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How storytelling can drive strategic change

Gary Adamson (Chief Experience Officer of Starizon, a firm that helps clients design experiences that will transform how customers perceive their businesses. (gary@starizon.org))
Joe Pine (Co‐author of The Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a Stage, is Principal Innovator at Starizon (joe@starizon.org).)
Tom Van Steenhoven (Serves as Starizon's Business Storyteller, (tomcrea8@yahoo.com))
Jodi Kroupa (Starizon's Inspirational Immersion Guide. (jodi@starizon.org))

Strategy & Leadership

ISSN: 1087-8572

Article publication date: 1 January 2006

7340

Abstract

Purpose

The authors advocate making storytelling an integral tool of corporate strategy. Stories create the experience that lets strategy be understood at a personal level. In order to be effective, strategy must not just inform, it must. And people are never inspired by reason alone.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study of the development and presentation of a strategic story – one designed to describe the future of San Juan Regional. It became known as “The Raiders of the Lost Art.”

Findings

According the CEO of San Juan Regional: “We learned a whole new way for management and employees to work together to make dramatic new things happen. So we have committed to this type of storytelling and feedback to be done every 18 months.”

Research limitations/implications

Research on the success of companies implementing strategic change using the storytelling tool vs. those that rely on an analytical presentation would be valuable.

Practical implications

If you want your change message to actually take hold – if you want it to transform how things are done in your world – then weave your message about the new strategy into a compelling and memorable story.

Originality/value

When more leaders immerse their employees in compelling and inspirational strategy stories, more companies will achieve their change goals.

Keywords

Citation

Adamson, G., Pine, J., Van Steenhoven, T. and Kroupa, J. (2006), "How storytelling can drive strategic change", Strategy & Leadership, Vol. 34 No. 1, pp. 36-41. https://doi.org/10.1108/10878570610637876

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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