Chapter 9 Narrative Intelligence S ity. In the business world, the significance of storytelling has only grown as organizations navigate increasingly tangled webs of stakeholders, tech- nologies, and market forces. When we talk about narrative intelligence in today’s digital landscape, we’re referring to something far more foundational than merely “telling good stories.” We’re discussing the capacity to create, recognize, and leverage meaningful narratives that help people navigate complexity with coherence. This ability has become a critical organizational capacity in the digital age. The Evolution of Organizational Storytelling tories have always been at the heart of human experience. From the earliest cave paintings to today’s viral TikTok videos, narra- tive remains our most powerful tool for making sense of complex- In traditional organizations, storytelling happened primarily through formal channels—the CEO’s speech at the annual meeting, the official company newsletter, or carefully crafted marketing campaigns. These narratives flowed in a single direction: from leadership outward or from marketing departments to customers. Today’s digital landscape has fundamentally transformed this dy- namic. Storytelling has become multidirectional, continuous, and far
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