Reflection- Storytelling/Visualization

Challenge:    I currently work in a large supply chain organisation and I am responsible for driving the  business  of Apple products (iPhones and Apple Watches) for the Western and Eastern Region of  India.  My Job entails managing a team of Employees and Distributors to ensure that the  products are made available in General Trade outlets (Retail Outlets) and Apple Stores across  my region.  In the past I have spent about 16 years in the Consumer Durable Industry, FMCG  Industry and Life Insurance Industry. I have managed multiple channels of business like Direct  Agency, Business Associate Model, Bancassurance and Direct Marketing Channel within the Life  Insurance Domain.  I would like to reflect upon events in this phase where I was managing  business for a large Global Life Insurance Company.      I had just joined the company in 2003 and was entrusted with Business Development and  setting up branches in two different Geographies, one in a metropolitan city Kolkata and other  in a town Durgapur in India.  The Business Associate Model was a newly introduced business  model where unlike standard Agency Model where Employees manage Agents (Individual  Distributors who work on Commission), we were to develop a model where the Agents instead  of Employees would further recruit Agents and thereafter manage the team as Business  Associates.  This model was practised well in other countries across the globe; it was now to be  introduced in India.  The Challenge was that there was no historic data available on this method  of business in India and it was a fairly new idea in the Indian Life Insurance Sector.  We were the  only company at that time with an ambitious plan to run this Business Associate Model.   Building the team of Agents and then grow them into Business Associates on Fast Track for both  geographies was a task which we had no knowledge of.  My KRA was to build this entire channel  and get business (Revenue in terms of New Life Insurance Policy Premiums).  The main problem  was to sell this career opportunity where there was no fixed component in terms of Salary for  the Business Associates.  The career was a toilsome one where the Agents were to build a team  of their own without a fixed income component with an expectation of a rewarding returns in  terms of commission on own business and overrides over their team business post they got  promoted as Business Associates.  Such a career opportunity in Life Insurance Industry was not  available in India earlier.    Selection:    The challenge was large and ambiguous and I thought of using the Storytelling method and the  Visualization method similar to what I have now learnt in this Design Thinking for Innovation  Course.  My past diverse Repertoire in Consumer Durable Industry, FMCG Industry and Life  Insurance Industry enabled me to have an open mind in an attempt to take up this challenge.   Although the Challenge was intimidating, yet the thrill to take it head on was overpowering.     Application:    I along with my team travelled extensively across my locations including interiors and met a lot  of people like homemakers, retired executives, young college pass outs, other financial services  agents, Accountants, Public Servants, Shcool Teachers  and other centre of influences who could  be my prospects.  I developed a questionnaire and I tried to understand what were their

inherent needs and aspirations, their fears and their thought about an alternative unorthodox  career opportunity where they could have flexibility of time and also have financial freedom.    All of them had different occupations, different income levels, different aspirations but a  common thread was the need to be financially sound, free from the worries and toils of  traditional employment.      Thereafter I organised Saturday Seminars where I would then invite them over to discuss the  business opportunity.  These would usually be a high impact Storytelling exercise and  Visualization, where I would encourage participants to freely discuss their apprehensions and  aspirations about life and through penning down important points on the board would try to  capture the Cause which would Compel them to try to look for an opportunity  to rise  above  their apprehensions and meet their aspirations.  Once the cause was set in the seminar, there  would usually be a lot of energy and suspense as to how I would help them get out of their  mundane careers and provide them that blissful financial freedom.   I would then answer them  in a way which would make them feel like living that future moment in that seminar room.  Many in the seminar would get emotional and I would then pause and make them get  comfortable.  Thereafter I would give examples of highly successful entrepreneurs who have  had humble beginnings and had struggle full lives and how they have come out of the same and  have become successful.  I would also show them Visuals and short Video Clips of highly  successful Business Associates from all walks of life of my Organisation in other countries who  have made it big in Life.  I would also share that the path to this success would entail a lot of  hard work and challenge but it  was definitely worth giving it a try.  More so that they could try  this new opportunity keeping their current existing vocations in place and may either choose to  carry on doing both or later choosing to pursue the new opportunity full time.  This would sound  to many amongst the participants a golden opportunity to shape their lives the way they have  always dreamt of.   These seminars were a large success and we had high conversion rates  (average of 30% signups in an average seminar size of about 60 participants).    