Stories&Culture

JUNE 2004 / PAGE C. WORTMANN / CAN STORIES CHANGE A CULTURE? / © 2007 PAGE 1

CAN STORIES CHANGE A CULTURE?

CRAIG WORTMANN

What is “culture?”

A quick check of the dictionary yields no less than 12 different definitions of “culture,”ranging across the arts, anthropology, biology, education, and sociology. Here are mytwo favorites:

cul • ture [kuhl-cher] i

1. the behaviors and beliefs characteristic of a particular social, ethnic, or age group:the youth culture; the drug culture.

2. the development or improvement of the mind by education or training.

So it seems fair to say that in an organizational context, culture is the “behaviors andbeliefs characteristic of a particular organization.” These behaviors and beliefs emergeover time, usually as a result of a strong Founder or CEO’s influence (think “Microsoft,”“GE,” and “IBM”), a “near-death” experience (think “AT&T”), a positive customerreaction to the business model (think “Dell,” “FedEx,” and “McDonalds”), or aparticular work ethic (think “Accenture”). Many company cultures have been shapedby a combination of these forces. Like a virus, these “behaviors and beliefs” infect everyaspect of the business, from hiring practices to corporate governance.

Table of contentsWhat is “culture?”…………………….1Do cultures actually change?............2Can stories change a culture?..........3Stories – into the bloodstream...……7Telling stories verbally……………….7Telling stories digitally……………….9Additional resources………………..13My Thoughts and Ideas……………15


A strong corporate culture is a powerful thing. I remember joining IBM as a brand newprofessional, and it didn’t take long for me to “turn blue” with company pride. Culturesets the rules, manages the players, and doles out the consequences. Culture defines thevery game itself.

But what happens when significant change is introduced into this system? Like a neworgan being introduced to a human body, strong drugs must accompany this change lestthe body reject it!

Do cultures actuallychange?

Cultures do change. Slowly, sometimes imperceptibly, attitudes and beliefs shift awayfrom what were once non-negotiable certainties toward a completely new way oflooking at things.

On a broad social level, consider how attitudes and beliefs towards slavery and civilrights have changed. On an economic level, look at attitudes towards globalization andshifting work around the world. On an organizational level, look at how we havechanged our attitudes towards how and where the work gets done. On an individuallevel, look at how we have changed the tools we use to get the job done. [Look atsomething as simple as the dress code! As an IBMer, I was required to wear white shirts, suits,and ties every day of the week. This was not up for negotiation…until it was.]


These changes in attitudes and beliefs, of course, happen over time. And they happen infits and starts…it is rarely a clear, straight path to a new understanding. But changedoes happen.

Can stories change aculture?

Yes. Stories are the most powerful way to change a culture. Since the building blocks ofculture are “behaviors” and “beliefs,” these must be addressed head-on in order forchange to take hold. One mistake that leaders make repeatedly is that we over-rely onfacts to tell people what’s changed, as if a clearer understanding of the facts willsuddenly affect their behavior. This approach doesn’t work any better than relying onthe facts to tell people that smoking will kill them.

“A story has shape, outline, andlimits, whereas an experience blurs atthe edges.”

— Robert Fulford


We don’t change peoples’ behaviors and beliefs by saying to them; “Well, as a healthinsurance company, we used to be about paying claims for sick people, but now we are abouthelping people live healthier lives.” Instead, we tell stories about how one of our CustomerRepresentatives used claims history to notice that a woman’s child was showing theearly warning signs of diabetes and provided her with information that helped her sonavoid spiraling into the disease.

We don’t say; “Hey, let’s not be an airline that just transports people from place to place, butlet’s have fun. Yeah, that’s right…go have some fun.” Instead, we create and tell stories ofwhat this looks like when it’s happening, from the CEO riding his motorcycle intocorporate headquarters to the flight attendants cracking jokes during their safetydemonstrations.

