Common Purpose

What Common Purpose does

Common Purpose, founded in 1989 by Julia Middleton and headquartered in London, is a global not-for-profit organisation that develops leaders capable of crossing cultural, institutional and social boundaries. It operates under the Common Purpose Charitable Trust (UK-registered charity no. 1023384) with five wholly-owned subsidiaries covering UK operations, international programmes, global corporate customisation, Asia-Pacific, and student experiences. The organisation delivers its programmes through local offices in 10 countries — the UK, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Singapore, South Africa, Turkey, the United States and Australia — serving corporations, universities, non-profits and individual professionals.

The organisation's core technology is the Cultural Intelligence (CQ) framework and an associated set of proprietary methodologies — the COMPASS Leadership Model, Leading Beyond Authority, the Core and Flex Model, and a five-step Experiential Learning Pathway (Experience, Reflection, Translate, Practice, Assess). Its product portfolio includes Personal Development programmes (Accelerating Impact, Navigating Transitions, Boosting Collaboration), Business Solutions for organisations (Equity Diversity and Inclusion, Change Leadership, Purpose, Women in Leadership, Leadership Assessments), University offerings for staff and students, and branded programmes such as the American Express Leadership Academy, Global Leader Experience, CQ Accelerator / Inclusive Cultures Accelerator, Commonwealth100, and the ASEAN Leaders Programme. Delivery spans immersive in-person academies and self-guided online learning experiences.

Common Purpose generates revenue primarily through fees charged to organisations for customised leadership development programmes, with flagship multi-year partnerships including a 16-year relationship with the American Express Foundation. It supplements fee-based enterprise revenue with grant-funded scholarship cohorts (e.g. the Beisheim Foundation partnership) and runs joint initiatives such as the SALT programme with Toyota Kirloskar Motors and KPMG. Over 35+ years it has built a community of more than 137,000 alumni across 100+ countries, with cumulative outcomes of approximately 4,000 programmes delivered and self-reported impact metrics of 87% participant value and 89% behavioural application.

Name

Common Purpose

Legal name

Common Purpose Charitable Trust

Website

https://commonpurpose.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Common Purpose is a London-headquartered global not-for-profit founded in 1989 that designs and delivers leadership development programmes, helping corporations, universities, non-profits and individuals build Cultural Intelligence and cross-boundary leadership capabilities across 10 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Leadership Development / Executive Education

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Talent Management & Leadership Advisory (Succession, Performance, Culture) (BPACAJAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Executive Leadership & C-Suite Development (EDABAAAA), Corporate & Leadership Development (BPACANAA), Organizational Culture & Values-Based Leadership (EDABAAAE), DEI, Inclusive Leadership & Cultural Intelligence Coaching (EDABANAJ), Inclusive Leadership & Leading Diverse Teams (EDABAAAM)

Keywords

• Leadership development programs
• Executive education services
• Cultural intelligence training
• Cross-sector leadership
• Nonprofit leadership academies

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Leadership Development Programmes: Common Purpose generates revenue through fees charged for its leadership development programmes delivered to organizations and individuals. Programmes include personal development offerings, business solutions for organizations, and university-focused programmes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Common Purpose designs and delivers immersive leadership development programmes—both in-person academies and online learning experiences—that equip individuals and organizations with Cultural Intelligence and the ability to operate across cultural, institutional, and social boundaries. Its portfolio spans Personal Development programmes (e.g., Accelerating Impact, Navigating Transitions, Boosting Collaboration) and Business Solutions for organizations covering Equity Diversity & Inclusion, Change Leadership, Purpose, Women in Leadership, and university-focused programmes, all anchored in the proprietary COMPASS Leadership Model.

Product overview

Common Purpose is a global not-for-profit organization offering a portfolio of transformative leadership development programmes. Their core offerings span Personal Development programmes (Accelerating Impact, Leadership for Young People, Navigating Transitions, Boosting Collaboration) and Business Solutions (Equity Diversity and Inclusion, Change Leadership, Purpose, Women in Leadership, University solutions). Key branded programmes include the American Express Leadership Academy for non-profit sector leaders, the Global Leader Experience (GLE) for university students, the Inclusive Cultures Accelerator/CQ Accelerator for organizational Cultural Intelligence development, the Commonwealth100 (CW100) online leadership programme, and the ASEAN Leaders Programme for regional development. All programmes are grounded in the COMPASS Leadership Model, which incorporates three core principles: Cultural Intelligence (CQ), Leading Beyond Authority, and Broadened Horizons, delivered through a five-step experiential learning pathway (Experience, Reflection, Translate, Practice, Assess). Programmes are delivered in-person, online, and hybrid formats across 45 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• COMPASS: A leadership framework and assessment tool that encompasses the key elements shared by all good leaders to help them navigate their leadership journey.
• Cultural Intelligence (CQ)
• Leading Beyond Authority
• Global Leader Experience (GLE)
• American Express Leadership Academy
• CQ Accelerator
• Inclusive Cultures Accelerator
• Social Academy of Learning by Toyota (SALT)
• Commonwealth100

