Navigating turbulent waters
Thursday, 20 November 2025 | 9:00am – 14:30pm
The Form Rooms, Covent Garden, London
Has business lost its soul?
As we step towards Pulse’s 25th anniversary – a milestone built on guiding some of the world’s largest corporations and most visionary social enterprises navigating the twin pillars of purpose and profit.
When our founder, Simon Milton, launched Pulse in 2001, he saw the dangers of Corporate Social Responsibility becoming a marketing slogan rather than a boardroom priority. He recognised a gap: governments could only go so far, charities filled the void, but it was businesses that needed to step up and tackle society’s greatest challenges.
A quarter-century later, the landscape has shifted–though not always for the better. ESG, DEI, and corporate “purpose” have retreated from boardroom focus. Big Tech has proved unreliable; energy giants have delayed the pivot from fossil fuels; food retailers have avoided their responsibility to restore our soils and ecosystems. Investment decisions still too often prioritise profit over progress.
This raises urgent questions:
Where is the courage at the top?
Are demoralised employees voting with their feet?
Have consumers and investors settled for cheap, unsustainable products?
Have we abandoned trust in once-revered institutions like Parliament and the UN?
Have we really seen no progress in 25 years? The only certainty is uncertainty and that is what businesses and investors fear most.
Yet, hope remains.
AI can be harnessed as a positive force (or a dangerous one, depending on who wields it).
Capital can fuel ventures that drive both profit and real-world benefit.
Green technology is transforming possibilities with the demand for wellbeing, healthy foods, and conservation of green spaces accelerating.
And, inspiring leaders still have the power to unleash the best in humanity.
Whatever our sector, public, private, or third – we share a fundamental belief: to do the right thing, and to leave the world better than we found it.
Today, Pulse’s original mission is more urgent than ever: restoring humanity to business and unleashing the people within as a catalyst for a fairer, better future.
Rebuilding trust
This Masterclass steps into the issues facing business navigating these turbulent waters. It asks whether it is the conditions or businesses that are inherently weak. Most importantly it asks what we can personally do to rebuild trust with employees, investors, customers and wider society?
Today’s volatile geopolitics are eroding trust in business by amplifying uncertainty, polarising stakeholders, and disrupting the rules that underpin predictable commerce. This weakens confidence across customers, employees, investors, suppliers and regulators alike.
According to Edeleman’s latest (2025) barometer, distrust in business leaders is at 68% (up 12 percentage points since 2021), and distrust in government and media leaders exceeds 69%.
turbulent waters Navig ating
Forces of progress
Climate and inequity remain a top priority for the young
Climate/DEI now built into compliance
Investor community building in ESG
Experiencing temperature and inequity rise catalyses change
Consumer demand for greater corporate and government transparency
Social media breaking down corporate and institutional barriers
Acting collaboratively builds viable new business models
As recently as last year (2024) over 71% of global consumers “now trust companies less than I did a year ago”.
Forces of retraction
Short-term profit trumping long-term purpose
Misinformation and polarisation
People feeling excluded and ignored
Distrust in government, business and investors
Populism and migration fear
Increased conflict and localisation
Rise of debt and flat economic growth
High energy prices
So, understanding trust in business has moved from being a “nice-to-have” to a core metric of organisational health and commercial success. Measuring, maintaining, and leveraging trust is now a strategic imperative for business. More than ever, businesses need to integrate the impact of geopolitical risk into strategy, elevating scenario planning and resilience investments to stabilise expectations and restore public trust.
The masterclass will be broken down into three separate sessions designed to support leaders operating in the business space and social enterprise. Participants will learn new ways of leading and engaging change.
The event is designed to create a safe, open space whereby the real issues facing your business (Chatham House Rules) are shared openly. The issues one person faces will inevitably be similar to those others face.
1.
The critical role of trust
Led by Simon Milton of Pulse alongside brand strategist Ian Jenkins from The Human Instinct. Ian has developed a methodology to help business navigate how best to build ‘trust’ with all its key stakeholders. The opening session will look at the overall challenge of navigating purpose and delivering profit as well as some of the factors that have made the last few years highly challenging.
Simon Milton Founder of Pulse
#visionary
#playful
#bold
Ian Jenkins Founder of The Human Instinct
#insightful
#probing
#builder
2. Flourishing cultures
Led by Robert Goodsell, a founding member of Pulse and a trained psychologist, this session will step into the real issues of trust that can hold back teams and leaders from being more proactive. Robert will explore the dynamics of safe space and personal ownership, offering practical insights into how attendees can begin to shift these patterns within their organisations.
3. Exploring courage and unifying competing interests
Led by Jamie Anley and Maria O’Connor co-founders of MovingBeyond, will explore the challenges of leading with courage when things are not in flow. MovingBeyond works across business, investors, government and civil society to accelerate the energy transition and build more sustainable ways of living. Over five years, MovingBeyond has united people and organisations often seen as being in conflict.
Robert Goodsell
Consultant at Pulse
#wisdom
#granular
#systems thinker
Jamie Anley
Founder of JAM and Co-Founder of MovingBeyond
#inspiring
#artist
#magical
Maria O’Connor
Co-Founder of MovingBeyond
#community builder
#purposeful
#resilient
Event information
Over the last 10 years, Pulse has hosted masterclasses in the corporate purpose space. Topics have included personal leadership around navigating profit and purpose; the role of the UN SDG’s; the increased need for feminine leadership and managing corporate trauma.
The masterclasses are designed to include those leading teams in large corporations or those creating new innovative start ups or social enterprises/community groups.
This particular event will help attendees explore issues such as personal courage; trust and how to convene change. And hopefully create new relationships and friendships.
Thursday 20th
November 2025
9:00am – 14:30pm
The Form Rooms
22 Tower St
London WC2H 9NS
£150 plus VAT (Corporates)
All proceeds from this event will go to MovingBeyond.
www.movingbeyond.co.uk
MovingBeyond is a not-for-profit initiative that brings together leaders from business, government, investors, charity, and the voluntary sector to accelerate the UK’s response to climate change and promote a more sustainable way of living.
MovingBeyond recognises that social, economic, and environmental systems are deeply interconnected. Their work aims to challenge and move beyond the paradigms that keep individuals, organisations, and systems siloed and stuck.
