon Sheikh, founder of Australia’s first fossil fuel free super fund, Future Super.

 

Before starting Future Super, Simon led GetUp for six years. Getup is a member based independent movement to build a progressive Australia and bring participation back into our democracy. 

 

In 2014, Simon co-founded Future Super with his business partner Adam Verwey. The company has a rapidly growing member base and is successfully disrupting the Australian superannuation industry, by proving there is demand for high-impact, sustainable investments.  

 

This interview delivers some great insights for those interested in how to navigate their path to purpose. Future Super’s clarity of purpose is second-to-none. They consider themselves more a movement for change than a business. The discussion was wide-ranging but reveals Future Super’s depth of purpose. Here are some of the topics we covered. 

 

• Simon’s view on the role of love and empathy in business
• Why Simon and his business partner Adam Verwey started Future Super 
• Future Super’s theory of change. (It’s simple, but super powerful)
• The financial argument for ethical superannuation investments
• The shared narrative of the type of people who are Future Super members
• Where the large players of the superannuation industry are investing (I suspect you’re going to be shocked at one of these) 
• The move to transparency and what this will mean to the superannuation industry
• Future Super’s investment performance and why ethical investments have lower volatility than non-ethical investments
• How the “employee value proposition” has changed and how purpose and identity are central to competition for people
• The #notbusinessasusual campaign
• Future Super’s unique “for-purpose” ownership model
• The similarities and differences between building a not-for-profit organisation and a purpose-led for-profit business

Contact Simon https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonsheikh/

Future Super Website https://www.futuresuper.com.au

EPISODE 3: Nina Mapson Bone - Beaumont People

My guest on Episode 3 of the For Love & Money Podcast is Nina Mapson Bone. 

 

Nina is the Managing Director of Beaumont People, a specialised recruitment business that truly believes in “placing people first”. She is also President of the RCSA, the Recruitment Consulting and Staffing Association of Australia and New Zealand and she is Chair of the Development Committee for the NORTH Foundation, a charity which supports innovation in health research and patient care. 

Nina helps business leaders with their people problems and delights in bringing talented people together to drive value, build vision and realise opportunities.  

 

With extensive leadership experience, she has built and restructured high-performing teams with a focus on talent attraction and retention.

 

As a non-executive director and managing director, Nina understands the challenges and complexities of driving growth and ensuring a customer-first approach in large, diverse businesses that have multiple service lines. 

If you have a business problem, complex tactical challenges with your employees or organisational structure, you can be guaranteed that Nina has helped others navigate through similar issues.

 

Nina has an MA (Hons), is a Fellow for the RCSA (Recruitment Consulting and Staffing Association) and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

 

Nina and I had a great discussion on Beaumont People’s purpose and how it has guided their actions before and during the pandemic and positioned them strongly for success. Some of the things we covered in this conversation include:

• Nina’s personal purpose and how it inspires her in her work
• Beaumont People’s purpose and how it inspired their investment in an Australian-first research initiative and the world’s first meaningful work profiling tool
• How the GFC inspired an initiative to support Beaumont People’s people; that has gone onto become a big part of Beaumont People’s strategic success and enhanced their reputation and culture
• The architecture of Beaumont People’s brand purpose positioning and how their ‘how’ contributes to their ‘why’ and shapes their decision lens
• What the Australian research on meaningful work reveals about organisations in Australia and the expectations of Australian employees
• How everyone’s path to meaningful work is unique and how understanding what it means to individuals and organisations can be game changing
• The trap of assumptions around meaningful work
• The psychological and sociological aspects of meaningful work
• How Beaumont People’s purpose around meaningful work guided their actions during the initial stages of the pandemic and accelerated some of their longer term plans and positioned them for success
• How purpose has reinvigorated the Beaumont People team
• The balance between purpose and profit at Beaumont People

 

So many insights in this episode about “meaningful work” that I hope will challenge some assumptions and get people thinking more deeply about their work and the kind of meaningful work that can be offered through organisations.

