Alison's Story
Communication's always been my thing. Well, that and water – in or out of it. As a child, when I wasn’t fishing for various forms of mysterious pond or rock-pool life I was writing letters ... Blue Peter, The Queen, the advertising agency which created BT's 'It's for yoo-hoo' campaign - they all heard from me frequently. The Post Office must have loved me! My first foray into storytelling came at the age of nine, when I wrote my first children's story (a gripping tale of two guinea-pigs called Mr & Mrs Digby-Rose). I went on to study modern languages at university and chose a career in PR. Writing, talking, spreading the word... you get the picture!
So it's come as no surprise really that I find myself in charge of new business and marketing at The Storytellers, building the company's profile and introducing this amazing concept to people in all sorts of different businesses. I love seeing our relationships with clients blossom from an introductory meeting to a close collaboration - and friendship - over time.
Out of the office I'm an official Wild Girl http://www.wildgirlsonsnow.com and love clay pigeon shooting, skiing, diving and sailing. Competitive sports are great - and there's always plenty to talk about afterwards even when you don't win!
Posts by Alison Esse
30th Jun 2008 @ 9.06am
As The Times publishes its Times Top 100 companies to work for, it comes as little surprise that the focus of this article by Sue Leonard is on the costs that can be saved by keeping your staff happy. And keeping your staff happy has as much to do with employee engagement and maintaining personal and career growth opportunities as it does paying them a good salary. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Engagement, Organisations
18th Jun 2008 @ 5.11pm
Our website now features a new section dedicated to new positions on offer in our rapidly-growing team. Over the last year we have seen a significant increase in interest in our proposition, and in tandem with ongoing product development (not to mention numerous tweaks, adjustments and improvements to the programme) we’re firing on all cylinders.
We’re an interesting and eclectic team of people with a combination of skills ranging from strategic communications, event facilitation, creative and multi-media design, organisational change, marketing and project management - fun to work with and keen to retain the ‘family’ culture as we grow, utterly dedicated to making this pioneering approach work for our clients to achieve the best possible results.
Have a look at the Careers section of the site, and if you think you or anyone you know fits the bill, get in touch!
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Misc
30th May 2008 @ 5.37pm
Martin and I recently ran a couple of workshops at the CiB conference in Brighton, which focused on employee engagement. How I am beginning to resent that phrase ‘employee engagement’. I would much prefer to use the term ‘connectivity’. Perhaps that’s a subject for another day. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Organisations
27th Apr 2008 @ 5.19pm
I’m in the middle of Allan Leighton’s book on Leadership, which is refreshingly honest and down to earth. It gives some fascinating insights from some of the captains of industry on the qualities of a good leader, illustrated through their own stories, drawn from their own experiences. Sir Philip Green, Surinder Arora, Stuart Rose, Jacqueline Gold, Richard Baker, Justin King, James Dyson….the list goes on.
Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Organisations
9th Apr 2008 @ 5.19pm
And then John Maeda has something to say in his book ‘The Laws Of Simplicity’….
To make anything simple, you need to apply ‘thoughtful reduction’; that’s why the iPod has fewer features than rival media players. Where you can’t reduce- and too much reduction destroys the value of your product - you have to hide complexity; which is why Google has almost nothing on its home page. But for your simplified product to succeed, it has also to appear more valuable than more complex products, something you achieve with classy materials and clever marketing; which is why Bang & Olufsen’s remote controls are heavier than you’d expect.
Right team….let’s look at our paper stock…..
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Misc
9th Apr 2008 @ 3.53pm
I wish I had been a fly on the wall at the recent Management Today lunch discussion between some of the UK’s top corporate leaders (Adam Crozier, Royal Mail, Sir Martin Sorrell, WPP, David Brennan, AstraZeneca, Val Gooding, Bupa, Lord Crisp, ex-NHS, Paul Coby, BA, Jane McKenzie, Henley College, Miranda Kennett, First Class Coach and Ian Powell, PwC).
Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Organisations
26th Mar 2008 @ 10.38am
Hmmmm, having a bit of writers’ block today, but I’ve found a great quote…
“Australian Aborigines say that the big stories—the stories worth telling and retelling, the ones in which you may find the meaning of your life—are forever stalking the right teller, sniffing and tracking like predators hunting their prey in the bush.”
Robert Moss, Dreamgates
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories
20th Mar 2008 @ 9.44am
Today is World Storytelling Day, which started in Sweden in 2003, and is a global celebration of the art of oral storytelling. It is celebrated every year on the Spring equinox in the northern hemisphere, the first day of Autumn equinox in the southern. On World Storytelling Day, as many people as possible tell and listen to stories in as many languages and at as many places as possible, during the same day and night.
Each year, many of the individual storytelling events that take place around the globe are linked by a common theme. The 2008 theme is Dream.
