Thanks to the wonders of Internet and WordPress, any company can rationalize the cost of digital publishing. What’s more, Google’s decision to communicate the dialing down of activities in China on its corporate blog gave street cred to owned media. Since Google’s act on January 12, 2005, organizations of all shapes and sizes have become …more
Since Lee Kuan Yew’s passing, every media outlet in the free and not-so-free world has chronicled his accomplishments. If you haven’t spent time in Southeast Asia, it’s hard to appreciate the “miracle” of transforming this speck of geography into a world-class economy. It’s not quite Moses parting the Red Sea, but it’s close. I …more
I’m not referring to fiction or fabrication. The question relates to the role of storytelling techniques in the HR function. The question also happened to be the thrust of my talk at the Alexander Mann Solutions (AMS) conference last week in Hong Kong. It turns out that one can make an argument for HR more …more
Taking a page from the music industry, I introduced our “greatest storytelling hits” in 2013 pulling from posts published before 2011. Now I’m going back to the well, showcasing some of my favorite posts published between 2011 and 2013. I hope you’ll find that they still have relevance and some spunk. 1. An Open Letter to …more
That’s exactly what happened last week when CNN covered President Obama’s intention to veto the Keystone XL pipeline that would transport oil from Canada to Mexico. Check out the headline. “Meet the pen Obama used to veto the Keystone XL pipeline.” Obviously, the focus of the story lies on a Presidential decision. Yet, the pen …more
In conducting our storytelling workshops, the concept of contrast is one technique that always resonates with participants. I think of contrast as a poor man’s failure. Several posts have highlighted the power of failure in lifting a narrative, but most companies won’t go there. When was the last time a CEO barked “OK, let’s focus …more
When Warren Buffet spoke at Columbia University, a student asked what he could do now to prepare for a career in investing. As reported in the Omaha World Herald, Buffett thought for a few seconds and then reached for the stack of reports, trade publications and other papers he had brought with him. “Read 500 …more
I wrote a post over a year ago called “Can Storytelling Differentiate a PR Agency? ” With seemingly every communications consultancy touting its storytelling prowess, I questioned whether those who buy communication services perceived storytelling expertise as a commodity. With that said, it seemed fair to say that no PR agency, including The Hoffman Agency, …more
Here comes the first grab bag post of 2015. For those new to the neighborhood, these posts consist of three vignettes on storytelling techniques that caught my attention, but can’t quite stand alone. LeBron James’ TV Credits Now Include the Rehab Addict It’s hard to believe that LeBron James has been playing basketball professionally for …more
