Blog Archive
2007
Interesting article from Simply Communicate on why storytelling should be promoted in business…
Great article from People Management this month on how Storytelling can be used to engage employees…
While we talk about the importance of connectivity and alignment, let’s not lose sight of the use and power of stories in our work. Our proposition is to create the energy and commitment required to execute strategic change, by connecting people to the strategic journey, and storytelling is an important part of our solution.
Congratulations to our client Currys Supply Chain which scooped an incredible three awards at Friday’s annual CiB (Communicators in Business) awards ceremony. These included awards in both the storytelling and change management categories as well as an overall Gold Award for their change management programme.
I enjoyed Melcrum’s Strategic Communications Summit last week. Great to see some old friends, new faces and hear some excellent speakers.
One of the key themes that kept cropping up was the ongoing issue of how to get middle / front-line managers to get on board with a company’s strategy. They are the ones who hold the trust of their teams, not the senior leadership team, so engaging them successfully – to the point that they will make it their business to engage their own teams – is absolutely crucial.
A huge congratulations to Currys Supply Chain, a long standing client of ours, which has just landed an Award for Excellence at the CiB (Communicators in Business) Strategy Awards.
The Sunday Times published a great article which underlines the need for businesses to keep things simple. Chris West, a business advisor and author, says that business needs to speak in a language that ordinary people can understand, and avoid “management-ese”.
I spent yesterday shooting clay pigeons, racing quad bikes and driving a tank at Newick Park yesterday, all for Dame Vera Lynn’s charity to raise funds for children with cerebral palsy.
The recent situation at Northern Rock is a great example of the power of stories and storytelling. When the Bank of England announced that they were underwriting Northern Rock’s finances, both banks believed that this would reduce the risk for NR’s savers. But as many risk specialists will tell you, risk is as much a matter of perception than statistical reality.
Business has lost a great storyteller in Anita Roddick. The Body Shop was founded on a great story, and through its evolution has inspired millions through the stories behind its products, its support and campaigns against animal testing and for human rights, ethical trading, the environment and the arts.
I read with interest a recent blog by one of our Canadian partners, Nicky Fried (Strategic Connections), on the loyalty and respect given by immigrant workers. It reminded me of a client’s comment last week on their own issues regarding immigrant workers, and how often their lack of brand awareness can pose a concern of its own.
Whilst traveling to a meeting on the underground recently I came across a wonderful example of storytelling…
I read a great story on my way to work this morning – which given the aura of glumness hovering over my fellow commuters – seemed timely as well as thought provoking.
Most of us understand that having a positive outlook is preferable to that of a negative one, but how many of us simply react emotionally to most situations rather than consciously choosing to apply a positive attitude to what life throws our way?
I’m not advocating that we all go around grinning moronically (although the entertainment value of this alone may be worth pursuing!) but we do have a choice.
I have always disliked the term ‘human resources’. It implies that people are resources just like anything else at the company’s disposal. Yet people are the company. And whatever plans, strategies and missions may exist, it’s the people – the company – that will succeed or fail in those quests.
I’ve just come back from a fantastic holiday in Dubai. The weather was incredible – 45 degrees each day (too hot for some!) whilst the sea resembled a bath with temperatures holding a steady 35 degrees…Oh, and the skies (in complete contrast to the UK this Summer), remained cloudless for the entire 2 weeks.
Aside from the idyllic weather though, the thing that really strikes you about Dubai is the sheer ambition of the place.
There are so many definitions of this phrase Employee Engagement. It’s become a mini industry in itself, with a range of companies operating in this field. Web and intranet designers, event producers, pensions and benefits companies, survey companies, healthcare companies – you name it, a vast number of them view themelves as agents of employee engagement.
I recall a great story when a little boy, sick from eating so much sugar beet, was taken by his mother in desperation to Mahatma Gandhi for guidance. She walked for days to get there, but was promptly sent home again by the great man and told to return in a month. The reason? Gandhi needed a month of sugar abstinence himself before telling the boy not to eat any more sugar.
The Storytellers are delighted to be sponsoring the NSPCC team who will be participating in this year’s Microsoft UK Challenge (20-24 June, Yorkshire). This televised event challenges teams from the UK’s top organisations to race against the clock to complete, over four days and nights, one of the most testing courses imaginable across some of Yorkshire’s toughest terrain. To succeed (and win) competitors will require great teamwork and communication, physical fitness and mental aptitude and stamina. We wish the NSPCC team luck and courage as they enter the final days of training, and hope that all those taking part have a great time (and make it back in one piece)!
