Organizational storytelling

Organizational storytelling is a concept in the study of management, strategy and organization studies ^[1]

Academics disagree on its exact function. Some describe it as a purposeful tool for business people, and others say it is a way of understanding and interpreting organizational life. ^[2]

Those who believe it is a powerful managerial tool see it as the key leadership competency for the 21st century. Knowing how to effectively deliver a story, and knowing the right story to tell is a powerful influencing and communication skill. It can be used to connect employees to strategy by providing understanding, belief and ultimately motivation in the personal contribution that employees can make. ^[3] Several books and articles have been written from this perspective. Besides an essential leadership competency for all leaders it is also a powerful communication and change management technique. ^[4]

For those who believe it is an interpretativist methodology for deciphering a deeper understanding of organizational life, storied accounts represent a unique insight into how individuals make sense of their world. ^[5]

Storytelling research

Storytelling has been assessed for critical literacy skills and education by the storytelling-drama charity Neighborhood Bridges, Minneapolis. They are at the forefront of storytelling-drama research in schools.^[6] A storyteller researcher in the UK proposes that the social space created preceding oral storytelling in schools may trigger sharing that organizations may use to help employees connect(Parfitt, 2014).^[7] A full paper on the current status of storytelling research is being currently compiled by the same researcher at Warwick University.^[8]

External links

• Berendsen, W.T.M, A phronesis antenarrative about the understanding of money and use of money in more phronetic ways^[9]
• Berendsen, W.T.M, Towards a reenchanted society through storytelling and phronesis antenarrating^[10]
• Boje, David M. 1989 Postlog: Bringing performance back in. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 2(2): 80–93
• Boje, David M]]. 1991. The storytelling organization: A study of storytelling performance in an office supply firm. Administrative Science Quarterly, 36: 106–126.
• Boje, David M. 2001. Narrative Methods for Organizational and Communication Research. London: Sage.
• Brown, J.S., Denning, S., Groh, K., Prusak, L. 2004. Storytelling in Organizations: Why Storytelling Is Transforming 21st Century Organizations and Management. Boston: Butterworth Heinemann.
• Czarniawska, Barbara. 1997. Narrating the Organization: Dramas of Institutional Identity. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
• Czarniawska, Barbara. 1998. A Narrative Approach to Organization Studies. Qualitative Research methods Series Vol. 43. Thousand Oaks, Ca; Sage Publications, Inc.
• Czarniawska, Barbara. 2004. Narratives in Social Science Research. London: Sage.
• Denning, Steve. 2000. The Springboard: How Storytelling Ignites Action in Knowledge-Era Organizations. Boston: Butterworth Heinemann.
• Denning, Steve. 2004. Squirrel Inc.: A Fable of Leadership Through Storytelling. San Francisco: Jossey–Bass.
• Denning, Steve. 2004. “Telling Tales”, Harvard Business Review, May 2004.
• Denning, Steve. 2005. The Leader's Guide to Storytelling: Mastering the Art & Discipline of Business Narrative, Jossey–Bass, San Francisco
• Denning, Steve. 2007. The Secret Language of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire Action Through Narrative, Jossey–Bass, San Francisco ISBN 978-0-7879-8789-3
• Dolan,G. 2016. "Storytelling for Job Interviews". Vivid Publishing.
• Dolan, G. 2007. 'From the tea room to the board room' The Australian Anthill Magazine.
• Gabriel, Yiannis. 1991. "On organizational stories and myths: Why it is easier to slay a dragon than to kill a myth." International Sociology 6:427–442.
• Eisenberg, M. (1984) Ambiguity as strategy in organizational communication. Communication Monographs, 51: 227–242.
• Fisher, R. 1984. Narration as a human communication paradigm: The case of public moral argument. Communication Monographs,51 (March): 1–22
• Gabriel, Yiannis.1995. "The unmanaged organization: Stories, fantasies and subjectivity." Organization Studies 16:477–501.
• Gabriel, Yiannis 2000. Storytelling in Organizations: Facts, fictions, and fantasies. London: Oxford University Press.
• Gargiulo, Terrence L. 2001. Making Stories: A Practical Guide for Organizational Leaders and Human Resource Specialists Westport: Greenwood 2007. Once Upon a Time: Using Story-Based Activities to Develop Breakthrough Communication Skills, Jossey Bass/Pfeiffer, San Francisco 2006. Stories at Work: Using Stories to Improve Communication and Build Relationships, Connecticut: Praeger
• Gargiulo, Terrence L. 2005. The Strategic Use of Stories in Organizational Communication and Learning, Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.
• Heath, C. & Heath, D. 2007. Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die. New York: Random House.
• Kelley, T. 2005. The Ten Faces of Innovation. NY: Random House.
• Kouzes, J.M & Posner, B.Z.: 2003. The Leadership Challenge. San Francisco: Jossey–Bass.
• Laufer, A. and Hoffman, E., Project Management Success Stories: Lessons of Project Leaders, John Wiley & Sons, 2000.
• Pink, D. 2006. A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future. Riverhead Trade.
• Signorelli, J. 2011, "StoryBranding: Creating Standout Brands Through the Power of Story, Greenleaf Books
• Simmons, A. 2002 The Story Factor, Basic Books, New York.
• Sykes, Malik, West. 2012, Stories That Move Mountains, John Wiley & Sons, UK
• Zemke, Ron (1990) Storytelling: Back to basics. Training, March : 44–49.

References