The storytelling skill business leaders underestimate - Suchitra Parikh

Описание: Hook Point : Data informs, but stories move people. At PayPal, storytelling isn’t just about presentations — it’s about leadership, influence, and innovation. In this episode, Suchitra Parikh shares the storytelling lessons that shape how teams connect, inspire, and lead.

Suchi Parikh is a creative director and storyteller with a rare blend of design craft and business fluency. After a decade at Apple leading global sales content, she now serves as Director of Storytelling at PayPal, where she helps bring complex product innovation to life across agent commerce, Venmo, and global payments. Her work sits at the intersection of empathy, clarity, and persuasion - translating complexity into stories that move people to act.
In this conversation with TheyDo’s Jochem van der Veer, Suchi unpacks why every presentation is an act of persuasion, how teams unintentionally dump complexity on their audience, and what it really takes to transform someone from awareness to action. Together, they explore practical frameworks for simplifying stories, designing for emotional shifts in customer journeys, and building trust through intentional storytelling.

Guest Bio
Suchi Parikh is a creative leader and Director of Storytelling at PayPal, where she shapes how product innovation is communicated across global payments and commerce experiences. Previously, she spent over 10 years at Apple as a Group Creative Director, leading global sales content and executive storytelling.
With a background in animation, design, and business, Suchi specializes in helping organizations clarify their thinking, reduce cognitive load, and communicate ideas with conviction. She is known for bridging creative storytelling with strategic business outcomes, and for mentoring teams to become more confident, intentional storytellers.Storytelling at PayPal - lessons from Suchi - Suchitra Parikh

Key Takeaways
-Every presentation is an act of persuasion, even routine business updates.
-Complexity is the storyteller’s responsibility, not the audience’s burden.
-Great business stories start with one clear intention, often anchored in a single word.
-Emotional state matters as much as functional clarity in customer journeys.
-Trust is built through simplicity, sequencing, and empathy, not more information.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction and background
01:32 From design to business storytelling at Apple
04:28 Why business presentations fail despite good data
07:13 Every presentation as an act of persuasion
09:56 A simple structure for clearer business stories
12:58 Removing cognitive load and the one-word anchor
19:50 Why having a point of view matters
25:10 Audience Context Transformation (ACT) framework
28:50 Emotional states in everyday customer journeys
35:30 Operationalizing storytelling in large organizations
40:24 Why energy matters more than logic
44:10 Practicing storytelling in safe environments
47:25 The role of a Director of Storytelling
48:56 Rules, frameworks, and when to break them
50:55 Learning from unexpected great storytellers

LinkedIn Profiles
Guest:   / suchi-parikh  
Host:   / jochemvanderveer  

Follow Jochem on LinkedIn: @jochemvanderveer
Learn more about Journey Management with TheyDo:
https://www.theydo.com

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