Partnering with SNCF to Gather Youth Insights on Purpose-Driven Work

Organised by

Singapore National Co-operative Federation (SNCF)
in partnership with Friendzone, a community-building organisation that designs and facilitates spaces for authentic connection.

Supported by participation from NTUC Youth, National Youth Council (NYC), and People’s Association Youth Movement (PAYM) members.

🌱 Purpose Beyond Paycheques

In today’s world, young people are increasingly asking one important question — “How can I build a career that matters?”
For many, purpose-driven work feels like an all-or-nothing choice: either chase passion and risk instability, or stay in a “safe” job and lose meaning along the way.

Hustle With Heart was created to challenge that false divide.
Organised by the Singapore National Co-operative Federation (SNCF) in partnership with Friendzone, the event gathered 62 young participants from across NYC, NTUC Youth, PAYM and SNCF’s networks to share stories, challenge assumptions, and reimagine how purpose and profession can co-exist.

💬 The Aim

The event sought to:

• Gather qualitative insights on how youths define and pursue purpose-driven pathways.

• Provide a safe, reflective space for participants to share experiences and aspirations.

• Spark connection and collaboration among young adults passionate about creating social good.

Rather than prescribing answers, the discussion was designed to listen deeply — creating space for youths to exchange ideas, challenge assumptions, and uncover what they truly want when it comes to meaning at work.

🧭 Guided Conversations: Four Pathways Explored

Facilitated by Friendzone, the discussion journey moved through four key lenses:

1. Purpose-Driven Work: Viable Career or Noble Ideal?

Participants debated whether meaningful work can be sustainable — surfacing barriers such as limited pay, unclear career progression, and societal expectations of prestige.
Yet, many shared that while pay matters, recognition and impact remain powerful motivators.

2. Short-Term vs Long-Term Engagement

Some felt that short-term initiatives — volunteering, side projects, or CSR days — offer manageable ways to contribute. Others felt that true fulfillment requires depth: long-term commitment or integrating purpose directly into one’s career.

3. Sharing the Burden: Employees and Employers

The group discussed how organisational policies can empower rather than penalise purpose-driven involvement — from flexible leave and secondments to recognition systems that value social impact.

4. Profit-Purpose Partnerships

Participants explored how for-profit companies and purpose-driven organisations can collaborate: co-designing hybrid roles, part-time engagements, and secondments that let talent contribute without “opting out” of mainstream employment.

🌼 Stories that Stuck

Throughout the conversation, participants shared deeply personal experiences — from volunteering in their neighbourhoods and mentoring youths, to taking leaps of faith for causes they believed in.

Many expressed that “purpose” is not a destination, but a series of choices that align with one’s values — and that it can grow quietly alongside one’s career, not apart from it.

“I used to think doing good meant giving something up,” one participant reflected.
“But now I see it’s about finding where your strengths meet the world’s needs.”

📊 Who Was in the Room

A total of 62 participants joined the session:

• 37% from the National Youth Council (NYC)

• 29% from SNCF and SCM networks

• 18% from NTUC Youth

• 16% from PAYM

This event brought together youths from various backgrounds — from social changemakers to young professionals — each contributing unique perspectives on what purpose looks like in their context.

🤝 Partner Perspective

Beyond the rich discussions and insights gathered, SNCF shared that Friendzone’s facilitation approach played a key role in making the session accessible, engaging, and effective for participants from diverse backgrounds.

“The Friendzone team played a key role in helping us successfully deliver a youth dialogue involving over 60 youths from various youth organisations. The session focused on their aspirations in the do-good space and their pursuit of purpose-driven work.

Throughout the whole process, I could count on Friendzone to give honest, practical advice when refining our discussion topics to meet our engagement objectives. A common challenge when working with vendors for facilitation is the uncertainty around how experienced or knowledgeable the table facilitators might be. That’s why I really appreciate Friendzone’s thoughtful approach to engagement.

Their use of creative warm-up activities and conversational cards made it easy for participants to meaningfully navigate the discussion, even if the facilitators were not subject-matter experts. It’s this seemingly simple yet effective approach, and the professionalism of the team, that enabled us to deliver a successful event and gather the qualitative insights we needed.”

— Lim Yih Ching
Community Partnership Specialist, Singapore National Co-operative Federation

🌟 Key Insights

1. Purpose can be practical.
Many youths want to integrate purpose into their existing roles rather than make drastic career changes.

2. Employers matter.
Supportive company cultures, flexible structures, and recognition of social engagement are key to retaining motivated, purpose-driven employees.

3. Collaboration is the future.
Both profit and purpose sectors share the same talent pool — partnership, not competition, will sustain meaningful work in the long run.

💡 Moving Forward

The insights gathered from Hustle With Heart will help shape ongoing youth engagement and policy discussions across partner organisations — paving the way for new models of purpose-driven work that are inclusive, sustainable, and empowering.

By bringing diverse partners together under one roof, the event reinforced a simple truth:
When people connect over shared values, purpose stops being an individual pursuit — it becomes a collective one.

❤️ About Friendzone

Friendzone designs and facilitates spaces for authentic connection — where people can share stories, spark ideas, and build relationships that lead to real-world impact.
From youth dialogues to community-building workshops, our mission is simple: to help people find meaning together.