Meanwhile I had to sell the idea to my management that this method of Building the team  would work and I would present this idea to the Management using Storytelling again.  Of  course I used Visualization Technique as well trying to articulate my ideas through drawing and  sketches on board as well as having brain storming sessions to get my ideas across and to get  value additions from my peers and senior managers.  During this course I not only was able to  convince them about my idea, I also ended up getting valuable suggestions and feedback  regarding my idea which helped me in achieving my objective.     Within the first twelve months of my joining, we had succeeded in building a huge team of  Business Associates and Agents across Kolkata and Durgapur who in turn were greatly successful  in bringing in business (New Life Insurance Business- premiums) which was about 190% of the  original annual business plan for my region.        Insight:    This successful handling of the challenge using the Storytelling and Visualisation methods helped  me unearth the secrets of managing ambiguity in a smart and efficient manner.  I had applied  the techniques oblivious of the fact that these were part of Design Thinking process which I was  never trained in.   It gave me the freedom to think beyond the set boundaries of experience,  knowledge, and set methods of doing business and gave me the impetus to take challenges

head on.  The journey since then has been exciting and challenging till today.   There have been  times where I have been successful and there have been times I have not.  Learning and  relevant application of Design Thinking tools became the cornerstone of my career and that of  my team.  Not only me as an individual but as the entire team as a whole we evolved, we used  Visualisation Techniques and Storytelling exercises in handling our day to day challenges and it  has since been a part and parcel of our lives.        Approach:    The learning and experiences of unknowingly applying the Design Thinking Methodologies in the  past, in the current and now my formal introduction to the Design Thinking for Innovation  Course has now made me to delve deep into this subject.  I will now study more regarding this  through the reference material suggested in the program videos and enrol for subsequent  higher programs on this subject.  I will also encourage my team and peers to enrol for this  amazing program, which would definitely help them succeed in the ambiguous business world.     I would continue to use the Design Thinking Tools I have used earlier and intend to use all  Design Thinking tools in the near future depending upon the Challenge which I would face.  For  now in my current assignment I intend to use the Learning Launch tool to face current  distribution challenges.  The reason I wish to use this tool is to quickly and economically  understand the best approach to widening our product distribution strategy in the increasingly  competitive environment.


Reflection- Storytelling / Visualization Challenge : I currently work in a large supply chain organisation and I am responsible for driving the business of Apple products ( iPhones and Apple Watches ) for the Western and Eastern Region of India . My Job entails managing a team of Employees and Distributors to ensure that the products are made available in General Trade outlets ( Retail Outlets ) and Apple Stores across my region . In the past I have spent about 16 years in the Consumer Durable Industry , FMCG Industry and Life Insurance Industry . I have managed multiple channels of business like Direct Agency , Business Associate Model , Bancassurance and Direct Marketing Channel within the Life Insurance Domain . I would like to reflect upon events in this phase where I was managing business for a large Global Life Insurance Company . I had just joined the company in 2003 and was entrusted with Business Development and setting up branches in two different Geographies , one in a metropolitan city Kolkata and other in a town Durgapur in India . The Business Associate Model was a newly introduced business model where unlike standard Agency Model where Employees manage Agents ( Individual Distributors who work on Commission ) , we were to develop a model where the Agents instead of Employees would further recruit Agents and thereafter manage the team as Business Associates . This model was practised well in other countries across the globe ; it was now to be introduced in India . The Challenge was that there was no historic data available on this method of business in India and it was a fairly new idea in the Indian Life Insurance Sector . We were the only company at that time with an ambitious plan to run this Business Associate Model . Building the team of Agents and then grow them into Business Associates on Fast Track for both geographies was a task which we had no knowledge of . My KRA was to build this entire channel and get business ( Revenue in terms of New Life Insurance Policy Premiums ) . The main problem was to sell this career opportunity where there was no fixed component in terms of Salary for the Business Associates . The career was a toilsome one where the Agents were to build a team of their own without a fixed income component with an expectation of a rewarding returns in terms of commission on own business and overrides over their team business post they got promoted as Business Associates . Such a career opportunity in Life Insurance Industry was not available in India earlier . Selection : The challenge was large and ambiguous and I thought of using the Storytelling method and the Visualization method similar to what I have now learnt in this Design Thinking for Innovation Course . My past diverse Repertoire in Consumer Durable Industry , FMCG Industry and Life Insurance Industry enabled me to have an