Stories About Storytelling
Found 460 stories. Page 15 of 23.
Our Brain on Purpose
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - Psychology teaches us that humans are irrational, adaptable, constantly changing beings with cognitive abilities greater than any other animal. Economics would have us think we are rational, unchanging, robots devoid of empathy or feelings towards anyone else. So what happens when these two branches of the social science tree meet: welcome to behavioral economics.This is the third post in a short series on purpose. If you missed the first one, you should start here. The second post can be found here.
While Celebrating Improvement in One Metric, Beware of Unintended Consequences: Part 18
NEW METRICS - In 17 earlier parts of this series, Claire Sommer, Jill Lipoti and I developed 34 pitfalls in the sustainable business metrics field, based on the experiences of many mostly non-business fields. (Find them here.)
[email protected]: The Key to Solving Hunger
PRESS RELEASE - How can we get food to the 800 million hungry people in the world?Esther Ndichu | UPS
Want Your Brand to Survive? View Purpose as an Asset, Not a Cost
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - Recently, I was invited for a panel discussion on the future in brand communication at the renowned faculty of advertising and marketing, the ESPM, in São Paulo. I shared my view that society nowadays demands brands to positively contribute to the solution of societal issues. One of the questions raised was: “All very nice, but is it in companies not all about the financial results at the end of the month? So is the investment in purpose not the first cut a brand faces when financial results are down?”
The Making of Fairphone 2 (or How to Design Products to Tell Sustainability Stories)
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - “I want our new phone to be a storytelling product.” This was the exciting and daunting challenge laid down to us by Fairphone CEO Bas van Abel, just over a year ago, in the first briefing for their new ethical phone handset design.
How to Fix Capitalism: Part One
THE NEXT ECONOMY - This is the second post in a short series on purpose. If you missed the first one, you should start here.I’m not going to pretend to have all the answers, but I think I’ve at least become better at understanding the problem. Capitalism has lost sight of its original purpose and is too narrowly focused on profit at the expense of society. There are very simple things we can do as citizens to help get things back on track, but we’ll need the help of policy for the heavy lifting.
ROSI: JetBlue's Unique New Metrics for Assessing the ROI of Sustainability
NEW METRICS - In a whitepaper released this summer, JetBlue explores how building wider purpose into brands yields competitive advantage. “The Matter with Metrics: Measuring the ROI of Sustainability” presents a four-pronged framework to creating and measuring authentic sustainability programs and consumer messaging.I spoke with Nancy Elder, VP of Communications at JetBlue and co-author of the paper, about how to bake sustainability into business models and reap its multiple financial benefits.
Experimenting on Purpose: An Introduction
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - In 1928, a struggling scientist working to find a cure for bacteria became frustrated with his work and decided he needed a break. This was not the tidiest of scientists and instead of properly cleaning up, he simply left his dirty petri dish in the sink. Of course, when he came back days later he found what we’ve all discovered in our college kitchens, a petri dish full of mold and bacteria. But luckily for this up and coming scientist he also noticed that the bacteria in his dish were not growing where the mold had formed. His name was Alexander Fleming and he accidentally discovered penicillin.
Yes, You Can Learn From a Regulator: The Pitfalls of Sustainable Business Metrics, Part 17
NEW METRICS - In 16 earlier parts of this series, Claire Sommer and I developed 29 pitfalls in the sustainable business metrics field, based on the experiences of many mostly non-business fields. (Find them here.) From this point on, the series will be co-authored by Dr. Jill Lipoti.
Want People to Read Your Sustainability Report? Add a Personal Touch
MARKETING AND COMMS - Corporate responsibility report season is upon us, and with that, we are constantly being inundated with important data — reductions in carbon emissions, savings in waste and changes in energy use. This increase in sustainability reporting is a sign that we’re all moving towards a more sustainable future, but how can you make sure that the information you’re reporting on is relatable — that it’s truly resonating? How can you ensure that your customers and consumers feel connected to your sustainability report?
