Barack Obama’s Storytelling Skills

10th Jan 2008 @ 9.07pm

John Gapper’s excellent article in the Financial Times talks of the lessons that Barack Obama can teach business leaders.

Among these is is that storytelling is crucial to business. “Many CEOs stand or fall by their ability to frame a story” says Gapper, “not only for investors or analysts about how they are turning a business around but for employees to engage them in making it happen”.

Clearly Senator Obama is a great storyteller, engaging the electorate in a compelling vision of a new America, and a noble cause that is bigger than any individual. In business too, as John Gapper says, most people are eager to do something more than earn money and fill in time at work. We believe that by sharing a compelling vision and engaging people in it, discretionary effort will be unleashed and sparkling performance will result. This is what makes good companies great.

posted by Paul Honeywell
filed under Misc