The document discusses the concept of "The Business Romantic" which considers business to be more than just numbers and profits. A Business Romantic values immeasurable human experiences and honors the "un-quantified" aspects of people rather than just catering to self-interest. They carve out spaces for ephemeral and transcendent experiences that are greater than oneself and values such as empathy, generosity and love. The Business Romantic sees beauty in the business world through fresh eyes and uses business as a vehicle for creating meaningful human experiences.

1. The Business Romantic
Designing for Meaning / Tim Leberecht / 02.12.14 / nbbj

2. I am German.
2

3. I am a soccer fan.
3

4. I am a marketer.
4

5. “The problem is not measurement per se. The problem
is the loss of balance between valuing what can be
measured and what cannot, and becoming so
dependent on quantitative measures that they displace
judgment and learning.”
PETER SENGE

6. Designing for Meaning

8. Burning Man

9. TED Open Translation Project

10. Tom & Jerry Christmas House

11. @SochiProblems

12. 1. Exclude
2. Exchange
3. Elevate

13. “Goldman Sachs
Hires Single Morally
Decent Human
Being To Work In
Separate, Enclosed
Cubicle”
The Onion
Dis-connected
Image: The Onion

14. - 27% of bosses believe their employees are inspired by their firm. However, in the same
survey only 4% of employees agreed. (Boston Research Group/LRN)
- 72% of workers are indifferent or downright negative towards work. (Gallup, 2013)
- 95% of Americans reject the idea that a corporation’s only purpose is to make money.
(BusinessWeek)
- People regard experts such as academics or even their peers as twice as more trustworthy
than institutional leaders. (Edelman Trust Barometer 2013)
- 75% of consumers say they are likely to switch to brands associated with a good cause if
price and quality are equal. (Trends Report)
- Employee loyalty is at a seven-year low. (MetLife 2012)
- 1 in 3 employees plans to leave his or her job by the end of the year. (MetLife 2012)
- The average company loses anywhere from 20 to 50% of its employee base every year.
(MetLife 2012)
47% of consumers say they buy, every month, at least one brand that supports a good
cause, a 47% increase from 2010. 72% of consumers say they would recommend a brand
that supports a good cause – a 38% increase in two years. (Edelman, 2012)
- Consumers say they’re more likely to discuss the good deeds a company does than they
are to discuss a company’s financial performance. (Weber Shandwick, 2012, survey)
- “Conscious” companies outperform competitors by a factor of 10. (Conscious Capitalism)
-

16. “Market systems are justified not because of efficiencies
and profits, but because humans are first and foremost social
and emotional beings, and markets provide a sympathetic
community for social exchange.”
Robert C. Solomon

17. Enter
THE BUSINESS ROMANTIC
Makes us see the beauty of the world with “fresh eyes.”
Considers business to be more than a numbers game: a powerful
vehicle for creating richer human experiences that mean more.
Honors our full “un-quantified selves” rather than just catering to
our “quantified selves” and our self-interests.
Carves out spaces for the ephemeral and transcendent
—for experiences that are “greater than ourselves.”
Values what is immeasurable but makes us human:
values such as empathy, generosity, devotion, love, hope.
Small ‘acts of significance’

18. Traditional
Smart
Meaningful
Planning
Acting
Wandering
Conversion
Connection
Reconnection
Process
Dashboard
Principles
Control
Monitoring
Letting go
Consistency
Diversity
Serendipity
Big Idea
Big Data
Big Intuition
Rapid response
Real-time
Pre-emptive
Segmenting
Behavioral targeting
Distributed presence
Message
Conversation
(Occasional) silence
Visibility
Transparency
Mystery
Risk
Calculated risk
Vulnerability
Benefit
Value
Values
Attraction
Liking
Love
Convenience
User-friendliness
Frustration
Efficiency
Excellence
Significance
Self-interest
Quantified Self
Un-Quantified Self

19. Traditional
Smart
Meaningful
Planning
Acting
Wandering
Conversion
Connection
Reconnection (Nostalgia)
Process
Dashboard
Principles
Control
Monitoring
Loss of control
Consistency
Diversity
Serendipity
Big Idea
Big Data
Big Intuition
Rapid response
Real-time
Pre-emptive
Segmenting
Behavioral targeting
Distributed presence
Message
Conversation
(Occasional) silence
Visibility
Transparency
Mystery
Risk
Calculated risk
Vulnerability
Benefit
Value
Values
Attraction
Liking
Love
Convenience
User-friendliness
Frustration
Efficiency
Excellence
Significance
Self-interest
Quantified Self
Un-Quantified Self

20. Nostalgia
Mystery
Frustration

21. Nostalgia

22. Moleskine: Analog cloud

23. Beck: Sheet music

24. Snapchat: Permission to forget

25. Make, hardware, local

26. Secret Cinema: Mystery screenings

27. Nextpedition: Mystery travel

28. Surprise Industries: Surprise-as-a-service

29. Situationist: Random situations

30. Frustration

31. “Can my grandmother use it?”

32. Collisions

33. Nostalgia
Un-reason
Transcendence
?
Frustration
Mystery
Generosity
Serendipity

34. Mission
Happiness
Romance
CSR
Purpose

35. THE BUSINESS ROMANTIC
Makes us see the beauty of the (business) world with “fresh eyes.”
Considers business to be more than a numbers game: a powerful
vehicle for creating richer human experiences that mean more.
Honors our full “un-quantified selves” rather than just catering to
our “quantified selves” and our self-interests.
Carves out spaces for the artful and playful
—for experiences that are “larger than ourselves.”

36. “The role of the human is not to be dispassionate, depersonalized or
neutral. It is precisely the emotive traits that are rewarded: the
voracious lust for understanding, the enthusiasm for work, the ability
to grasp the gist, the empathetic sensitivity to what will attract
attention and linger in the mind.
Unable to compete when it comes to
calculation, the best workers will come
with heart in hand.”
- David Brooks

37. Thank you.
@timleberecht
timleberecht.tumblr.com
@NBBJdesign
www.nbbj.com
http://meanstheworld.co