AT&T Kicks Off School Year with More Than $20 Million Investment in Students and Teachers
PRESS RELEASE - AT&T is kick starting the 2015-2016 school year with $20 million in contributions to education organizations through its AT&T Aspire program. Students and teachers in more than 26 states will benefit. This back to school investment is just one of the ways that AT&T is using the power of its network to build a better tomorrow.
What Is Your 'Why'? How I Learned to Live My Purpose
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE - What is your why? It is a question that you have most likely been confronted with at some point in your life. But, do you truly know what it means? And more importantly, have you been able to clearly define your why? Simon Sinek’s TED talk, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action,” is a great place to start in getting to the answer of these questions. This little talk has been a great inspiration for me in finding my why.
Poised for growth – Corporate Responsibility at Symantec
PRESS RELEASE - Corporate responsibility is about more, not less: more value creation, more collaboration, more diversity and more passion. This belief in continuous growth and improvement is central to our approach to corporate responsibility here at Symantec. It’s been a busy year for us with dozens of new product releases, global expansion of our services and a historic decision to split the company into two stand-alone entities – one focused on security and the other on information management. Amidst all the activity and progress, we remain laser-focused on our commitment to corporate responsibility, because we’ve seen time and time again that it provides clear value to our employees and our business, the environment and society.
The Implications of an Emerging Corporate Conscience for Sustainable Business Metrics: Part 16
NEW METRICS - In 15 earlier parts of this series, Claire Sommer and I developed 28 pitfalls in the sustainable business metrics field, based on the experiences of many mostly non-business fields. (Find them here.)
How Job Purposing Can Convert Your Sustainability Practices Into Superb Management
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE - “I hate my job.” It’s a sign of a warped world that most of us have heard friends, family or our own lips make this gloomy statement. Chances are that four out of every five people working for you right this minute would rather be not working. This is the percentage of global workers who are not “involved in, enthusiastic about and committed to work” — in other words, not engaged — according to Gallup. Why does this matter? Disengaged workers produce less and turn over more. As a result, companies and teams with largely disengaged workers underperform financially by more than 50 percent compared to those with mostly engaged workers.
Dear SB Vanguard: Is Competition in Business Inherently Destructive?
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - This is the latest in a series of posts in which we will poll our global community of business leaders and practitioners — the “SB Vanguard” — on a variety of issues pertinent to the evolving sustainable business landscape.
How Do You Get Other Departments to Listen? Let Your Colleagues Run With Your Ideas
NEW METRICS - In the sustainability field, in contrast to other fields, it is the biggest possible compliment to no longer be needed in a discussion because your colleague in purchasing is already covering your topics. But how do you get your colleagues to not just listen to your ideas, but to consider them worth working towards?Ideally, your colleagues would not only acknowledge sustainability topics, but run with them. That tells you that something is changing. The companies making the biggest changes are those where everybody feels responsible — from the cleaning lady to the purchasing department. But how can you work towards this?
46 Tips for Better Sustainability Storytelling
MARKETING AND COMMS - Everybody loves a list, right? Right.Well, here’s mine – a 46-point manifesto-like checklist for anybody looking to communicate corporate sustainability. It’s not rocket science. But as the following pointers suggest, there’s every opportunity to get it wrong and a plethora of reasons to get it right.1. Make it materialWhen it comes to creating content and communicating your story, the world is your oyster; sustainability is a broad church and there’s almost too much ground to cover. If it’s important to your business and customers, you should be talking about it. If it’s not important, you shouldn’t bother.2. Do it frequently
Future-Fit Businesses Include Sustainability in Leadership Competencies
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE - Over the past few weeks, several people have shared with me how they’re using my sustainability competencies research and guide to define the leadership skills and knowledge needed for long-term business — and societal — success. The feedback has been swift and promising. I am delighted (and encouraged!) to hear about the distinct and specific ways that these individuals are putting the competencies research to work for their organizations.
Would You Want to Read Your Company’s Sustainability Report?
MARKETING AND COMMS - "It's all in our Sustainability Report."That's a phrase guaranteed to strike fear in the hearts of even the hardiest sustainability wonks.
