Purpose and profit are often framed as competing priorities. But what if the most successful businesses are built by refusing to choose between them?
Recorded live in Vancouver last week during The Brand is Female Conversations Series, this episode brings together two leaders who are redefining what entrepreneurship can accomplish.
Carla Guerrera, Founder and CEO of Purpose Driven Development, is transforming how we think about housing by creating communities designed around inclusion, affordability, and long-term social impact. Kirsten Koppang Telford, CEO of The Forum, has spent her career helping entrepreneurs harness innovation to solve meaningful problems and now leads one of Canada's most influential organizations supporting women entrepreneurs.
Together, they explore what purpose-driven leadership actually looks like in practice: making difficult decisions, resisting short-term thinking, building profitable businesses without compromising values, and challenging the systems that continue to underestimate women founders.
The conversation also examines the powerful links between housing, entrepreneurship, economic opportunity, and community building, and why supporting women entrepreneurs isn't simply an equity issue, but one of Canada's greatest economic opportunities.
Whether you're building a company, leading a team, or simply rethinking the kind of impact you want your work to have, this conversation offers an inspiring reminder that purpose and profit don't just coexist—they can reinforce one another.
This season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Please find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small-business/women-in-business // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale
