The execution shortcut – the power of storytelling

The power of storytelling

Draw an imaginary ‘E’ on your forehead. Now, did you draw it with the solid bar on your left and the openings on the right? Or with the solid bar on your right with the openings on the left?

The first choice produces a backward and illegible ‘E’ from the viewer’s perspective. The second choice leads to an ‘E’ that’s backwards to you but could be read by someone else. Researchers discovered that business leaders are more likely to opt for the first because the more power we have, the harder we find it to imagine the world from someone else’s perspective. They draw the letter backwards because they’re used to others adapting to their point of view. The point for communicators is fairly obvious – a good message is crafted for the recipient rather than the person sending the message.

The ‘E’ story is one of around 20 used by Jeroen De Flander as chapter openers in his new book The Execution Shortcut. Each story illustrates the point he’s about to make as he attempts to explain why some strategies become a huge success and others never get off the ground.

He uses a storyteller’s approach because his research shows that communication (or lack of it) is one of the main hurdles new strategies face – and storytelling is the most effective way of communicating.

“If you wrap a story around the message it’s easier for people to absorb – people like to read stories, it puts information into context,” says Jeroen, co-founder of research, training and advisory firm, The Performance Factory, and author of previous bestseller Strategy Execution Heroes.

“It’s easier for people to communicate the message to others because it’s easier to remember,” he says simply, adding that his own research shows it’s 20 times easier to remember a point with a story. But it can’t be just any story. “Communicators have a very important role to find stories that enhance the message,” says Jeroen. “You can’t just bolt a story onto your message.

“If I had started each chapter of my book with any story, it might be good to read but it wouldn’t add value because it wouldn’t match the message.”

He stresses that finding the right story is key because if strategies are to work, behaviours need to change so employees need more than information, they need a reason to act in a way of remembering the message.

“We’re often told that knowledge is the key to everything and it’s about finding the knowledge and passing it on – but that’s not how behaviours get changed,” he says. “You first have to aim for the heart.”

“Internal communicators must make that stretch in their mind. My experience, working with internal communicators, is that they often get bogged down with the knowledge and passing it on.” They put it in a nice PowerPoint or present it nicely on the intranet and hope for the best. Many organisations just do communication as an exercise; they say “It’s important to communicate” but that’s where it stops.

Communicators really could become advisors on strategic communication rather than just passing the message on

“Many communicators don’t take up the role they could – they really could become advisors on strategic communication rather than just passing the message on.” “Communicators should always be on the lookout for stories they can use to show people how a strategy can work,” Jeroen De Flander says. “It’s amazing how many stories are available inside an organisation.” He also says people are welcome to use the stories he has collected in The Execution Shortcut – and he says everything from the urban myth about kidney harvesting to facts about Roger Bannister breaking the four-minute mile can be used in business comms. “Repeat my stories,” he says. “Some people, those that focus too much on content, see the stories as a by-product, but every communicator should put the story central – they’ll then take off and the strategy will follow.”

The power of storytelling

The power of storytelling

Why do some strategies become a roaring success while others barely get out of the boardroom door? Internal communications are key, especially if they harness the power of storytelling.

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About the author

Jeroen De Flander is one of the world’s most influential thinkers on strategy execution and a highly regarded keynote speaker. He has shared the stage with prominent thinkers like Michael Porter, Costas Markides, Roger Martin, Robert Kaplan & David Norton and helped more than 23,500 managers in 35+ countries master the necessary execution skills.

His first book Strategy Execution Heroes reached the Amazon bestseller list in 5 countries and was nominated for Management Book of the Year 2012 in the Netherlands. His second book, The Execution Shortcut, reached the #3 spot in its category on Amazon.

Jeroen is co-founder of the performance factory – a leading research, training, and advisory firm focused solely on helping individuals and organizations increase performance through best-in-class strategy execution.

He has worked with several business schools including London Business School, IMD, Vlerick, Solvay, and Tias. For several years, he was the responsible manager worldwide of the Balanced Scorecard product line for Arthur D. Little, a leading strategy consulting firm.

He has advised 75+ companies including Atos Worldline, AXA, Bridgestone, Brussels Airport, CEMEX, Credit Suisse, GDFSUEZ, Honda, ING, Johnson & Johnson, Komatsu, Nike and Sony on various strategy and strategy execution topics.