COMMUNICATING FOR IMPACT

Forward Advance
Level
DEVELOP A
McKinsey
academy
STORYLINE

COLLECTED AND SUMMARIZED BY:

O M E R A L SAYE D O M E R A B BA S
Ph.D. MBA B.Sc. Civil engineering PMP
 1. Back at MODA
2. Reflect on the conversation
3. Turning logic into a compelling narrative
4. Pyramids vs. Storylines
5. Converting a pyramid into a storyline
6. How a storyline comes to life
7. Different approaches to storylining
8. Reflect on Jarrah’s storyline
9. Applying storylines in a professional context

contents 10. Knowledge check

11. Converting storylines to storyboards
12. Storyboards in practice
13. Visualizing your key messages
14. Alternative channels for communication
15. Discussion
16. What to do when time is short?
17. Take it to your team
18. Storylines in action
19. Setting learning intentions
20. Next steps
 Introduction
In this section you will learn to:

Create and tailor a storyline to

communicate your message in a
compelling way to your audience

Articulate how to bring your storyline

to life with different media,
materials, and visualizations
 1. Back at MODA
Something sharp to grab attention… a hook, Maryam and Noah meet to prepare for a meeting with the Chief Transformation Officer,
Aaliyah. They need to present the best investment ideas for the transformation. The logic is sorted out, but they need to determine
how to bring the message to life—that's the hard part.
The following three ideas are the best for MODA to invest in as they drive a 20% reduction in costs and help to improve the in-store
customer experience.
1. The first idea is a new RFID inventory management system.
• Our analysis of data showed that this would significantly
• reduce costs associated with managing inventory across retail locations and
• the time spent on conducting inventory checks on the floor and in the backroom.
2. The second idea is an improved loyalty program sign-up process.
• Our customer insight showed that
• the process is too lengthy and prohibits customers from wanting to sign up.
• We lose an estimated 60% of potential sign-ups due to the perceived time burden.
3. And for the third idea--

4
 2. Reflect on the conversation
What should Noah and Maryam’s elevator pitch be?
Maryam and Noah have to come up with a quick elevator pitch for Aaliyah. In other words, what is the main headline for Aaliyah to take away? And what
would she be most interested in hearing in a short amount of time?

See below for the outline Maryam created and presented to Noah in the previous video.
Compare to expert
Governing thought
The following three ideas are the best for MODA to invest in as they drive a 20% reduction in costs and help to improve the in-store customer experience.
Deep dive on answer
•The first idea is to invest in a new RFID inventory management system
•- A new inventory management system would significantly reduce costs associated with managing inventory across retail locations
•- It would also reduce the time spent on conducting inventory checks on the floor and in the backroom
•The second idea is to improve the loyalty program sign-up process
•- Our customer insights show that the process is too lengthy and prohibits customers from wanting to sign up.
•We lose an estimated 60% of potential sign-ups due to the perceived time burden
•The third idea is to install self-serve tablets in all stores for customer assistance
•- Pilots indicate that self-serve tablets reduce customer wait time by 50% and increase overall shopping trip satisfaction by 15%

Using the structure and analysis completed by Maryam and Noah, describe in a few sentences how you’d suggest they tell the story to Aaliyah as a short
elevator pitch.
an ELEVATOR PITCH must include
• What was the original question and why Aaliyah should care about the
Context:
answer?

Governing thought: • What is the overall takeaway from the team’s analysis and research?

• What is the decision or ask to help the team move forward on the
Conclusion:
original question?

ai “Hi Aaliyah, we’ve identified three strategic investment opportunities for MODA that promise significant benefits. First,
implementing a new RFID inventory management system would cut costs and streamline inventory checks across our retail
locations. Second, simplifying the loyalty program sign-up process would boost participation by eliminating perceived time
burdens. Lastly, introducing self-serve tablets in stores would enhance customer assistance and satisfaction. These initiatives
collectively drive a 20% cost reduction and elevate the in-store experience.”

