At Deloitte, we believe in the power of business and business leaders to influence the path of human development and effect societal change. Business generates products and services that meet human needs and desires; it provides unique skills and resources and applies them in practical, visionary ways to build a stronger, more prosperous and more sustainable society. In fact, we believe that the ‘why’ of business is, and has always been, a societal purpose: to improve the quality of human lives.

At Davos in January, David Sproul, along with Deloitte’s global CEO, Barry Salzberg, and Chairman, Steve Almond, argued that it is business – far more than traditional philanthropy – that has the greatest impact on wider society.

That’s why we launched ReImagining Business – an initiative to focus and drive the debate into how business can best fulfil its potential to deliver positive societal change. ReImagining Business is a conversation we are now pursuing across a range of channels. Our sponsorship of an International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) series of CEO events on Trust in business; our contribution to the Scottish Council for Development and Industry by Heather Hancock; Steve Almond’s challenge to go beyond procedural conceptions of good governance in Moscow; our investment in the role of innovation in driving societal success with the London Business School and, the ongoing redesign of our social media strategy all form part of this story. And we are beginning to see the impact – other leading organisations are developing their positions in alignment with the direction of our thinking and some of our clients are engaging with this dialogue and are embarking on their own ‘purpose to impact’ journeys.

At Davos, we shared the results of two worldwide pulse surveys asking Millennials of member firms and business leaders about their views on the purpose and potential of business. The "millennial" generation are the consumers, voters and business leaders of the future, and responding to their expectations and priorities is a key concern for any employer seeking to attract the best talent. We found that 72 per cent of business leaders and 92 per cent of Millennials thought that business success should be measured by more than just profit. In fact, Millennials see the very purpose of business as societal development and innovation.

ReImagining Business is about reconnecting and reimagining the contribution any individual business makes as a direct function of its core business. It’s about how this contribution can be recognised in substantive, practical terms. It helps us understand and value a business based on purpose as well as profit. We are developing a pioneering methodology to allow all businesses to ‘report against purpose’, going beyond economic impact measurement, and incorporating both qualitative and quantitative ways of communicating the positive impact our clients’ core business activities have on building a prosperous, sustainable society.