Reflection – Storytelling 

 1 . Challenge : . 

 I lead an advisory and professional services business unit within a global technology company   with a focus on the Australian market . The services we provide help our customers develop their   technology strategy , implement it and integrate it for day two operations . Traditionally our team   would develop solution briefs that described the specific services across our portfolio and the   business value they would deliver . Our sales teams were expected to learn the portfolio and   engage in conversation with our customers to identify opportunities to position our services and   in turn share the solution briefs to help accelerate the sales cycle . 

 The challenge we had was sales growth for services across the portfolio . Our sales team had a   good understanding of our services portfolio and could position the right services depending   where the customer was on their journey , but we did n’t seem to be making the connection and   converting good discussion into sales . We were a “ me too ” in a crowded market . 

 2 . Selection : 

 The design thinking tool selected to apply to this challenge was storytelling . I learnt through this   course that storytelling can be the difference between solving a problem and creating a cause .   Our sales teams had been trained to ask questions that would identify where the customer was   on their technology transformation journey and then dig deeper to uncover the challenges faced ,   which would present them with the opportunity to position our services . Storytelling suggests our   sales team could make a deeper more emotional connection that would keep our customers   interested that little bit longer and help differentiate us from the competition leaving a lasting   memory in the minds of our customers that would ultimately lead to increased sales . Essentially ,   storytelling is weaving bits of information into a narrative rather than sticking to a script that   relays specific points from a solution brief . 

 3 . Application : 

 I spoke to customers who had experienced our services to get their feedback on the engagement   and the outcomes they had achieved as a result . I asked them to replay the challenges they   faced , which lead them to engage a partner and why they chose our company . I then asked them   to talk about the impact our services have had on their business and finally if they were willing to   be a public case study . Some were happy to get their story out in the public domain while others   declined due to company policy . 

 The success stories were documented and shared with our sales team not just electronically , but   personally by me in team meetings . These stories would talk to the desire for change to drive   business growth and/or operational efficiencies . I would set the scene with an overview of the   customer background sharing the desired outcomes along with the challenges faced , which   varied from knowledge to know what to do , skills to execute , available resources , funding and   more . I would then talk to the area of our portfolio that we focused on to help address the issues   and accelerated transformation along with the business benefits realised . 

 4 . Insight : 

 I noticed a change in the vibe of the room almost instantly . Phones were put to the side and the   sales team were leaning forward listening , commenting and asking questions . They were   engaged with me and wanting to know more about the customers we had been working with .   They started to share their own stories about customers and their current challenges . They 

 wanted to know if they could share this information with their customers and what customers in   their industry patch we had worked with . 

 While the impact of developing and sharing these stories with the sales team lead to increased   pipeline development I was concerned with the conversation rate . The sales team would have   what they felt to be a good conversation , but why were they not converting to follow up meetings   and ultimately sales . Further investigation highlighted another key point we learnt on this course   with regards to storytelling , which is to know your audience ! 

 5 . Approach : 

 It ’s important to know who we are talking to and what their interests are along with priorities . I   learnt that our sales team had a comfort zone when it came to customer relationships and that   these relationships may not necessarily influence decisions let alone be the decision maker for   the types of services my business unit provided . The stories were well received and there was a   connection , but the opportunity to address the challenges identified did n’t always develop 

 I ’m now working with the sales teams to develop their account business plans and stakeholder   maps to help them focus on the relationships that need to be developed . Its early days , but the   success stories we have developed seem to be helping boost the confidence of our sales team   as they look to broaden their account coverage and build new relationships in the areas that will   drive sales growth for my business . 

 https://www.coursera.org/learn/uva-darden-design-thinking-innovation/lecture/PAXCd/storytelling- tool 


EMAIL: 
ID_NUM: 
NAME_STUDENT: 
PHONE_NUM: 
STREET_ADDRESS: 
URL_PERSONAL: 
USERNAME: 

### Task: You are a PII (Personal Identity Information) Detection. Given a essays written by students, you have to identify ONLY the following:
NAME_STUDENT - The full or partial name of a student that is not necessarily the author of the essay. This excludes instructors, authors, and other person names.
EMAIL - A student’s email address.
USERNAME - A student's username on any platform.
ID_NUM - A number or sequence of characters that could be used to identify a student, such as a student ID or a social security number.
PHONE_NUM - A phone number associated with a student.
URL_PERSONAL - A URL that might be used to identify a student.
STREET_ADDRESS - A full or partial street address that is associated with the student, such as their home address.
### Input: Reflection – Storytelling 

 1 . Challenge : . 