McK
“We’ve narrowed it down to three ideas for MODA to invest in as we drive toward a 20% reduction in costs and help improve
our in-store customer experience. The first idea is to invest in a new RFID inventory management system. The second is to
improve the loyalty program sign-up process. And the third idea is to install self-serve tablets in all stores for customer
assistance. Each idea has its clear benefits. We’d like your input on which to move forward with at this time.”

Even short interactions benefit from preparing a storyline to bring to life the structure and logic of your message. For Aaliyah,
 3. Turning logic into a compelling narrative

WHAT IS A STORYLINE?
▪ You've used the Pyramid Principle to craft an airtight message.
▪ Now it's time to translate those messages into materials that you'll share with your teams and colleagues.
▪ It is often tempting to bring our full range of insights to a meeting; however, this can lead us away from the
specific purpose of a meeting.
▪ Step back, pause, and think about what targeted set of insights will lead to a specific action.
▪ Kate introduces the concept of a storyline as the outline of key points you want to get across to your
audience.
▪ She distinguishes between STORYLINING and STORYTELLING.

• In the last session, we looked at what it means to structure a message in a clear and compelling way.
• And today, we're going to explore how to convert that structure into a storyline and then even take that storyline
and tell a good story around it.
 STORYLINING and STORYTELLING
are actually two very different things. So what do we mean by that?

STORYLINING
• is actually converting your pyramid
and your synthesis into a prose
version.
• A dot dash is often what we use as
well to convey this.
• And so it's actually an outline of the
kind of key points you want to get
across, and what order they might
come in, and
• what would be the other supporting
evidence to make your argument.
STORYTELLING,
• "How can I engage and hook my
audience in a different way?"
• How can I inspire them?
• So while the structure of the ideas,
the clarity of the message is
absolutely critical,
• the order in which the story is told is
important.
• Storytelling starts getting into more
of those exciting angles and ways of
inspiring your audience.
 4. Pyramids vs. Storylines
THE ART AND SCIENCE OF COMMUNICATIONS
• If communication is both an art and a science,
• a storyline is the art and
• a pyramid-style argument is the science.
The exercise of building a PYRAMID involves
✓ selecting and curating the facts that you have, and
✓ synthesizing those facts into key line statements and
✓ a governing thought.
It is a logical and structured exercise.
In contrast, a STORYLINE is the task of
✓ creating the narrative to express your message.
✓ Strategic communicators quickly learn to tailor both what and how they communicate to address the
priorities of a particular audience.
This a highly social task; it requires you to think carefully about the group you are addressing and make a
plan that considers the following questions:
➢ How would you structure the insight(s) for greatest impact?
➢ What context is necessary to provide for the insights to be understood?
➢ How might you use a story or anecdote to emphasize a key message?
 5. Converting a pyramid into a
storyline
CREATING STORYLINES
• You’ve built your pyramid.
• You have a clear governing thought and groups of facts to support it.
• So now what?
Developing a storyline is in part sharing your findings with your audience, and in part
creating a narrative that will move your audience to action.
There are different approaches to storylining depending on your audience and the
purpose of your interaction.
Below is a simple formula you can use to create that narrative:

Give a brief introduction that describes the situation or complication your presentation addresses

Raise a question to be answered

Share your primary recommendation, which is drawn from your pyramid’s governing thought

Support and expand on your recommendation using the arguments and data in your pyramid structure

End with a conclusion that summarizes all of your key points

 6. How a storyline comes to life
An example storyline from MODA
Storylines can be effectively used for large-scale efforts like a transformation—or smaller-scale efforts.
Remember the MODA employees’ desire for a yoga studio in company headquarters? Well, the desire
continues on! Jarrah Woods, Head of Marketing, is scheduled to present to the MODA Budget Committee
and make a case for why a yoga studio is a favorable investment. What might a compelling storyline for
Jarrah’s message look like?
Recall the pyramid structure you looked at in the last section.
In recent years MODA has undertaken an initiative to support the health and well-being of employees. Still research shows that:
•The average number of sick days employees take has increased by 2.4 days/year over the past 5 years
•75% of employees report going to an exercise establishment (e.g., gym, yoga studio, class) 2-3 times per week, citing “convenience” as the primary
factor in that choice

What can MODA do to positively impact all of these metrics and support the health and well-being of employees?