Products and services

• Personal Development Programmes Transformative learning experiences for individual leaders spanning Accelerating Impact, Leadership for Young People, Navigating Transitions, and Boosting Collaboration — designed to build skills and confidence for individual leaders pursuing personal development goals.
• Business Solutions Organizational development offerings for companies and institutions covering Equity Diversity and Inclusion, Change Leadership, Purpose, Women in Leadership, University Staff, University Students, and Leadership Assessments — sold directly to enterprises, universities, and non-profits.
• Inclusive Cultures Accelerator / CQ Accelerator Self-guided digital learning experience providing 6 hours of interactive content over 3 weeks, designed to grow Cultural Intelligence (CQ) of organizations and their employees using the Core and Flex framework to build a common language for cross-cultural collaboration.
• Global Leader Experience (GLE) Student leadership programme that immerses participants in cities, connecting them with senior leaders and exploring relevant issues, with participants tackling challenges within their city — sponsored by partners such as FWD Group which has funded four programmes reaching 320 students across Bangkok, Jakarta, Hong Kong and Ho Chi Minh City.
• Commonwealth100 (CW100) Online leadership programme teaching 21st century leadership skills including Open Source Leadership principles for young people globally across the Commonwealth.
• ASEAN Leaders Programme Regional leadership development programme for ASEAN leaders focused on developing Cultural Intelligence and cross-boundary leadership skills — graduates include ANZ Royal Bank's Head of Local Corporates.
• CSCLeaders Programme Commonwealth student leadership programme that develops next-generation leaders through immersive, experiential learning experiences.
• American Express Leadership Academy Leadership development programme for not-for-profit sector leaders, delivered in partnership with American Express Foundation since 2010 — over 1,000 not-for-profit leaders have attended Academy programmes across 40 deliveries in the UK, India, Singapore and Hong Kong.
• Amex Leadership Academy (Four-Day Residential) Four-day residential leadership academy for emerging leaders in the not-for-profit sector, featuring immersive simulations, coaching, peer-learning groups and off-site visits — attended by leaders from Age UK Hull, British Red Cross, Malala Fund and Exodus Transitional Community.

Quantifiable outcome

• 87% of participants reported significant value in their Common Purpose experience
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers20 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• American Express FoundationflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010Partnership since 2010 to deliver Leadership Academies for not-for-profit leaders. Over 1,000 leaders from the not-for-profit sector have attended Academy programmes in the UK, India, Singapore and Hong Kong. 40 programmes delivered across 7 locations over 16 years. Jennifer Skyler, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and Chair of the American Express Foundation, noted the partnership helps non-profit leaders accelerate development amid high leadership turnover and burnout.
• Toyota Kirloskar MotorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTKM sends senior leaders to Common Purpose programmes to develop Cultural Intelligence and build relationships across sectors. Partnership includes SALT (Social Academy of Learning by Toyota), a joint initiative with KPMG to build leadership capacity for not-for-profit leaders in India, helping shift from philanthropy to impact-based approaches.
• KPMGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with Common Purpose and Toyota Kirloskar Motors on SALT (Social Academy of Learning by Toyota) to help not-for-profit organizations shift from philanthropy to impact-based approaches and strengthen relations between government, corporate and not-for-profit sectors.
• FWD GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFWD Insurance has supported Common Purpose in delivering leadership programmes for multiple generations of leaders - from university students to senior leaders. Sponsored four Global Leader Experience programmes across Bangkok, Jakarta, Hong Kong and Ho Chi Minh City, reaching 320 students. FWD leaders also worked with students as coaches.
• Beisheim FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Beisheim Stiftung (Beisheim Foundation), based in Germany, partnered with Common Purpose to offer scholarships for emerging leaders from small-scale organizations. Over the last two years, the foundation funded bursary places for 65 leaders, aligning with their mission of promoting dialogue between generations and shaping social change.
• British Red CrossminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBritish Red Cross participated in the Inclusive Cultures Accelerator programme. Executive Director Norman McKinley noted the programme helped emerging leadership take courageous steps to work effectively across boundaries and created more dialogue about inclusion across the organization.
• Various UniversitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnerships with universities including RMIT University, Newcastle University, University of Cape Town, and others to deliver student leadership programmes and support university staff development. These partnerships support diverse educational attainment and progression for students.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Development Dimensions International (DDI): Global leadership development and assessment firm delivering enterprise leadership programmes, leadership assessments, and behavioural change interventions — directly overlapping Common Purpose's Business Solutions and Leadership Assessments offerings.
• FranklinCovey: Public leadership and organizational performance company selling enterprise-wide leadership training (e.g. '7 Habits', 'Leading at the Speed of Trust') to large corporates — directly comparable content/b2b model.
• The Ken Blanchard Companies: Long-running leadership and management training provider selling situational leadership and similar frameworks into enterprise and government — comparable training-led B2B model.
• Center for Creative Leadership (CCL): US-headquartered non-profit leadership development organization delivering executive and emerging-leader programmes with research-backed frameworks — the closest structural and mission parallel to Common Purpose globally.
• Dale Carnegie & Associates: Iconic leadership and interpersonal skills training franchise delivering courses globally for over a century — directly comparable training-led model targeting individual and corporate leadership development.
• BTS Group: Public strategy execution and leadership development consultancy using experiential, simulation-driven methods for global enterprises — comparable in methodology (experiential) and customer segment (Fortune 500).

Broad incumbents

• Henley Business School Executive Education: UK business school offering custom executive education, leadership development, and coaching programmes for corporations — comparable in market geography and corporate custom-programme segment.
• Ashridge / Hult Executive Education: UK-rooted (formerly Ashridge) executive education provider offering open and custom leadership programmes for European and global clients — overlapping in executive education delivery and framework-based IP.
• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm whose Hay Group/Korn Ferry Leadership practice delivers executive coaching, leadership development, and assessment at scale — much larger incumbent spanning the same customer base.

Emerging players

• Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Coaching: Executive coaching and leadership development brand focused on C-suite behaviour change — partial overlap with Common Purpose's executive coaching and leadership assessment offerings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/commonpurpose
• Facebookfacebook.com/commonpurpose
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/common-purpose

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Common Purpose