JOURNAL ARTICLE

Create Stories That Change Your Company’s Culture.

  • Published In: Harvard Business Review, 2023, v. 101, n. 5. P. 76 1 of 3

  • Database: Business Source Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Barney, Jay B.; Amorim, Manoel; Julio, Carlos 3 of 3

Abstract

The article focuses on effective organizational cultural change, emphasizing that aligning culture with strategy requires more than formal workshops or HR policy revisions. Research with over 60 global business leaders reveals that successful cultural transformation begins by creating authentic, leader-driven stories that break with past norms, appeal emotionally and intellectually, and are shared widely within the organization. These narratives empower employees to co-create new cultural identities consistent with strategic goals. The article outlines six key principles for leaders to craft such stories: be authentic, feature themselves prominently, break with the past while guiding the future, appeal to hearts and minds, use theatricality, and empower others to tell their own stories.

Additional Information

  • Source:Harvard Business Review. 2023/09, Vol. 101, Issue 5, p76
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Sociology
  • Publication Date:2023
  • ISSN:0017-8012
  • Accession Number:169856100
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright © Harvard Business Publishing. All Rights Reserved. This content is intended for individual research use only, subject to the following: Unless permission is expressly granted in a separate license, this content may NOT be used for classroom or teaching use, which includes teaching materials, electronic reserves, course packs or persistent linking from syllabi. Please consult your institution's librarian about the nature of relevant licenses held by your institution and the restrictions that may or may not apply.Unless permission is expressly granted in a separate license, this content may NOT be used in corporate training and/or as corporate learning materials. For corporate users, please consult the specific terms of your company's license(s) for complete information and restrictions. For more information and teaching resources from Harvard Business Publishing including Harvard Business School Cases, eLearning products, and business simulations please visit hbsp.harvard.edu. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Looking to go deeper into this topic? Look for more articles on EBSCOhost.