Articles like this one from Australia’s The Age are valuable endorsements for our approach. We agree wholeheartedly that storytelling is a critical and valuable component of change.
The Guardian reviews The Bard & Co….
I’d like to pass comment on an excellent book – The Bard & Co, published by Cyan.
The leadership meetings we design for our clients usually involve several storytelling sessions, which is an excellent way of helping leaders personalise key corporate messages and priorities, make sense and take ownership of them. Some of the stories are very moving, told with passion and emotion. They are stories about people, how employees have helped or made a difference to other human beings’ lives through the course of their day-to-day work.
We are all natural born storytellers, so what does telling stories in business settings really feel like?
Business is often very formal, very structured, which is why presentations and events are often built around rigid agendas, charts, and of course the ubiquitous PowerPoint. These tools accentuate that rigidity. It all makes great sense to the presenter, as it is his or her thinking translated into a structure. However, what may work for the presenter very often fails for the audience. They don’t REALLY listen, and are very rarely engaged on an emotional level even if they might be on a rational one.
Ever heard of work-life balance? The New York Times refers to our addiction to Blackberry’s – or ‘Crackberry’s’:
And by the way, those words aren’t mine, guv. But I am compelled to celebrate some new research that dubs PowerPoint presentations a disaster, doing more to switch off the brain and bore people rigid than to inform, inspire and motivate them.
There’s no doubt that PowerPoint is an incredibly useful tool, used in the right proportions and in the right way. But as a spokesperson from Microsoft says, ‘there is no substitute for being a good communicator’. Indeed, successful employee engagement depends on it.
Honestly, the stories these banks are coming up with. Are they doing it just to get some PR? First RBS insists that its employees bank with them, or else…. and then HSBC opens a branch in Canford Cliffs, (Dorset) which will only serve people with large wads of cash or substantial mortgages. If I was an HSBC employee in Canford Cliffs I’d be wondering in eager anticipation whether or not HSBC will follow RBS’s example and insist that I bank with my employer. Hmmm, now would that involve a hefty payrise? Maybe someone could suggest it as a new recruitment strategy….
OK. We all know it. Creating true employee engagement in large organisations is no mean feat. True engagement (which doesn’t just come from a nice looking newsletter as we all know) depends on the combination and balance of many factors – leadership skills, communication, reward, development, culture and environment, line of sight, sustainability and so on….the list is a long one. Yet if an organisation gets it right – or as near to right as it can, profitability increases. I’ll say that slightly louder. PROFITABILITY INCREASES. By up to 20 per cent according to the Corporate Leadership Council. Which, unless we’re just here for the ride, is the whole point of an organisation’s existence (at least, in the private sector).
I couldn’t help but cringe with embarrassment for the PR lady widely reported this week to have written in a press release on behalf of her supermarket client that the tradition of giving Easter eggs represented the birth of Christ. Oops. Takes me back to my own early PR days when, on behalf of my confectionery and retail clients, Easter would herald the churning out of yet another consumer press release littered with Easter traditions and chocolatey facts and figures in our vain attempts to catch the eye of a sympathetic journalist who could no doubt recite every Easter tradition under the sun with his/her eyes shut. Except getting our facts wrong (and we didn’t have the internet to help us then!) was a complete no-no. Heads would roll.
The 7th UK National Storytelling Week is set to run from Saturday 27 January – Saturday 3 February. Building on the success of the 2006 week which saw 900 events nationwide, this year will see a diverse array of events in Museums, Libraries, Schools and Theatres amongst other places….why don’t we make 2007 they year the work place gets involved! For a list of events taking place around the country, or for further information and guide to running your event please visit The National Storytelling Week website.
The CIPD has declared that management speak is a key factor in reducing the support and trust that staff have in their managers. We couldn’t agree more – and some of the latest phrases emerging from business, according to Office Angels, are laughable. Apparently cool new buzzwords include ‘thought grenade’ (explosive good ideas), ‘Let’s sunset that’ (let’s not ever mention that bad idea again) and ‘touchpoints’ (meetings).
How does trust relate to management speak? Quite simply because jargon creates barriers, preventing people from communicating effectively. We’ve said it once, and we’ll say it again – start talking like normal human beings and you’ll find that people not only understand you, but will relate far better to you and what you’re trying to communicate. Everyone will be better off – and so will the organisation.