Stories are sticky. Because stories are character-driven, people can easily relate theaction of a story to their own context. Unlike bullet points on slides and in emails,stories do a number of things well that help people better understand not just the “what,”but the “how” and “why.” The how and the why are the only things that help peoplechange their behaviors. We can tell people what to do until we are blue in the face, butonly until we engage them in the how and why do we have a chance of impacting theirbeliefs.

In Corporate America, it’s now official - people are bulletproof. We all have so muchinformation coming at us all the time, that we’ve learned how to tune out most of it. Weeven tune out emails from our senior executives exhorting us to do this or that. Bulletpoints bounce off of us like the never-ending stream of “headlines” running at thebottom of our TV screens, rarely sticking long enough to register in our consciousness.

So, how do stories change a culture?

Stories “add back” context. When we show people slides with bullet points on them,what we are actually showing them is a lot of rich information that has been strippeddown to its bare minimum for expediency’s sake. It’s like if I say “Just treat our customers

“Our main finding, put simply, is thatthe central issue is never strategy,structure, culture, or systems. Allthose elements, and others, areimportant. But the core of thematter is always about changingthe behavior of people, andbehavior change happens in highlysuccessful situations mostly byspeaking to people’s feelings. Thisis true even in organizations that arevery focused on analysis andquantitative measurement, evenamong people who think ofthemselves as smart in an M.B.A.sense. In highly successfulchange efforts, people find ways tohelp others see the problems orsolutions in ways that influenceemotions, not just thought.Feelings then alter behaviorsufficiently to overcome all the manybarriers to sensible large-scalechange.”

— John Kotter,author of The Heart of Change


with more empathy” instead of telling the rich story about how we received a letter ofthanks from a customer after one of our call center representatives showed true concernfor a child’s broken arm. We can’t assume that people know these stories and context.

Stories carry success and failure. A story lets listeners/viewers “see” the differencesbetween success and failure, and the behaviors that lead to both. Upon hearing a story,people often identify on some level with the characters leading the action and theyacknowledge that they too have been in the same situations. Thus, a story helps to putthe listener in the center of the problem.

Stories help us reflect and learn. Just like the “zig-zag” bridge in any Japanese garden,a story slows us down just long enough to take in what’s around us. Whereas bits andbullets fly by us and bounce off us without even being noticed, a story helps us lookaround and see multiple perspectives and ways of dealing with issues.

Stories influence. A story doesn’t “tell you what to do,” but rather lets you draw yourown conclusions. In that way, stories influence us to create the right kinds of behavior.Annette Simmons says it best; “The power to influence is often associated with force, theability to make someone do what you want them to do. That suggests a push strategy. However,story is a pull strategy – more like a powerful magnet than a bulldozer.” The figure belowillustrates how stories bring the critical context back to information:

A “zig-zag” bridge


Stripping away the most important “context” and leaving only the bullet points

These powerful aspects of stories draw on both our intellect and our emotions to help usimagine the changes that need to be made, and to “see” ourselves as part of that process.With leadership and proper reinforcement over time, the culture begins to change.


Stories – into thebloodstream

In order for stories to impact a culture, they must first get “into the bloodstream.” Thereare two main ways that stories are communicated into organizations: verbally anddigitally.

Telling stories verballyLeaders in organizations often tell stories, especially when the pace of change isaccelerating (i.e. most organizations). They tell stories when they create strategy andwhen introduce a new product. But often, the only audience receiving these stories istheir immediate peers. As leaders, we need better ways of making sure we are tellingthe right stories that animate the change we are trying to drive.

When it comes to telling stories verbally, the Story Matrix and Story Coach (shown onpages 8 and 9) have been helpful tools for leaders to capture and tell the right stories atthe right times.

The Story MatrixThe Story Matrix is a simple tool that is designed to capture the stories that will mostimpact performance. The purpose of the Story Matrix is to give leaders ready access totheir own stories, such that they can more be deliberate about weaving those stories intotheir communications.