Answer: MODA should open a yoga studio inside of its headquarters.

•Offering health-focused spaces like a yoga studio is consistent with MODA’s health initiative
• Classes offered in the yoga studio provide a more affordable option to nearby studios
• Easy access to a yoga studio encourages exercise and improvement in health
•An onsite yoga studio will save time and make MODA’s people more efficient
• Waiting time will be minimal as the studio only serves MODA colleagues
• An in-house studio will reduce waiting time relative to external classes
•An onsite yoga studio will give employees a place to socialize and foster community building
• A yoga studio promotes cross-functional interaction
• An onsite yoga studio reinforces our commitment to the quality of life of our employees

Conclusion: Opening an onsite yoga studio supports employees’ physical and social well-being and fosters cross-functional cooperation, while
advancing the organization’s long-term health initiative.
In recent years MODA has undertaken an initiative to support the health and well-being of employees. Still research
shows that:
•The average number of sick days employees take has increased by 2.4 days/year over the past 5 years
•75% of employees report going to an exercise establishment (e.g., gym, yoga studio, class) 2-3 times per week,
citing “convenience” as the primary factor in that choice
•What can MODA do to positively impact all of these metrics and support the health and well-being of employees?
Answer: MODA should open a yoga studio inside of its headquarters.
•Offering health-focused spaces like a yoga studio is consistent with MODA’s health initiative
• Classes offered in the yoga studio provide a more affordable option to nearby studios
• Easy access to a yoga studio encourages exercise and improvement in health
•An onsite yoga studio will save time and make MODA’s people more efficient
• Waiting time will be minimal as the studio only serves MODA colleagues
• An in-house studio will reduce waiting time relative to external classes
•An onsite yoga studio will give employees a place to socialize and foster community building
• A yoga studio promotes cross-functional interaction
• An onsite yoga studio reinforces our commitment to the quality of life of our employees
•Conclusion: Opening an onsite yoga studio supports employees’ physical and social well-being and fosters cross-
functional cooperation, while advancing the organization’s long-term health initiative.
 7. Different approaches to
storylining
One set of facts, many ways to tell a story
There are many ways to tell a story and convey your recommendations. Which approach will you use? It depends on your
audience and the context of the situation in which you’re working.
Every storyline will have a BRIEF INTRODUCTION, a BODY, and a CONCLUSION.
Let’s explore a few common alternative body types that can be used beyond the pyramid structure.

List Options Q & A Narrative

Definition: A list of
considerations, factors, tips,
etc.
Example: There are thirteen
red flags in managing
change
Purpose: Provides a lens
through which the audience
can assess their situation
Definition: Options and
criteria for assessing them
Example: These are the
criteria for the new plant
location ...
Our options are ...
Purpose: Presents
alternatives when no single
compelling argument leads
to conclusion; encourages
decision making
Definition: Question and
answer dialogue—the
questions are the audience’s
Example: Why are we doing
this? What will change? How
will it affect me?
Purpose: Addresses the
specific issues of an
individual or group; creates a
comprehensive reference
source
Definition: Story built around
the journalist’s 5Ws and an
H (who, what, when, where,
why, and how)
Example: The salesforce lost
focus; then customers left—
to our main competitor …
Purpose: Illustrates cause
and effect relationships;
describes processes
 8. Reflect on Jarrah’s storyline
Adapting a storyline for another audience
Take a few minutes to reflect on how Jarrah’s storyline might change if he were presenting his
idea for a new yoga studio to his peers.
Compare to expert
What changes would you make to Jarrah’s storyline?
What would his peers want to hear in contrast to the MODA Budget Committee?
How might Jarrah start his presentation differently?
 9. Applying storylines in a
professional context
STORYLINES IN PRACTICE if you're trying to explain a plan to
somebody
how storylines can be applied in all types of interactions. B
• In a storyline, as opposed to a pyramid, you're adding the things that make your logic impactful for
the audience you have.
• You start with what they know. You tell them what they need to know. A
• You overcome the objections that they know-- you know they will be raising, even before those
objections are formed in their conscious mind. Plan
The other thing that makes the difference between a storyline and a pyramid is: But when you're telling a story
• the STORYLINE needs to win people's hearts. A PYRAMID really is just about winning their brains.
You're trained to put an argument together in a logical sequence and make a presentation that's got an the logical, onward movement
order to it, and so on.
And sometimes stories don't look like they've got that. They look like they're organic, and they emerge. but then

But they do have a logic. And I call that logic, the storyline. And it is a line. so then

but then so then

a detective story. If you told that in pyramid form,
it would be, this person is the murderer.
• Why did he murder the person? These reasons but then so then
• That would be a clear and logical way of delivering those facts, but nobody is going to pick that up at the
bookstore and read it with interest. That's not a page-turner. Let's put it that way.
story
 10. Knowledge check
Yikes! Help Noah quickly get ready for his meeting
In the video you watched at the beginning of this section, Noah and Maryam realized they needed a storyline to
bring their logic and structure to life. Noah needs to put together an elevator pitch for a meeting happening with
Aaliyah in 5 minutes.
 11. Converting storylines to
STORYBOARDS
Intro to storyboards
▪ Once you have written a clear and compelling storyline, you have to consider the different ways Storyline
to bring your storyline to life. There are many options for visualizing your message. 1. Item-1
▪ A common option is to create physical materials that will compose your communication. 2. Item-2
▪ storyboarding is a technique that professional storytellers in film, theater, television use to break 3. Item-3
down the storyline into individual frames, so that you can really examine, moment by moment, 4. …..
what's happening.
1. The first page is an EXECUTIVE SUMMARY, or a summary.
▪ taking a storyline, basically copying and pasting it onto that page, maybe only use the core
messages. And you don't have to go and copy all the supporting argumentation. STORYBOARDS
▪ And you might want to write an INTRODUCTION to it as well, and maybe something at the
end as well. EXECUTIVE
2. for the rest of the document, you also use your storyline. SUMMARY
▪ You take each message that you have.
▪ Each bullet would become the TITLE of your page, Item-1
▪ And then you would use whatever comes below those bullets as the supporting content on Item-2
your page.
▪ And you might turn the facts into graphs, for example, or show examples, or give quotations Item-3
to make it come to life.
 12. Storyboards in practice
Elements of a storyboard
Storyboarding is a decades-old practice that enables you to plan or “plot” a presentation. The elements of the presentation
may take many forms, for example : Charts -Images -Text-based assets-Posters
The storyboard documents:
▪ The messages you intend to share
▪ The form they will take
▪ The order in which they will appear
the pacing of the message is critical. Sometimes a less important part of your story may take more time to tell, (highly
technical or deeply data driven).
Not every audience wants to see the detailed analyses and evidence.
o Don’t spend too much time •choose to present high-level summaries of data (detailed information handout)
on
Most audiences react well to communications that have a lively start.
o a non-critical topic,
o or on a topic for which •Consider starting with a video or a demonstration to capture their attention
your audience has no If you have more material than you can cover,
appetite. •consider sending all or some components of your communication as a pre-read so that you can refer back to during a
o Instead, make conscious presentation or discussion
decisions about how you
Don’t bury key findings toward the back of a presentation;
communicate in order to
•always look for ways to showcase them up front
have the greatest impact.
For example: Remember to allow time for questions and discussion,
•especially if your event ends with a call to action,
 13. Visualizing your key messages
• Slide-style presentations are the most common approach to sharing information in business meetings. However, there
are other options that may more effectively move an audience to action, for example, videos and interactive activities.
• creative approaches to presenting your narrative and the best channels to communicate your message.