We are always delighted to hear of great business stories, so today’s the day for sharing them!
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories
17th Mar 2008 @ 2.49pm
Nice article in Personnel Today about Storytelling as a tool to create emotional buy-in for training and development departments. Well, we’re not exactly a ‘training company’, but they’re right in explaining why this approach is so powerful. This topic is becoming ever-more prevalent in business circles, and for good reason…
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Engagement
14th Mar 2008 @ 6.39pm
Communications consultancy CHA has recently published a report which highlights some fairly worrying news about the disengagement of employees and why they don’t seem to find their work worthwhile or meaningful. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Engagement, Organisations
7th Feb 2008 @ 12.54pm
Ernest Hemingway once claimed that his best story was written in six words: ‘For Sale: Baby shoes, never worn.’ Perhaps this takes clarity and simplicity to the extreme, but what a way to spark the imagination! The Guardian challenged some contemporary authors to put forward their own six-word stories, which are worth a read.
Our own work focuses on making an organisation’s strategic story clear, simple and memorable. Imagine writing a strategic story in six words - anyone up for having a go?!!! I’d love to see what’s out there!
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Organisations
22nd Jan 2008 @ 11.30am
My attention was recently drawn to a particular blog from the MD of Waitrose. Apart from being most entertaining, it was a great example of leadership role-modelling, not to mention an excellent tool to bring the MD closer to his employees and customers as well as providing a great platform for health and nutrition for both customers and employees alike. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Engagement, Organisations
14th Jan 2008 @ 8.56am
What makes a good leader? And more importantly, why? Here are seven ‘top tips’ for leaders who want to inspire their people, courtesy of The Practice of Leadership… Read item »
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filed under Misc, Organisations
13th Dec 2007 @ 9.59am
Interesting article from Simply Communicate on why storytelling should be promoted in business…
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filed under Stories, Organisations
30th Nov 2007 @ 4.48pm
Great article from People Management this month on how Storytelling can be used to engage employees…
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Engagement, Organisations
13th Nov 2007 @ 9.31am
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. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Engagement, Organisations
26th Oct 2007 @ 1.00pm
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. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Engagement, Organisations
24th Sep 2007 @ 9.57am
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. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Misc
12th Sep 2007 @ 2.45pm
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. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Organisations
21st Aug 2007 @ 11.35am
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. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Engagement, Organisations
10th Jul 2007 @ 12.48pm
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. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Organisations, Brands
13th Jun 2007 @ 1.57pm
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)!
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Misc
11th Jun 2007 @ 6.14pm
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.
Read item »
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filed under Stories, Organisations
28th May 2007 @ 4.29pm
The Guardian reviews The Bard & Co….
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filed under Organisations
21st May 2007 @ 5.31pm
I’d like to pass comment on an excellent book - The Bard & Co, published by Cyan. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Organisations
15th May 2007 @ 9.41am
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.
Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Misc
20th Apr 2007 @ 8.00am
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.
Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Misc, Engagement
13th Apr 2007 @ 3.17pm
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….
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Brands
6th Apr 2007 @ 7.46pm
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. Read item »
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Stories, Organisations
11th Dec 2006 @ 6.25pm
When it comes to successful cascading of information, all paths lead to leaders - how they role-model the actions and behaviours they expect from their teams, how they communicate down the line and how much interest they take in what’s going on at the coal-face. And that old chestnut ‘how to improve middle management communications’ keeps coming back time and time again.
It won’t come as a surprise to learn that people trust their line managers more than anyone else in the organisation - so, as we have said many times before, that layer of management is very powerful. But like dialogue, trust works both ways. Managers need to trust their teams too.
Think about it like a parent/child. If a parent constantly tells the child what to do, keeps the constraints tight and doesn’t allow the child to show he/she can be trusted to do the right thing, to explore the options and prove him/herself, the resulting attitude or behaviour will range from mere compliance to resentment and even rebellion.
In organisations, middle management behaviours so often reflect this ‘telling’ ethos - ‘this is what we need to do, now go away and do it’. Of course, training can be excellent for learning and development, but in some cases can itself also veer towards ‘telling’. Successful development and coaching of middle managers however is all about encouraging them to invite their teams to participate, explore, collaborate with ideas for better ways of working, share responsibility. It’s about involving them in the strategic planning (within a framework), inviting them to take the initiative, listening to their opinions, asking them for their input. This requires a different type of conversation - and it’s not a ‘telling’ kind of conversation, it’s an ‘inviting’ or ‘asking’ kind. Indeed, coaching and development needs to focus on showing managers HOW to go about having this kind of conversation. The ensuing sense of ownership and pride will be palpable, especially if it can be shared across the organisation. This approach will make a big difference to engagement.
posted by Alison Esse
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filed under Engagement, Organisations
