We help business leaders engage their people in strategy, vision, values and change….connecting people through storytelling
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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 more…
posted by Alison Esse
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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.
posted by Alison Esse
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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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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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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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Interesting article from Simply Communicate on why storytelling should be promoted in business…
posted by Alison Esse
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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
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 more…
posted by Alison Esse
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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. Read more…
posted by Marcus Hayes
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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 more…
posted by Alison Esse
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Whilst traveling to a meeting on the underground recently I came across a wonderful example of storytelling… Read more…
posted by Ryan Dixon
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filed under Misc, Stories
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 more…
posted by Alison Esse
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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.
posted by Alison Esse
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I’d like to pass comment on an excellent book - The Bard & Co, published by Cyan. Read more…
posted by Alison Esse
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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.
posted by Paul Honeywell
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filed under Misc, Stories
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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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 more…
posted by Alison Esse
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How many of you get frustrated at having to go through national (or international) call centres to get through to the local branch of your bank? That is, if they allow you to speak to the branch in the first place!
I read an amusing story the other day about an elderly lady trying to phone the local branch of her bank. She was put through to a call centre in Asia, where the salesman tried his very best to persuade her to buy one of a whole suite of products, which she politely declined. Eventually he gave up, and asked her how he could help. “I was just wondering,” she said, “if I’d left my gloves on your counter.”
posted by Glenn Mason
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Great to see that JetBlue’s new advertising campaign is one of storytelling….
posted by Martin Clarkson
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A client told us about their experience when they decided to send a promotional mailing to all their customers all over the world.
Read more…
posted by Marcus Hayes
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A massaged ego is a wonderful thing when you think you are doing a fantastic job and people can’t get enough of what you are doing. But sometimes all is not what it seems…
I heard an amusing story the other day about a mining company which introduced a new-look newsletter for employees. The internal communications team was delighted with the response - the workforce kept asking for more and more newsletters and lots of back-patting back at HQ followed. That is, until some bright spark took it upon himself to check out exactly what it was about the newsletter that was creating such a wave of enthusiasm.
It turned out that the newsletter’s paper was perfect for rolling joints, and that is precisely what it was being used for…
posted by Alison Esse
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“Sir, what is the secret of your success?” a reporter asked a bank president.
“Two words.”
“And, Sir, what are they?” asked the reporter.
“Right decisions.”
“And how do you make right decisions?”
“One word.”
“What is that, Sir?”
“Experience.”
“And how do you get Experience?” the reporter asked.
“Two words.”
“And, Sir, what are they?”
“Wrong decisions.”
posted by Alison Esse
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A CEO friend of mine attended a talk the other day on organisational culture.
The speaker recounted the time he and his wife checked into a hotel bedroom. On the pillow was the usual feedback form, but under the section that read ‘Was The Room Cleaned To Your Satisfaction?’ was a hand-written note saying, ‘Please look under the bed - Betty’.
Much to his wife’s amusement the man started scrabbling under the bed, and found, right in the middle, a small card. On it was written: ‘I’ve cleaned under here as as well - Betty’.
The speaker’s theme was ‘Finding The Betty In Your Organisation!’
posted by Marcus Hayes
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We were highly inspired by this commencement address by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and Pixar Animation Studios, at Stanford University. It has nothing to do with being Apple aficionados (which we are)….his advice and experiences are truly insightful and often humbling. A word of advice: Pass this on to younger members of your family. They will learn from it too.
posted by Alison Esse
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I saw this on the back of The Week magazine… how clever to use a story as advertising this way:-
The Peculiar Incident of the Fishmonger Performing on Hilary’s Kitchen Table
posted by Alison Esse
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Here’s a story. I was going to buy a train ticket from Oxford to Halifax, via Kings Cross, yesterday morning. The very nice man in the ticket office advised me that being peak travel time it would cost 185. He said he hoped that I wasn’t going to have to pay for it personally, and went on to advise me to drive. So I did. Thank you for the advice, First Great Western.
posted by Alison Esse
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I read this recently reported story in Metro - there must be so many stories like this out there. I certainly remember a similar one from BT not so long ago. It just goes to show how a little initiative and investigating why things are as they are can make a difference.
The story is about a 17 year old work experience girl, Ade Sodeinde, who moved to Britain from Nigeria last year. She spent weeks looking into Central Trains timetable data to understand why an average of 84 trains per month were late setting off from their depot causing passenger delays and a fine of 4,500 each time a train missed its departure slot.
The teenager found that because drivers and conductors were not able to board trains on time as a result of safety checks and cleaning being carried out, they began to turn up late, throwing the whole system out of sync. Her findings resulted in the board’s decision to invest in more people, which has improved punctuality and saved the company at least 250,000 - with up to 750,000 savings potentially made by the end of the year.
posted by Alison Esse
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I was recently told by someone of how a friend’s BMW came back from the garage without the cigarette lighter. She phoned up the garage, and they said she should come and pick it up when next in the area.
posted by Alison Esse
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Apparently, the executives in charge of Tabasco for the McIlhenny Company in Louisiana were pondering how to increase sales of their famous product. They had called a meeting of their top brains, from sales, marketing, development, and the agency. Flip charts were used up with diagrams, projections, and ideas for ads and promotional offers.
posted by Alison Esse
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When she looked ahead, Florence Chadwick saw nothing but a solid wall of fog. Her body was numb. She had been swimming for nearly sixteen hours.
posted by Chris Spencer
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