▪ Choosing the right format for any interaction is really important, (don’t fall into one particular style every time).
▪ There are so many other ways we can run a meeting and an interaction, and we should really try and use the
wealth of opportunities available to us.
choose one that will best facilitate the type of discussion you need to have
✓ to achieve the meeting's purpose, and
✓ to make the session as engaging and interactive as possible.
At planning stage
▪ don't start by writing out an agenda.
▪ start by thinking about, what are the outcomes of this meeting?
▪ As a result of participation in this meeting,
▪ what do we want our stakeholders to know, feel, and do?
For example,
o if you have content that you wanted to share, such as a project update, a perspective on a topic, results of some
analysis, then a presentation style could be appropriate.
o But you could also consider a gallery walk of the content, a Q&A style discussion, rotating breakouts, or a panel.
o If you wanted to foster a collaborative atmosphere to generate ideas or co-create something, then you could
consider a Post-it Note brainstorm exercise, or even running a mini-competition among your participants.
o then use voting by sticky dots or plotting on an ease/impact matrix to narrow down the ideas and reach a
consensus.
Once you've selected the format for your meeting,
✓ you can decide which MATERIALS you're going to need to support it.
✓ don't let the materials you have decide what format you're going to use.
✓ So think creatively about how you want to share your core insights. (charts, tables, and texts).
✓ But you could also think about pictures, videos, quotes, audio, cartoons.
✓ A video of a customer talking about their experience, or an annotated picture of a manufacturing line can be
far more effective and informative than a PowerPoint slide.
The way that we approach VISUALS is to make sure that they're ADDING VALUE.
• Just like information, if there's too much information, it's not needed.
• And it's going to make whatever message you have look more cluttered, messy, and unorganized.
• It's the last thing you want on your presentation.
• You can use pictures, you can use icons, you can use illustrations, you can use whatever type of visuals you feel
will add more value. Just don't mix them, stick with one.
 14. Alternative channels for
communication
Summary of communication channels
Depending on the audience and purpose of your interaction, you’ll want to consider using different channels
for communicating your key messages.
Let’s take a look at a variety of communication channels.
 14. Alternative channels for
communication(1/2)
WORKSHOP interactive meeting with a group of individuals to drive in-depth
discussions and/or activities on a specific topic (real/virtual).
•Best suited for interactions where your purpose is to OFFSITE TOUR
BRAINSTORM new ideas, create alignment among a large group,
build understanding of a new process, concept, or idea
•Workshops inspire COLLABORATION and allow groups to come
An is an opportunity to take a group of
together in an effective channel
individuals to another location to view
an example or demonstration of a
particular topic (real/virtual).
•Best suited for INTERACTIONS where
GALLERY a group of individuals walk around a room covered in a collage of the purpose is to build the GROUP’S
WALK visuals and text to engage with a specific topic (real/virtual). UNDERSTANDING of a particular
Best suited for interactions where the purpose is to SHARE A NEW process, concept, or topic;
CONCEPT OR IDEA, give an EXPERIENCE OF A JOURNEY, allow MORE demonstrate what a BEST-IN-CLASS
TIME for participants to process information and explore content in example looks like; allow for time to
different ways ask questions
•This approach gives individuals a CREATIVE ENVIRONMENT, an
active role, and positive energy to engage with the content
 14. Alternative channels for
communication(2/2)
INTERNAL CHAT
EMAIL used to communicate brief and structured messages. PLATFORM
•Best suited for interactions where you intend to tell a or collaborative workspace

 SPECIFIC MESSAGE or ask a specific question/demand of

the group
•It is not ideal for lengthy interactions that require significant
are used for brief group or one-on-
one messages for daily
input and discussion or for interactions that require intense communications.
engagement and collaboration •Best suited for interactions that
require collaboration, better than
email for creating threads or
workspaces to keep topics and
VIDEO used to bring together individuals who are not present in the same content organized and easier to
CONFERENCE space. find, also used to get a quick
•Best suited for interactions that do not require very decision from an individual
complicated group breakouts, physical activities, and/or •Chat platforms are a great
supporting materials that need to be presented simultaneously alternative to in-person meetings
•A video conference is a great substitute for IN-PERSON when decisions or input can be
MEETINGS and provides an opportunity to connect with shared quickly and succinctly
individuals from other geographic regions
 15. Discussion
Share your most engaging interaction
Think back to an interaction that worked really well with your
audience—a creative or novel spin on a communication channel, which
you came up with. Slide presentations are off the table!

