Published:
10/03/2011 01:18pm
Time to Unleash the Power of Storytelling
If you would like to become a better leader, what better way than to emulate the CEOs of FedEx, Nike, Costco Wholesale, and other top business leaders? Recognized as among the best executives in the corporate world, these leaders know that communication is one of their most important responsibilities—and they use a tool that’s been called the most effective in a leader’s toolkit. That tool is storytelling.
Costco Co-founder and CEO Jim Sinegal is a prime example of a corporate leader who naturally uses storytelling and concurs that it is a powerful leadership tool. As related in Around the Corporate Campfire: How Great Leaders Use Stories to Inspire Success, Sinegal says that as a leader, “all you can do is relate the successful experiences you’ve had within the company. What else have we got besides stories? That’s what really hits home with people; it’s what brings meaning to the work we do. And when you have real examples, like our success in selling Calvin Klein jeans, that’s what resonates.
“A picture is worth a thousand words, and a story told appropriately is priceless. Telling one of our own stories speaks volumes about our philosophy and our values.”
Stories to Convey Corporate Values
One of the top ways these leaders use stories is to convey corporate values, a practice that Costco has used very successfully since its founding in 1983. Particularly when a company is growing very quickly as U.S.-based Costco has—expanding from one store in Seattle, Washington, to more than 500 in several countries, it’s a challenge to provide clear guidance to every new employee. By repeating key stories to new management trainees, for example, Sinegal ensures that they understand the founders’ values and know how to enact them as they carry out their daily responsibilities.
Stories to Attract and Retain Employees
Organizations that accurately convey their values and describe their culture attract and retain employees who fit in easily and become loyal supporters. Nike does this very effectively by maintaining a corporate museum at headquarters, where new employee orientation includes a tour of the museum. The tour leader shares stories about corporate artifacts, such as the waffle iron that co-founder Bill Bowerman used to test his theory that a waffle sole would be ideal for a well-cushioned running shoe.
Telling stories about employees “caught doing things right” effectively conveys the mission and explain how to enact the corporate values in everyday activities. In addition to underscoring the company’s values, this approach recognizes deserving employees and celebrates their successes. FedEx makes heroes of its employees on a regular basis. Most often the heroes are the delivery truck drivers because they are the ones charged with fulfilling the company’s promise to get the customer’s package delivered on time. Others may be office or store personnel who “go the extra mile” to help a customer solve a problem.
Stories to Build Cohesive Teams
Storytelling also creates the glue that helps team members bond and stick together. When a new team forms, effective leaders provide the time and space for each to share stories of their experiences in the organization, their careers and/or their personal lives. This enables team members to get to know one another in a deeper, more meaningful way than they would otherwise, and it also helps them discover shared values and experiences that serve to strengthen camaraderie.
People who know one another and share values are more willing to support one another, and they also work together better in serving the customer. Everyone involved wins.
Stories to Guide People through Change
Another way that leading organizations leverage the power of storytelling is to help people thrown off balance by major change. When a company announces a merger, acquisition, or reorganization, people can panic and productivity can dive.
Managers and leaders who share their own stories of successfully adapting to change will mini