The vertical axis represents stories about successes, failures, fun and legends (timelessbusiness artifacts, such as stories about Henry Ford, Jack Welch or Herb Kelleher). Thecategories are meant to allow leaders to choose the most appropriate story, based onwhether they are motivating a team or an individual, providing corrective feedback orjust having some fun.

Stories are like the water table. Theyalways exist just under the surfaceand all we need to do is tap them anddrink from them.


The categories on the horizontal axis may change depending on the type of leader.These categories represent the areas or groups that a leader most has to influence.

When the Story Matrix is filled in, it becomes a dynamic tool that leaders can use to havea greater impact with their communications.

Story Matrix of a Senior Leader who needs to exert influence on broad categories across the wholeorganization (i.e. “leadership” and “execution”)

“A good story cannot be devised, it hasto be distilled.”

— Raymond Chandler


The Story CoachThe Story Coach helps leaders apply the stories they have captured to differentperformance challenges. The figure below outlines the I.G.N.I.T.E. elements of the StoryCoach.

The Story Coach is a tool that helps leaders ensure their stories ignite action

Telling stories digitallyWhen a story or set of stories needs to reach large numbers of people, leaders must relyon digital means to get their stories told. Organizations have a myriad ofcommunications tools available to them – emails, presentations, newsletters, and portals.While accessible and quick, these familiar methods only communicate the “what” andthey fail to deliver on the “how” and “why.” Just like using a high-powered computeras a mere calculator, we often strip down our communications to accommodate thedelivery vehicles that are expedient.

Innovative leaders are just beginning to use digital delivery vehicles to broadcast theirstories widely into (and outside of) their organizations. Two story-based solutions that


leaders are using to push stories out into their organizations are eScenes™ andScenarios™.

Scene 2 of 6 in an eScene series on Decision-making

eScenes™eScenes are short story “trailers,” like movie trailers, that cut through the noise inorganizations to reach people with a sticky story about them. Each scene is delivered viaemail on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis in order to communicate a new sales strategy,an important win, a transformational effort, etc. eScenes are most often used to supporta large cultural change and communicate progress over time.


A scene of a Scenario on Leading through Change

Scenarios™Scenarios are organization-specific stories that take a deeper look at a performancechallenge and often involve the audience in problem-solving. These stories unfold overa week or two and tackle challenges as diverse as how the capital markets work,disaster-readiness, successful leadership, and smoking prevention.

When leaders “push” stories out into the organization both verbally and digitally, aninteresting phenomenon occurs. What begins as a “push” strategy is transformed into a“pull” strategy by the viral nature of stories. Once in the bloodstream, the stories areshaped, embellished, retold, and thereby gain momentum. Just like great new ideasand technologies, these stories slowly change the culture as they move through theorganization.…- Craig


For more information about the power of stories, contact:

Craig [email protected]


Additional resources

Recommended reading list:The Story FactorBy Annette SimmonsISBN: 0738206717

Information Anxiety 2By Richard Saul WurmanISBN: 0789724103


What’s Your Story?By Craig WortmannISBN: 1419535560

Research on “story:” There are a number of sources I used to gain insightsinto why stories work so well. I have listed them herefor those of you who want to dig a little deeper for a“research” foundation:- Joseph Campbell discusses the connections that

stories make in his book/CD “The Power of Myth”- Robert Fulford discusses research and how stories

affect people in his Canadian BroadcastingCompany Lecture Series called “The Triumph ofNarrative”

- George Lakoff and Mark Johnson cover howmetaphors and language choices work in their book“Metaphors We Live By” (beware…this book is verydense and written for an academic audience)

- Daniel Pink has recently written a fantastic book “AWhole New Mind” on right-brain vs. left-braincognition and why stories are so critical


My Thoughts and Ideas

i Source: Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1), Based on the Random House UnabridgedDictionary, © Random House Inc., 2006.

Stories&Culture

Business

behavior change

s culture

youth culture

drug culture

significant change

strong corporate culture

behaviors andtelling

behavior of people