Slaughter and May Endorses Economic Roadmap for Sustainable Recovery from COVID-19 Crisis

Slaughter and May is pleased to support the open letter published today, orchestrated by Leaders on Purpose and Fourth Sector Group in collaboration with 14 global leaders of multi-national businesses, calling for an inclusive and sustainable post-COVID-19 economy that benefits society, the planet and shareholders for generations to come.

In the letter, fourteen leaders from major global corporations from various sectors have called on governments to accelerate such a transition by recognising and supporting purpose-first business as an emerging fourth sector of the economy.

The signatories to the letter have also committed to advance the purpose-first economy by leveraging their procurement, innovation, research, development, and investment to accelerate the growth of this critical sector. The letter provides a practical roadmap for proactively redesigning corporate structures and government policies in the development of a more supportive ecosystem for organisations that operate under a new business logic.

These actions are further supported by the launch of the Fourth Sector Policy Hackathon, which brings together industry, academic, and institutional partners to unpack persistent public policy challenges, and to identify solutions requiring collective action across the public, private, non-profit and fourth sectors globally.

Partner Jeff Twentyman said, “We are pleased to have supported Leaders on Purpose and Fourth Sector Group as the conveners of this group of influential business people calling for a purpose-first economy. The call to reimagine corporate behaviour and create purpose-first enterprise is growing in volume and frequency. The commitment from these CEOs and global leaders and their call to address the current structural barriers to an inclusive and sustainable economy is another step towards purpose being the driving force in corporate governance.” 

The ‘Build it Better’ framework includes six key imperatives for public and private sector leaders to guide innovation of public policy as well as corporate and financial structures to accelerate the progress of the purpose-first economy. These are:

• Recognise the purpose-first sector.
• Carefully craft incentives and policies.
• Incentivise innovations of financial products, risk assessment, valuation models, and ratings.
• Design for a safe, educated, and healthy society.
• Leave no one behind.
• Enable a supportive ecosystem.

Notes to Editors

About Leaders on Purpose

Leaders on Purpose (LOP) is a community of purpose-driven corporate leaders promoting an inclusive and sustainable economy that puts purpose at the core and leaves no one behind. What began as a research collaboration between business leaders and experts from Harvard University, Unilever, The World Bank, and The London School of Economics has evolved into a platform that connects the CEO agenda with the global agenda.

Today LOP operates as an independent, for-benefit, organization supporting businesses in the transition from business-as-usual to a purpose-based approach. This involves putting purpose at the core of the business strategy for the benefit of the organization, the employees, the planet and society. Our approach is grounded in rigorous research and years of experience. We do this through corporate strategy, peer learning, advisory on systemic innovations, and advocacy for policies that support purpose and performance.

About Fourth Sector Group

The Fourth Sector Group (4SG) is a global multi-stakeholder platform for collective leadership and action aimed at accelerating the growth of the fourth sector worldwide.

4SG connects and supports organizations working to build and contribute to a vibrant fourth sector. The ‘fourth sector of the economy’ supplements the three traditional sectors of the economy (public, private, and non-profit) and is where ‘purpose and profit meet’. The fourth sector is driven by enterprises, investors, workers, and consumers who believe the purpose of business is to benefit people and the planet, with profit as a driver of purpose. Growing this fourth sector aims to follow an accelerated pathway to achieving an equitable, sustainable, and resilient economy.