Corporate Storytelling

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CORPORATE STORYTELLING:
Discovering Fire for the Second Time
Vol. 7, No. 7, 2007

Publisher: Evelyn Clark
evelyn@corpstory.com http://www.corpstory.com

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“A consistent, well-told story is one common thread among diverse successful companies, such as Merck.”

--The Motley Fools
Investment Advisors

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IN THIS ISSUE

1. Conflict on the Management Team? Faulty Assumptions May be at Fault

2. What Does Your Company Do—and Why?

3. Major Media News: From Fast Company to Costco Connection and Beyond

4. Executives Rank Storytelling Retreat Highest of Four

5. Corporate Storytelling Live

1. Conflict on the Management Team? Faulty Assumptions May be at Fault

A study examining two types of conflict that management teams encounter found that “…many top management teams are unnecessarily encountering difficulties because of member’ faulty assumptions.” To examine conflicts based on tasks and those based on relationships, the authors of Improving the Performance of Top Management Teams studied organizational values of top management teams in 31 companies, searching for clues as to how top management teams can avoid these difficulties.

According to a report published by MIT Sloan Management Review, the authors concluded that such conflicts can be reduced by changing management practices. First, they suggest establishing an appropriate atmosphere for the team. Second, “because perceptions become reality, understand and manage them”. Third, try to uncover the reasons for the gap between perception and reality; and fourth, correct serious misperceptions by taking decisive action. By following these steps, the authors say companies will be more successful.

To read the entire excerpt or purchase the entire article visit: http://sloanreview.mit.edu/smr/issue/2007/spring/13/

2.What Does Your Company Do—and Why?

Most business can’t tell you “what they do and why you should be doing business with them…or can’t express their own marketing story”, according to the author of an article published by MarketingProfs.com (and Evelyn would readily agree!). Jerry Bader offers guidance on how to tell your story and tell it as “boldly as you can.”

Bader says businesses need to know who they are, and they need to portray a story that is full of life in order to close sales. To develop an effective story, Bader recommends asking yourself, “How will our product or service change our customers?” He points that powerful sales messages highlight change for the better, e.g. how the product is going to make people look better, feel better, improve their health, or make them richer.

“All good marketing stories highlight the change that your audience wants to make in their business and personal lives”, according to the author. His best advice is to motivate people to make changes by incorporating a story in your sales and marketing messages.

For the full article, go to: http://www.marketingprofs.com/7/six-questions-produce-successful-web-advertising-bader.asp

3. Major Media News: From Fast Company to Costco Connection and Beyond

Articles by and about Evelyn and her book, Around the Corporate Campfire, have been featured recently in major media around the globe. In this month’s issue of Fast Company, columnists Dan Heath and Chip Heath, authors of Made to Stick, tell the Calvin Klein Jeans story from Costco that was featured in Evelyn’s book. If you haven’t yet seen the Fast Company column, you can read it at http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/120/analysis-of-paralysis.html

That was only appropriate reciprocity for The Costco Connection article in the October issue based on Evelyn’s book and work. The other people interviewed for the article were clients and colleagues she recommended—and they included Chip Health, whom she met at a conference last March where they both spoke. To read the article, go to http://www.costcoconnection.com/connection/200710/?folio=22

Her work also was featured in several Asian media as a result of her appearance at the Singapore Storytelling Festival and Asian Storytellers Congress, as reported in previous newsletters. Among those was an article she authored that was published in Singapore’s Weekend Today, discussing companies that are using stories as a management communication tool.

The Weekend Today article can be accessed by clicking on this link: http://corpstory.com/weekendtoday.pdf

4. Executives Rank Storytelling Retreat Highest of Four

The two-day storytelling retreat that Evelyn recently led for 30 healthcare executives in Buffalo, NY, received the highest rankings of four summits that are part of a leadership training program managed by the Community Healthcare Foundation of Central and Western New York (CHFCWNY). The retreat was the second that Evelyn has led, delivering the communication skills segment under the pilot program that CHFCWNY developed in partnership with the University of Buffalo.

An 18-month course focused on four key leadership skills, the pilot training program is more than halfway completed, with the second group of executives more than halfway through the coursework and the third group just beginning. The first class demonstrated marked improvement in their presentation skills, as illustrated in before/after videotapes of each person telling their organization’s story. Especially notable is that they ranked the storytelling retreat as the most valuable of four sessions comprising the program’s in-class work.

5. Corporate Storytelling Live

It’s hard to believe that the 3rd European Storytelling Congress is almost here—next week, in fact! As mentioned last summer, Evelyn is leading the master class at the two-day event on Friday, November 23rd. She will focus on how top organizations achieve their goals through values-based storytelling and will show participants how to develop and disseminate a collection of powerful stories for their organizations.

The two-day event begins Thursday and features a great line-up of speakers from top companies. If you'll be near Salzburg, Austria, next week, please join the corporate communications executives from around Europe who will be attending. And be sure to say hello to Evelyn. She would love to meet you!

For the program schedule and registration information, go to: http://www.storytellingkongress.eu/programm.pdf

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