 I lead an advisory and professional services business unit within a global technology company   with a focus on the Australian market . The services we provide help our customers develop their   technology strategy , implement it and integrate it for day two operations . Traditionally our team   would develop solution briefs that described the specific services across our portfolio and the   business value they would deliver . Our sales teams were expected to learn the portfolio and   engage in conversation with our customers to identify opportunities to position our services and   in turn share the solution briefs to help accelerate the sales cycle . 

 The challenge we had was sales growth for services across the portfolio . Our sales team had a   good understanding of our services portfolio and could position the right services depending   where the customer was on their journey , but we did n’t seem to be making the connection and   converting good discussion into sales . We were a “ me too ” in a crowded market . 

 2 . Selection : 

 The design thinking tool selected to apply to this challenge was storytelling . I learnt through this   course that storytelling can be the difference between solving a problem and creating a cause .   Our sales teams had been trained to ask questions that would identify where the customer was   on their technology transformation journey and then dig deeper to uncover the challenges faced ,   which would present them with the opportunity to position our services . Storytelling suggests our   sales team could make a deeper more emotional connection that would keep our customers   interested that little bit longer and help differentiate us from the competition leaving a lasting   memory in the minds of our customers that would ultimately lead to increased sales . Essentially ,   storytelling is weaving bits of information into a narrative rather than sticking to a script that   relays specific points from a solution brief . 

 3 . Application : 

 I spoke to customers who had experienced our services to get their feedback on the engagement   and the outcomes they had achieved as a result . I asked them to replay the challenges they   faced , which lead them to engage a partner and why they chose our company . I then asked them   to talk about the impact our services have had on their business and finally if they were willing to   be a public case study . Some were happy to get their story out in the public domain while others   declined due to company policy . 

 The success stories were documented and shared with our sales team not just electronically , but   personally by me in team meetings . These stories would talk to the desire for change to drive   business growth and/or operational efficiencies . I would set the scene with an overview of the   customer background sharing the desired outcomes along with the challenges faced , which   varied from knowledge to know what to do , skills to execute , available resources , funding and   more . I would then talk to the area of our portfolio that we focused on to help address the issues   and accelerated transformation along with the business benefits realised . 

 4 . Insight : 

 I noticed a change in the vibe of the room almost instantly . Phones were put to the side and the   sales team were leaning forward listening , commenting and asking questions . They were   engaged with me and wanting to know more about the customers we had been working with .   They started to share their own stories about customers and their current challenges . They 

 wanted to know if they could share this information with their customers and what customers in   their industry patch we had worked with . 

 While the impact of developing and sharing these stories with the sales team lead to increased   pipeline development I was concerned with the conversation rate . The sales team would have   what they felt to be a good conversation , but why were they not converting to follow up meetings   and ultimately sales . Further investigation highlighted another key point we learnt on this course   with regards to storytelling , which is to know your audience ! 

 5 . Approach : 

 It ’s important to know who we are talking to and what their interests are along with priorities . I   learnt that our sales team had a comfort zone when it came to customer relationships and that   these relationships may not necessarily influence decisions let alone be the decision maker for   the types of services my business unit provided . The stories were well received and there was a   connection , but the opportunity to address the challenges identified did n’t always develop 

 I ’m now working with the sales teams to develop their account business plans and stakeholder   maps to help them focus on the relationships that need to be developed . Its early days , but the   success stories we have developed seem to be helping boost the confidence of our sales team   as they look to broaden their account coverage and build new relationships in the areas that will   drive sales growth for my business . 

 https://www.coursera.org/learn/uva-darden-design-thinking-innovation/lecture/PAXCd/storytelling- tool
### Output: 