Meaning and Purpose Network | King’s Business School

Founded in early 2020, the Meaning and Purpose Network (MaPNet) is a growing network of medium-large employers with the aim of: ‘creating more ethical, inclusive and sustainable futures for organisations through partnership and knowledge sharing’. Having received funding from the King’s College London Innovation fund, the network brings employers together with King’s Business School academics to advance knowledge and practice relating to the pressing challenges of meaning, purpose and sustainability in organisations.

Although the topic of meaning and purpose in organisations has become a “trend” buzzword amongst leadership teams and consultancies in recent years, the nascent field suffers from a disconnect between research and practice. This has resulted in fragmented literature, conflated concepts, superficial solutions and ‘purpose washing’. The majority of companies are struggling to embed a deep purpose that is linked to their strategy, advances their sustainability target and has significant and positive effects on their stakeholders.

Members have access to the latest thinking and research on these topics from academic specialists in the field and can connect with one another to share ideas and solutions. MaPNet provides a forum to co-create knowledge in the field.

To find out more

Or to enquire about joining the network, please contact Dr Catherine Tilley at catherine.tilley@kcl.ac.uk

Following a series of online events held during 2020-2021, we re-launched in March 2022. The network now includes over 20 organisational members who benefit from knowledge exchange with academics through:

regular roundtable discussions
talks by thought leaders and academics
networking with one another and with King’s scholars
workshops on specific aspects of meaning and purpose such as how to develop and sustain a sense of meaningful work; how purpose is linked with decision-making; purpose and wellbeing; the equality and diversity implications of purpose
case studies showcasing how organisations have dealt with purpose challenges
podcasts with a range of expert speakers
tailored literature reviews summarising key research findings written for a practitioner audience
exclusive thought piece articles
Students on our Master's in International Management Programme are working with six MaPNet member organisations on our unique student consultancy project, providing advice on topics as diverse as disruptive innovation, the link between individual and organisational purpose, wellbeing programmes, designing a Net Zero strategy and aligning talent management with purpose.
membership of peer-led problem-solving groups

Topics from previous events have included:

‘Why Purpose Matters in the Return from Lockdown’ (by Loughlin Hickey from Blueprint for Better Business and Dr Miriam Feuls of Copenhagen Business School)
Virtual Roundtable Talk with Peter Hubbard from Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP and Dr. Ruth Yeoman from the University of Oxford
‘Decoding purpose: a framework of social impact archetypes’ (by Dr. Victoria Hurth, Cambridge University)
'Developing and Embedding Purpose’ (by Laetitia Lynn from PwC and James Glover from Laing O’Rourke)
Debunking the myths of purpose (Professor Dana Minbaeva and Anna-Lelia Sandoghdar)

By joining MaPNet, organisational members can learn about cutting-edge research from experts in the field, show internal and external stakeholders their commitment to advancing purpose and sustainability, and demonstrate accountability. Thanks to our funding, membership of MaPNet is FREE to eligible organisations until July 2023.

Dr Elisa Alt

Lecturer in Entrepreneurship
Sylwia Baginska

Senior Global Partnerships Manager – Strategic Projects
Professor Katie Bailey

Professor of Work and Employment
Dr Graeme Lockwood

Senior Lecturer in Law
Dr Tara Reich

Reader in Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management
Ms Anna Lelia Sandoghdar

PhD Student in Human Resource Management & Employment Relations
Dr Catherine Tilley

Impact Director, Centre for Sustainable Business
Dr Madeleine Wyatt

Reader in Diversity and Inclusion

We also bring in other subject experts from within King’s Business School and the wider King’s College London to contribute to conversations about their specialisms.

Our membership includes organisations in all sectors – for-profit, not for-profit and public sector. They include major international consultancy firms, international engineering firms, local authorities, a hospital trust, and leading government department, two international banks and other financial services institutions, a coffee producer, a housing group, an HR software firm, a financial software firm, a research charity, an international polling and research organisation, representative bodies, and a Royal college. We believe that this broad mix of members brings dynamism, vitality and depth to the conversations we have within the network.