 

Contact Nina

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ninamapsonbone/

 

Beaumont People Website

https://www.beaumontpeople.com.au

 

Explore the Meaningful Work Research and Profiling Tool 

https://go.meaningfulwork.com.au/home?r_done=1

EPISODE 2: Geoff Manchester – Intrepid Travel

For our very first podcast interview I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to interview Geoff “Manch” Manchester, co-founder of Intrepid Group and Director of the company’s not-for-profit The Intrepid Foundation. 

 

Globally recognised as a pioneer in responsible travel, Intrepid Group are the world’s largest provider of adventure travel experiences. Geoff and his best mate Darrell Wade founded Intrepid Travel in 1989 with a vision of creating small group adventures that travelled the local way, benefiting both travellers and the places that they visit.

 

More than a quarter of a century later, Intrepid Travel has grown to become Intrepid Group, a portfolio of specialist tour operators and 23 destination management companies taking over 400,000 travellers to more than 120 countries on all seven continents, and employing more than 2000 staff in 29 offices around the world. 

 

As a former leader of Intrepid trips in Asia, Manch has firsthand experience of the issues effecting developing nations. His experience in marketing for Intrepid Travel has given him insight into the value placed on such issues by both clients and travel agents. Manch has ensured Intrepid delivers on its sustainable and responsible ethos as the company has grown rapidly over the past 27 years, from championing practical, on the ground decisions involving low impact travel, to setting and implementing company-wide responsible travel strategies.

 

In 2000, Intrepid Travel established the tourism industry’s first dedicated responsible business department, then in 2002 launched The Intrepid Foundation to enable travellers to give back to the communities they visit. Since its creation the not-for-profit has raised over $10 million for more than 70 conservation and community projects around the globe, supporting initiatives in environmental conservation, wildlife protection, human rights, health care, child welfare and gender equality. 

 

Manch is especially proud of the connection that The Intrepid Foundation creates between their own local leaders and the projects that they support; they learn about the projects and community issues, and in turn are able to educate their travellers and inspire them to make a donation. Manch is an Ambassador for Conscious Capitalism Australia and is a regular speaker on sustainable business issues in Australia and around the world.  

 

This interview offers some great insights to people in business who are curious about what a truly purposeful organisation looks like and the relationship between purpose and profit.

 

Please forgive my enthusiastic use of the words “I love...” throughout this interview. Appropriate, given the podcast theme, but I realise I may need to measure my genuine love for the actions of these businesses who are leading the way, so I don’t end up inspiring the eye-roll effect!! Bear with me as I develop my podcast interviewing skills please.

 

We cover a lot of ground in this interview and there are some great topics we get into. Some of these are highlighted below.

• Core Purpose vs Higher Purpose of Intrepid Travel
• The origins of Intrepid Travel and their “Responsible Travel” approach 
• Intrepid’s approach to animal welfare in tourism and how they’ve become “the elephant experts”
• How women’s-only tours in Iran, Morocco and Turkey help to change the way people see the world
• The impact of the pandemic on Intrepid Travel’s business and Geoff’s view of the impact of the pandemic on the travel industry long-term
• Intrepid’s leadership, advocacy and support for climate action within the travel industry
• Regenerative tourism, the evolution of sustainable tourism
• How Intrepid’s purpose and approach to business attracts likeminded people to their team who are invested in the organisation’s success
• The direct correlation between Intrepid’s purposeful activities and their growth and profit

 

Here are the links I promised in the interview:

• A link to Intrepid’s Annual Report – enjoy! https://www.intrepidtravel.com/au/intrepid-annual-report-2020
• World Travel & Tourism Council and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Sustainable Leadership Case Study on Intrepid Travel https://wttc.org/Portals/0/Documents/Reports/2021/WTTC%20Case%20Study%20-%20Intrepid.pdf?ver=2021-05-05-102941-497

I really hope you enjoy this interview as much as I enjoyed having a yarn with Geoff. 

For more information on Intrepid Group visit www.intrepidgroup.travel; for more information on The Intrepid Foundation visit www.theintrepidfoundation.org. For more on Geoff, you can find him on Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoff-manchester-b953702/

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THE FOR LOVE & MONEY PODCAST

 

Hosted by Chief Purpose Activist, Carolyn Butler-Madden, The For Love & Money Podcast is a show where business and social purpose meet to inspire a movement for positive change – business as a force for good; brands driving profit through purpose.