▪ We tried workshop channel to generate

new ideas for water filtration methods to
use in water harvesting.
▪ It was successful because all participants
were collaboratively shared their ideas
and we had collect a lot of alternatives
solutions.
▪ My advice is to use this approach but
should be well-organizer and prepared
and ask people from different disciplines
to participate
 16. What to do when time is short?
EXECUTIVE SUMMARIES AND ELEVATOR PITCHES
How often do you attend a meeting that is cut short unexpectedly? An executive summary is a great way to safeguard
against this situation. As a concise summary of your storyline, the executive summary enables you to hit your key
points.

The purpose of an executive summary is to give somebody with limited time an overview of what you're going to talk about.
It's a tool that is designed really to facilitate executive decision-making. And so it is important that
✓ we pull out the right messages,
✓ put them in the right order, and
✓ use language in its most powerful form to really create an impact in, let's say, less than 500 words.
The best approach for an executive summary is
▪ to start with a blank sheet of paper.
▪ Think about EPIC. Specifically, think about your audience and what they care about and are interested in and what your purpose of the
document is.
executive summaries focus in (5, 500, 5 FRAMEWORK).
❖ the executive summary is no longer than 5% of the
overall content. explaining the
❖ In most cases that means that it's less than 500 words. CONTEXT
❖ And then finally, it's really based on five key
GOVERNING THOUGHT-
statements.
A common structure for an executive summary can be
➢ One or two sentences of context-- explaining the
CONTEXT of the work that you're doing– SUPPORTING
ARGUMENTS
➢ then the GOVERNING THOUGHT-- usually one
sentence–
➢ Three or four bullet points of SUPPORTING
ARGUMENTS or insights-- and then NEXT STEPS-
➢ finishing off with one or two sentences on the NEXT
STEPS-- so where you'll go from there. All 6 to 9 sentences
One benefit of having written an executive summary is
that you have an elevator pitch ready to go if you are
asked in the corridor for a quick update on your project.
You can provide an update in the same structure as your
executive summary, because you've already picked out
the governing thought and the most critical supporting
arguments to share.
 17. Take it to your team
Take it to your team
Introducing storylining to your team
Research shows that teaching others can strengthen your understanding and recall of a new concept or idea.
You were just introduced to the formula for creating a storyline—now practice it.
 18. Storylines in action
The most impactful and memorable meetings that I've either attended or hosted have involved very
little PowerPoint. And these meetings range from full day, internal offsites with a team, to multiple hour
client presentations, to just check-ins that last 30 to 45 minutes.
❑ most effective to use PowerPoint when you
▪ have a detailed strategy to work through or detailed recommendation,
▪ want to show data or support, a decision or different options with facts and insights.
❑ PowerPoint can very well kind of get through the data and show different perspectives so that it can
support a decision.
❑ a well-crafted memo or even a simple email can be as powerful as a complex PowerPoint deck.
❑ a shorter document that's very clear is much more effective than a longer document.
❑ Gallery walks are a wonderful way to bring to life different topics
And so I would really push anyone to think about before they jump to starting to make slides, think
about,
o what do I really want to communicate?
o Is this the right tool?
o What are the other tools that I have in my toolkit that I might want to consider using instead of
PowerPoint?
 19. Setting learning intentions
WHAT ARE YOUR LEARNING INTENTIONS?
Setting a learning intention can be most useful when building new skills and knowledge. Make some
concrete learning intentions related to Insight, looking ahead.
20. Next steps