Andy Stalman is a XXI century humanist. He is one of the best known branding and communication experts and writer of the best-sellers Brandoffon and Humanoffon. He has a very positive, hopeful approach regarding humanization in digital times. He was born in Argentina, travelled the world and finally decided to settle down in Madrid with his family 14 years ago.
I first met Andy in a conference in Merida, Mexico. It was my first speech as an entrepreneur. From that moment on, Andy has been sharing advice and knowledge which have guided my path in the entrepreneurial world. His generosity is as awesome as his professional knowledge and power as a speaker.
Andy, one of your first pieces of good advice was: “Emma, you are not a freelancer, you are an entrepreneur”. Why is naming so important when perceiving reality?
It’s a matter of detail. Big brands are built on small details. The world’s whole comprehension is based on perceptions. Good naming helps create a better perception of your Brand for others. The truth is that an entrepreneur can be a freelancer, but not every freelancer is an entrepreneur. In your case, you are an expert. A pilot needs 10.000 flight hours to be considered an expert. Your worldwide career created over the years makes you an expert in what you do now.
Why is digitalization such an overvalued concept?
Because the majority of us are happy to think the same as way most society does. And that majority is also ready to repeat what they hear without analyzing, questioning nor thinking about it before having their own point of view. Digitalization is part of a bigger universe. We are greatly mistaken if we think that digitalization has killed analogical. The truth is that digitalization came to complement, widen and improve analogical.
Which steps should include a good digitalization programme?
First of all, the organisation must be aware of its Brand. What its values, passions, purposes, culture are. Secondly, it is time to understand that introducing digitalization is not about technology, but a change of mindset. Third, we must help the team members in the organisation to trust the change. Fourth, carefully develop the implementation of the plan. A bad implementation is a bad plan.
In your opinion, which is the social topic we need to go into more depth on?
Trust. We need to develop our trust linked to the fact that we must accept the need for continuous learning, the chance to accept mistakes without fear (there is a very fine line between mistakes and great ideas). And above all, we need to develop creativity, curiosity and imagination which are essential to question what nobody has ever questioned before and do things that were never done before. We have to control our fears. Fear of failure kills creativity, destroys our dreams andis a wall that stops us from going further and improving.
Nowadays we focus too much on technology and we overvalue it, while everybody is desperately looking for emotions. We are not data. We are emotion. If companies just talk about big data, cloud, AI, machines, robots, algorithms, etc … Where does the human being fit in?
Which person from the past can inspire us today?
A mixture of Winston Churchill’s leadership, Columbus’ craziness, Malala Yousafzai’s courage, Steve Job’s vision, Marie Curie’s pioneer approach, Spielberg’s creativity, Coco Chanel’s originality, Da Vinci’s inspiration and Jeff Bezos’ strategy. And I am leaving several extraordinary men and women.
We are in the turbulent times of the 4th Industrial Revolution where there is a big gap between society and organisations … What scenario do you predict in the years to come?
While a big majority of brands are talking about something they cannot do, a group of brands are making it real. It’s the era where everything is possible and it’s time to focus on people. If companies want to be important to people, people have to be important to companies. And then, it’s not about being important. It’s about making important contributions.
How will we shift from “balancing” to “integrating”?
Being sensible, open minded and assuming we are not in an era of changes, but in a change of era. We must embrace diversity accepting that people are not resources. They are not even Brand ambassadors. They are the Brand.
Which role will Smart cities play in the years to come?
They will play an important role as long as they understand it’s not about having smart cities: the real challenge is working hard to have intelligent citizens. Smart cities as a concept is not enough, as they have to be human cities. We are beginning to accept that change is not a future event, it is happening here and now. It’s time to adopt a different approach.
Many thanks for opening a door to a different reality, Andy!
