Leading business figures to discuss British Academy proposals for promoting purposeful business

Leaders in UK business and industry – including the President of the CBI and the Chief Executive of the London Stock Exchange – will discuss the role of corporate purpose in the future of business at a virtual event marking the launch of the British Academy’s forthcoming report, “Policy and Practice for Purposeful Business” on Wednesday 22 September.

The report, from the British Academy’s Future of the Corporation programme, brings together a set of proposals to embed corporate purpose in business policy and practice for the first time.

The British Academy welcomes Lord Bilimoria, President of the CBI, John Geldart, Director General of the Institute of Directors, Julia Hoggett, CEO of London Stock Exchange plc, Mark Babington, Executive Director of the Financial Reporting Council, Anne Simpson, Managing Investment Director (Board Governance and Sustainability) of CalPERS and Catherine Howarth, Chief Executive of ShareAction to discuss the proposals on a panel.

The publication of the report takes place ahead of the British Academy’s third Purpose Summit on Thursday 23 and Friday 24 September. Over three virtual sessions, the event will explore ways to reform business education around corporate purpose, defined by the Future of the Corporation programme as: “to profitably solve problems of people and planet and not profit from causing problems”.

Speakers include the Chief Executives of the Chartered Association of Business Schools, the Global Business School network and the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, in addition to senior academics in business and management studies and representatives from professions with a key role in implementing corporate purpose.

Previous Purpose Summits have heard Al Gore, Mark Carney, LSE Director Minouche Shafik, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Financial Times Editor Roula Khalaf, among others calling for purpose to be put at the heart of business.

The full programme of speakers and booking information for these events is available on the British Academy website.