Chris Hare

I mean, you're obviously not going to communicate your business strategy to your customer, but you're going to communicate what's the differentiated future that only our company can create with our customers. In an ideal world, there should be one narrative and it should be the strategic narrative is the brand narrative, et cetera.

I mean, you're obviously not going to communicate your business strategy to your customer, but you're going to communicate what's the differentiated future that only our company can create with our customers. In an ideal world, there should be one narrative and it should be the strategic narrative is the brand narrative, et cetera.

But one of the challenges you run into is the brand narrative is often viewed as what's this creative manifesto that we're going to put out into the world. When you have one narrative that's directly hooked into the business strategy, absolutely it should be part and parcel of the brand, how the brand communicates, but it should be

But one of the challenges you run into is the brand narrative is often viewed as what's this creative manifesto that we're going to put out into the world. When you have one narrative that's directly hooked into the business strategy, absolutely it should be part and parcel of the brand, how the brand communicates, but it should be

If you want to use the word infect, but it should drive every single part of the company, customer experience, finance, operations, etc. A great example of this is when Bracken Darrell was the CEO of Logitech. Prior to that, he was the president at Braun, and he gave this speech about this future, this audacious future where every single part of a company would be led by human-centered design.

If you want to use the word infect, but it should drive every single part of the company, customer experience, finance, operations, etc. A great example of this is when Bracken Darrell was the CEO of Logitech. Prior to that, he was the president at Braun, and he gave this speech about this future, this audacious future where every single part of a company would be led by human-centered design.

And then he went looking for a company, failing so badly that the only way out was that narrative. And so that was Logitech. They were bleeding money, laying people off. I believe he 4X'd them in five years. What was fascinating is they won 250 design awards. He won the Edison Award that Gates and Jobs won. But all of that's big and exciting.

And then he went looking for a company, failing so badly that the only way out was that narrative. And so that was Logitech. They were bleeding money, laying people off. I believe he 4X'd them in five years. What was fascinating is they won 250 design awards. He won the Edison Award that Gates and Jobs won. But all of that's big and exciting.

But you go down to the small level, when they would close their books at the end of a quarter, it would take, I believe, 30 days for them to get any insights from that. So you imagine a company of that size with a blindfold on essentially for that 30 days.

But you go down to the small level, when they would close their books at the end of a quarter, it would take, I believe, 30 days for them to get any insights from that. So you imagine a company of that size with a blindfold on essentially for that 30 days.

And so they had two fairly low level accountants who took what was manifested within that culture about or what was taught within the culture about human centered design aligned to his narrative. And again, it's tricky, right? Because this wasn't who knows how I haven't seen how this was communicated within the company's narrative.

And so they had two fairly low level accountants who took what was manifested within that culture about or what was taught within the culture about human centered design aligned to his narrative. And again, it's tricky, right? Because this wasn't who knows how I haven't seen how this was communicated within the company's narrative.

What was interesting is they then went and re-architected their entire process of closing and they took it from using human centered design and took it from 30 days to two days.

What was interesting is they then went and re-architected their entire process of closing and they took it from using human centered design and took it from 30 days to two days.

So you imagine the impact that has on the business, but that shows the power of when the CEO has a narrative that they're then working with the business, not shoving it down and saying, you must do this thing, but having that narrative catch people's vision and propel them forward.

So you imagine the impact that has on the business, but that shows the power of when the CEO has a narrative that they're then working with the business, not shoving it down and saying, you must do this thing, but having that narrative catch people's vision and propel them forward.

I found it, and the young people listening might need to go to Wikipedia and look up what a cassette is, but I find it helpful and more visceral to think about narratives and our personal narratives as a cassette tape, a tape that's playing in our head, right? And that we're constantly writing and rewriting that and adjusting that.

I found it, and the young people listening might need to go to Wikipedia and look up what a cassette is, but I find it helpful and more visceral to think about narratives and our personal narratives as a cassette tape, a tape that's playing in our head, right? And that we're constantly writing and rewriting that and adjusting that.

This is the future I'm creating, or this is what's happening in the present, or this is what happened in the past, and we fuel that with stories. So I'll give you a few different practical examples. So one, I have this one CEO that I work with. He's a serial CEO and board member. And Chicago MBA, you can go Chicago, I know you're a fan. Chicago MBA, McKinsey consultant.

This is the future I'm creating, or this is what's happening in the present, or this is what happened in the past, and we fuel that with stories. So I'll give you a few different practical examples. So one, I have this one CEO that I work with. He's a serial CEO and board member. And Chicago MBA, you can go Chicago, I know you're a fan. Chicago MBA, McKinsey consultant.