A Strategic Story About Strategic Storytelling

Book Karin & David Today A Strategic Story about Strategic Storytelling Over the years, I even have used strategic storytelling workshops to assist drive key messages, construct groups, and enhance communication expertise. Today, I share the story of how my curiosity in that started, and why I frequently use it in my management at present. Many years in the past again in my HR days, I spent the higher a part of a year engaged on an intensive front-line leadership development program. We had interviewed everybody, constructed the competency fashions, created the curriculum and worked with vendors to import experience on specific matters. Then, the entire thing came to a screeching halt. A big merger was announced, and the program was put “on maintain.” Everything was changing management, organizational constructions, priorities, funding views about certain competencies. It just wasn’t “the most important rock” at that time. This stuff occurs. I understood the dynamics, however I was devastated. All that work and there have been still frontline l eaders that needed improvement now. The work wasn’t altering at that degree, and we had identified a necessity. The organization was stuffed with younger, inexperienced leaders. And we had been younger HR leaders, with ardour and a trigger. I sat within the conference room with my co-employee with whom I had collaborated on this project. We just checked out each other. What should we do now? After we got over feeling sorry for ourselves, we started working. We determined that what we needed to do most of all was to discover a approach to “transfer leadership mindset.” The best leaders we noticed on the front lines have been those who had some scar-tissue from expertise, mixed with different management competencies. If only we could assist to speed up the learnings of that have to others. How might we do this? For free? Our answer storytelling. Without saying our intentions (just a causal whisper to our bosses), we created a series of strategic storytelling workshops designed f or numerous levels of the enterprise. In these workshops, we would ask each chief to replicate on their very own values, priorities, and history and identify a personal story that reflected their approach to management. The tales would then be shared with the staff, and every chief would supply feedback on their story and supply. The themes from every story would be discussed and leveraged to create norms for the staff (or group). The individuals would work to determine opportunities to include strategic storytelling into their communication plans. Once we had our strategic storytelling plan, we made appointments to meet with the friendliest senior leaders we knew to sell in our concept. We informed our story of delayed funding, and our storytelling solution. We had been met with what I can best describe as a “what the heck” response and an invite to strive it in various contexts and ranges across the corporate. The best response was from the exec who had “used strategic story telling for years.” He then pulled out a pencil-on-graph-paper strategic communication plan matrix together with his three main messages for the yr, and the varied tales he would inform in different contexts and levels to strengthen it. Game on! We held every little thing from large scale meetings of frontline leaders with storytelling circles to intimate executive teambuilding classes. The best stories have been the ones the place the leaders allowed themselves to be vulnerable, which was notably cathartic and necessary right now of changing scenery. (We later captured this system, key learnings, and a abstract of the themes gathered from this key time in an ASTD Storytelling InfoLine (the link I embrace here mostly for nostalgia, not promoting). So now I ask you What key messages did you're taking away from this story? In the years that adopted, I actually have used the storytelling workshop ideas in my very own management and have facilitated classes with my very own staff. Yes terday, I shared a submit on Lead Change Group on this and other “Do It Yourself” leadership strategies. I hope you'll take pleasure in.DIY Leadership: Easy Leadership Programs You Can Run Yourself. Karin Hurt, Founder of Let’s Grow Leaders, helps leaders all over the world obtain breakthrough outcomes, with out dropping their soul. A former Verizon Wireless government, she has over 20 years of expertise in gross sales, customer support, and HR. She was named on Inc's listing of 100 Great Leadership Speakers and American Management Association's 50 Leaders to Watch. She’s the creator of several books: Courageous Cultures: How to Build Teams of Micro-Innovators, Problem Solvers, and Customer Advocates (Harper Collins Summer 2020), Winning Well: A Manager's Guide to Getting Results-Without Losing Your Soul, Overcoming an Imperfect Boss, and Glowstone Peak. Post navigation thirteen Comments Have you heard of The Ariel Group close to Boston, Karin? They train the artwork of Story Telling in their Leadership Presence workshop. Thanks Tina… will check them out. Enjoyed studying about your use of Strategic Story telling. Interesting that vulnerability makes highly effective content to the listener and permits connection at a “real” level. Thanks Lisa, Thanks a lot for becoming a member of the conversation. YES! I do think displaying our vulnerability draws individuals in.. it makes us actual, and therefore extra human and attention-grabbing. I am so glad to have you concerned within the dialog. I hope you'll be back to share extra of your insights. Your e mail tackle is not going to be revealed. Required fields are marked * Comment Name * Email * Website This web site makes use of Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your remark knowledge is processed. Join the Let's Grow Leaders group at no cost weekly leadership insights, tools, and strategies you need to use right away!