Has purpose had its moment? If you believe what you read in the media, then you may think so. Stories of corporate rollbacks on climate and DEI commitments, culture wars and a backlash from the general public. But is it true? Well, probably not if you are Gen Z or Millennial.

In recent years we have witnessed numerous challenging events including the murder of George Floyd, Wade vs Roe, the war between Russia and Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East, race riots in the UK, not to mention ongoing debates around fossil fuels, trans rights and slavery reparations.

These issues naturally evoke strong emotions and organisations are increasingly expected to respond swiftly, with authenticity and empathy. There has been widespread debate about whether leaders should focus on running their companies rather than getting involved in these kinds of issues. But younger audiences have different expectations of business.

According to our recent Purpose Pulse report, 53% of Gen Z and Millennials expect companies to do more on social issues, a significant increase from 39% in 2021. For example, when it comes to tackling climate change, 60% think businesses are not doing enough, with over half supporting regulation around plastic packaging (54%) and taxes on the world’s largest polluters (53%).

And on DEI, 55% of Gen Z are concerned about racial inequality and 50% are concerned about gender inequality. So, leaders who say that DEI shouldn’t be a priority are clearly not taking a long-term view.

Most Gen Z and Millennials say that organisations should prioritise DEI because it’s the right thing to do (27%) compared to just 8% who say it is important as it brings financial benefits. In fact, these two points are not mutually exclusive. Companies who have made genuine commitments and place social purpose at the heart of what they do, are doubling their efforts rather than stepping back. And they are reaping the rewards - both in terms of their bottom line and attracting talent.

In the UK, when choosing where to work, 68% place importance on the company promoting diversity in their leadership. And in general they support organisations that share their values; nearly two thirds (63%) say they would prefer to purchase from brands that share their views on social and environmental issues over buying from a similarly priced competitor.

There is already a distinct trust gap amongst these groups, with 35% trusting business and only 31% trusting government to tackle today’s problems, while over half (55%) believe in their own ability to influence meaningful change through individuals joining together.

They are catalysts for change within their organisations and are eager to step up to find solutions to society’s problems. They want businesses to have a clear social purpose and they expect that purpose to help leaders navigate complex decisions in complex times.

So, why do their views matter? Well, we can’t afford to ignore these generations who will soon make up the largest proportion of employees, customers, leaders and investors. By 2025, 60-70% of the global working population will be Gen Z or Millennials. And in the UK, already more than a quarter of MPs are either Gen Z or Millennials. At the end of the day, they will be the decision makers who will be driving forward the issues they care about, so we need to either get on board or get out of the way.