open mind in an attempt to take up this challenge . Although the Challenge was intimidating , yet the thrill to take it head on was overpowering . Application : I along with my team travelled extensively across my locations including interiors and met a lot of people like homemakers , retired executives , young college pass outs , other financial services agents , Accountants , Public Servants , Shcool Teachers and other centre of influences who could be my prospects . I developed a questionnaire and I tried to understand what were their inherent needs and aspirations , their fears and their thought about an alternative unorthodox career opportunity where they could have flexibility of time and also have financial freedom . All of them had different occupations , different income levels , different aspirations but a common thread was the need to be financially sound , free from the worries and toils of traditional employment . Thereafter I organised Saturday Seminars where I would then invite them over to discuss the business opportunity . These would usually be a high impact Storytelling exercise and Visualization , where I would encourage participants to freely discuss their apprehensions and aspirations about life and through penning down important points on the board would try to capture the Cause which would Compel them to try to look for an opportunity to rise above their apprehensions and meet their aspirations . Once the cause was set in the seminar , there would usually be a lot of energy and suspense as to how I would help them get out of their mundane careers and provide them that blissful financial freedom . I would then answer them in a way which would make them feel like living that future moment in that seminar room . Many in the seminar would get emotional and I would then pause and make them get comfortable . Thereafter I would give examples of highly successful entrepreneurs who have had humble beginnings and had struggle full lives and how they have come out of the same and have become successful . I would also show them Visuals and short Video Clips of highly successful Business Associates from all walks of life of my Organisation in other countries who have made it big in Life . I would also share that the path to this success would entail a lot of hard work and challenge but it was definitely worth giving it a try . More so that they could try this new opportunity keeping their current existing vocations in place and may either choose to carry on doing both or later choosing to pursue the new opportunity full time . This would sound to many amongst the participants a golden opportunity to shape their lives the way they have always dreamt of . These seminars were a large success and we had high conversion rates ( average of 30 % signups in an average seminar size of about 60 participants ) . Meanwhile I had to sell the idea to my management that this method of Building the team would work and I would present this idea to the Management using Storytelling again . Of course I used Visualization Technique as well trying to articulate my ideas through drawing and sketches on board as well as having brain storming sessions to get my ideas across and to get value additions from my peers and senior managers . During this course I not only was able to convince them about my idea , I also ended up getting valuable suggestions and feedback regarding my idea which helped me in achieving my objective . Within the first twelve months of my joining , we had succeeded in building a huge team of Business Associates and Agents across Kolkata and Durgapur who in turn were greatly successful in bringing in business ( New Life Insurance Business- premiums ) which was about 190 % of the original annual business plan for my region . Insight : This successful handling of the challenge using the Storytelling and Visualisation methods helped me unearth the secrets of managing ambiguity in a smart and efficient manner . I had applied the techniques oblivious of the fact that these were part of Design Thinking process which I was never trained in . It gave me the freedom to think beyond the set boundaries of experience , knowledge , and set methods of doing business and gave me the impetus to take challenges head on . The journey since then has been exciting and challenging till today . There have been times where I have been successful and there have been times I have not . Learning and relevant application of Design Thinking tools became the cornerstone of my career and that of my team . Not only me as an individual but as the entire team as a whole we evolved , we used Visualisation Techniques and Storytelling exercises in handling our day to day challenges and it has since been a part and parcel of our lives . Approach : The learning and experiences of unknowingly applying the Design Thinking Methodologies in the past , in the current and now my formal introduction to the Design Thinking for Innovation Course has now made me to delve deep into this subject . I will now study more regarding this through the reference material suggested in the program videos and enrol for subsequent higher programs on this subject . I will also encourage my team and peers to enrol for this amazing program , which would definitely help them succeed in the ambiguous business world . I would continue to use the Design Thinking Tools I have used earlier and intend to use all Design Thinking tools in the near future depending upon the Challenge which I would face . For now in my current assignment I intend to use the Learning Launch tool to face current distribution challenges . The reason I wish to use this tool is to quickly and economically understand the best approach to widening our product distribution strategy in the increasingly competitive environment .