Mohamed Issa

Reflection – Storytelling

Challenge

I work as a Business Manager in the Sales & Strategy function of our organization. Our organization is in the  Telecom Infrastructure space. Currently, the telecom industry in our country is going through the cusp of a  revolution and consolidation owing to hyper competition from a new entrant in the telecom operator space.  Operation & Maintenance of telecom towers is the core business of our organization. However, to remain  competitive in our industry, our organization also needs to be moving forward in other related business  domains like Smart Cities, Optical Fiber business, etc.

Our organization aims to achieve its Mission and Vision through a set of BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals)  arrived through a series of Large Scale Interactive Process (LSIP) involving all employees at different locations in  the cities where its offices are based.

Last year we had a Strategy Meet with our Board of Directors where we proposed to them a list of finalized  business opportunities for their approval. The challenge was to prioritize these new business opportunities  based on the changing business environment.

Selection

Storytelling was one tool which we used for our entire Strategy exercise with an external consultant. As  described in the Design Thinking course, what I relate to storytelling is that it makes strategy accessible and  relate-able. Storytelling places the different stakeholders on focus and involve them on the journey – in this  case the strategy journey.

Application

A good story is required for any organization to link its vision with the strategies to achieve that vision. Our  organization’s mission (transforming lives by enabling communication) is connected to that of our country’s  government’s vision of a Digital country.

I was program managing the Strategy Exercise and used Storytelling as one of the key tools to arrive at our  strategy to achieve our BHAGs in a 5-year timeframe. We involved leaders of different departments of our  organization to articulate the pain points they faced in the business and elaborate on the changes which may  be required to address our future business needs. Basically, these are the Big Questions which they face when  going beyond Business As Usual. So, the stories which they described had to be in line with our vision and  business model. Hence storytelling bridges the gap between hard data and the recommendations for each new  business proposition.

Insight

Storytelling approach enabled me to understand how to put the stakeholders at the forefront by understanding  their interaction with the organization and how to derive a win-win situation for all. It enabled me to visualize  how to present data like a story and thereby derive actionable items for a data-driven organization based on a  human vision of putting everyone at the center of the communications revolution in the country. We gathered  valuable feedback from leaders within the organization and external consultants on our organization’s  capabilities which may be leveraged to enter into new businesses within the 5-year roadmap.

Approach

Storytelling has proved to be a valuable tool for gathering insights and the CEO of our organization himself  regards it highly. As an analyst who spends much of my time preparing presentations based on data for senior  management and Board of Directors, I am striving to fine-tune my thinking on the lines of Design Thinking –  how to tell compelling story through data and present valuable insights for actionable strategies.


Mohamed Issa Reflection – Storytelling Challenge I work as a Business Manager in the Sales & Strategy function of our organization . Our organization is in the Telecom Infrastructure space . Currently , the telecom industry in our country is going through the cusp of a revolution and consolidation owing to hyper competition from a new entrant in the telecom operator space . Operation & Maintenance of telecom towers is the core business of our organization . However , to remain competitive in our industry , our organization also needs to be moving forward in other related business domains like Smart Cities , Optical Fiber business , etc . Our organization aims to achieve its Mission and Vision through a set of BHAGs ( Big Hairy Audacious Goals ) arrived through a series of Large Scale Interactive Process ( LSIP ) involving all employees at different locations in the cities where its offices are based . Last year we had a Strategy Meet with our Board of Directors where we proposed to them a list of finalized business opportunities for their approval . The challenge was to prioritize these new business opportunities based on the changing business environment . Selection Storytelling was one tool which we used for our entire Strategy exercise with an external consultant . As described in the Design Thinking course , what I relate to storytelling is that it makes strategy accessible and relate - able . Storytelling places the different stakeholders on focus and involve them on the journey – in this case the strategy journey . Application A good story is required for any organization to link its vision with the strategies to achieve that vision . Our organization ’s mission ( transforming lives by enabling communication ) is connected to that of our country ’s government ’s vision of a Digital country . I was program managing the Strategy Exercise and used Storytelling as one of the key tools to arrive at our strategy to achieve our BHAGs in a 5 - year timeframe . We involved leaders of different departments of our organization to articulate the pain points they faced in the business and elaborate on the changes which may be required to address our future business needs . Basically , these are the Big Questions which they face when going beyond Business As Usual . So , the stories which they described had to be in line with our vision and business model . Hence storytelling bridges the gap between hard data and the recommendations for each new business proposition . Insight Storytelling approach enabled me to understand how to put the stakeholders at the forefront by understanding their interaction with the organization and how to derive a win - win situation for all . It enabled me to visualize how to present data like a story and thereby derive actionable items for a data - driven organization based on a human vision of putting everyone at the center of the communications revolution in the country . We gathered valuable feedback from leaders within the organization and external consultants on our organization ’s capabilities which may be leveraged to enter into new businesses within the 5 - year roadmap . Approach Storytelling has proved to be a valuable tool for gathering insights and the CEO of our organization himself regards it highly . As an analyst who spends much of my time preparing presentations based on data for senior management and Board of Directors , I am striving to fine - tune my thinking on the lines of Design Thinking – how to tell compelling story through data and present valuable insights for actionable strategies .