Empathetic stories have had a huge impact on the ability of General Mills to uncover deep needs and spur the development and launch of successfully differentiated new products. In this short notes slide presentation, Anne Orban, M.Ed., NPDP, Director of Discovery & Innovation at Innovation Focus Inc, communicates the basic framework for this tool and her enthusiasm for its value to companies with lackluster new product performance.

1. Presented by: G. Anne Orban Director, Discovery & Innovation November 17, 2011 Empathy = Power for Change Story

3. How do we strive to gain deep insight? Innovation Focus Inc. November 17, 2011

11. What About Storytelling… Innovation Focus Inc. November 17,, 2011 We all know the term – blinding flash of the obvious. I think that means intuitively you know its right. Project outcomes at the fuzzy front end are sometimes ‘ accused’ of delivering the obvious. Great. That means the deliverable is intuitively right. But you didn’t know that when you started the project. The vehicle for infecting people with a similar level of intuitive commitment to a big insight is the empathic story that deeply, intuitively connects. For General Mills empathy is an outcome of data analysis and synthesis. It is an individual ah-ha in a safe team setting. It moves individuals and teams through awareness and sympathy from customer interaction and personal experience -- using tools and techniques from theatrical improvisation to breaking through the mask of indifference -- and delivers the empathic ah-ha in a story you remember because it connects empathically.

14. Finding the breakthrough story… November 17, 2011 Innovation Focus Inc. From Steven Farenholtz, PhD, Director, Strategy and Innovation (iSquad), General Mills

15. Finding the breakthrough story… slide above ) From Steven Farenholtz, PhD, Director, Strategy and Innovation (iSquad), General Mills

17. Your Innovation Focus Presenter Innovation Focus Inc. November 17, 2011 Anne Orban, MFA, MEd, NPDP Director Discovery & Innovation Anne is committed to helping clients innovate all along the value chain. At Innovation Focus she combines her experience in marketing research, process design, and facilitation to help clients grow through new product and service development. Anne has her master of education degree in adult training and organizational development and her master of fine arts in theater and drama. She is a certified New Product Development Professional. Currently she serves of the Board of Directors of the Product Development and Management Association.