Episode description
“Purpose” and “impact” are not new concepts anymore; millennials have been growing up with and spreading them around for many years now. They might still seem abstract to many people. Until you meet Hanno Renner, Co-Founder and CEO of Personio, to whom the idea of purpose defines the way a business should be run. In this episode, Isak and Oona talk to Hanno about what purpose actually means in practice; for Personio, their employees and investors, and Hanno himself.Expect to learn:
- What does purpose mean in practice for Hanno?
- Why does Hanno compensate his employees with stock ownership?
- Does Hanno see a tension between business and purpose, and how does he deal with it?
- What is Hanno’s approach to dealing with investors?
00:43 Introduction to Hanno and Personio
02:00 What is purpose-driven entrepreneurship?
05:28 What does purpose mean on a practical level?
07:24 How important is it drawing those big lines early on?
09:34 The formal vs. informal of purpose
13:05 Balance of clear values vs. inclusivity
15:15 “Scaling purpose”
20:30 How early should Founders start thinking about purpose?
22:30 Struggles with the practical aspects of purpose
24:54 Millenials as employees: is purpose enough?
28:18 Hannos’ Employee Stock Ownership Plan
31:25 Investors’ reactions to ESOP
32:45 Investor influence in and attitude towards purpose-driven entrepreneurship
34:55 What could investors do better to enable sustainability and purpose?
36:43 More on Hanno’s thoughts about investor relations