Story-Driven Business podcast with Susanna Rantanen

In this episode of the Story-Driven Business podcast, Susanna Rantanen explores why B2B leadership culture starts with you, whether you like it or not. Drawing on behavioural science and real-world leadership experience, this episode explains why culture isn't created in strategy decks or off-sites, but in everyday leadership behaviour: how you respond under pressure, give feedback, handle conflict and how you model values in action as a leader. If you've ever wondered why alignment slips, why teams behave differently than expected, or why culture change feels harder than it should, this episode will help you see leadership culture in a whole new way. Find the show notes to this episode, and previous episodes, on: https://www.modernemployerbrand.com Learn more about Susanna's work here: https/www.emine.fi/en/    

Most business leaders dismiss employer branding because they think it's a recruitment tool. In this episode of the Story-Driven Business podcast, Susanna Rantanen (the innovator and leading global expert in story-driven employer branding) reveals why that assumption is costing B2B companies growth, trust, and stability. Discover why your employer reputation is the foundation of your B2B business brand, and why customers buy based on their belief in your people, not your product or services. This episode reframes employer branding as a strategic leadership discipline and introduces the core philosophy behind Susanna's book, Story-Driven Employer Branding: Introducing the Magnetic Employer Branding Method™. You'll learn: Why employer branding isn't an HR initiative Why B2B leaders must see their people as the real product How customer trust depends on employee commitment What a story-driven approach unlocks for growth, retention, and performance The mindset shift every modern leader needs Find the episode shownotes here: https://modernemployerbrand.com/podcast207

A New Season of Story-Driven Business Begins! After a six-month break, Story-Driven Business Podcast returns! And this time, the pause mattered. In this bonus episode, Susanna Rantanen opens a new season with honesty, perspective, and a powerful reframing of what 2026 is really about. Following a life-changing MS diagnosis in 2025, this episode isn't just a comeback; it's a recalibration. This season dives into AI beyond tools and technology. Not prompts. Not platforms. But people. Drawing parallels to the digitalisation wave of the late 2000s, Susanna explores what today's AI shift means for business leaders, experts, HR, marketers, and anyone responsible for guiding others through uncertainty. Roles will change. Skills will evolve. Fear is real. But work doesn't disappear, and neither does human value. This podcast season focuses on: AI as an operating environment, not a gadget Leadership communication when people feel uncertain and overwhelmed Why storytelling and persuasive communication are becoming non-negotiable leadership skills How professionals can take charge of their own development — regardless of employer support What it really takes to stay relevant, trusted, and influential in the AI era You're invited into an open exploration, not polished answers, but grounded thinking, lived experience, and communication science that helps leaders make sense of change and guide others with clarity and confidence. This is the beginning of a new season, a new direction, and a deeper conversation about work, identity, leadership, and meaning in the age of AI. Welcome back to Story-Driven Business. This time, it's personal.

In this episode of the Story-Driven Business Podcast, Susanna explains why budgeting employer branding for 2026 is essential for winning business leaders. Every employer has an employer image, but a true employer brand only exists when people feel an emotional connection. Without strategic investment, your image will be shaped by others, from employees to ex-employees, and from competitors to job seekers — and not always in your favour. Susanna shares a practical breakdown of what real story-driven budgeting looks like, including strategy and planning, creative assets, tools, resources, strategic partners, employee advocacy and thought leadership.  She also reveals how proper budgeting leads to measurable employer branding ROI through relevant, business-driven goals and objectives, creating a competitive advantage. You'll learn: What to include in your 2026 employer branding budget. Why cutting EB budgets creates hidden, long-term costs. Show notes are available for you here: https://modernemployerbrand.com/podcast206 Inclusive, a free Cheat Sheet for download to help you plan what you need to budget for 2026. Available in the show notes.

As AI rewrites the rules of business, emotional commitment is your competitive edge. In this episode, I explore how story-driven leadership builds trust, resilience and clarity when everything feels uncertain. Why do some teams rise through chaos while others resist change? The answer lies in the power of emotional connection to your business story. 🎙️ Hit play now and start leading through storytelling. 👉 Hosted by me, Susanna Rantanen | #StoryDrivenBusiness Find me on socials as @rantanensusanna Enjoy!

Think storytelling in business is about career tales or brand fluff? Think again. In this episode, Susanna Rantanen breaks down what business storytelling really is: a strategic communication method that helps you win attention, build trust, and move people—whether they're employees, customers, job seekers or stakeholders. Discover how to apply StoryBrand framework (SP7) and Susanna's own Talent Journey of the Information Era™ to make your messaging magnetic, internally and externally. 🎧 Listen now and start turning ideas into movements. 🛠 Need help applying this in your business? Book a discovery call with us emailing us. Find the show notes for this episode here: https://modernemployerbrand.com/podcast204

What happens when leadership, employer branding, internal comms, and business strategy all tell the same story? You stop running campaigns… And start building trust, alignment, and long-term traction. In this episode, Susanna unpacks: ✅ The 4 levels of story integration ✅ Why most businesses fail at story (hint: it's fear, not complexity) ✅ Why story-driven employer branding is the true foundation of a story-driven business ✅ How to activate story in your leadership culture, not just your content This isn't branding fluff. It's business transformation, person by person, guide by guide, story by story. Check the show notes page: https://modernemployerbrand.com/podcast203 Get the book: https://storydrivenemployerbranding.com/ Don't forget to subscribe to this podcast! And if you love it, share it with your boss and colleagues, and, please, rate it! 🙏 Until next week, Susanna   

What if the problem isn't a lack of talent—but a lack of trust in your brand? In this episode of the Story-Driven Business Podcast, Susanna reveals why the talent shortage you're experiencing is actually a positioning problem and a trust issue. You will learn how to fix it by turning your employer brand into a growth strategy. ✅ Learn how to attract the right people before you even post a job.✅ Discover why most employer brands push talent away—and how to stop doing that.✅ Get inspired to lead with purpose, clarity, and the Magnetic Employer Branding Method™. 🎧 Listen now and dive deeper in the show notes at modernemployerbrand.com/podcast202 📚 Learn more about the method at storydrivenemployerbranding.com ✨ Explore how we help growth companies at emine.fi

What if the reason your employees aren't engaged, your strategy isn't landing, or your change initiative is falling flat isn't the idea itself, but how you're communicating it? In this episode of the Story-Driven Business Podcast, Susanna Rantanen, the world's leading expert in story-driven, modern employer branding, guides you through the biggest shift today's business leaders need to make: ➡️ Stop being the hero. ➡️ Start being the guide. If you want to influence change, inspire people to act, and become a more impactful communicator, this is your playbook. Want the show notes? Go to: https://modernemployerbrand.com/podcast201

🔥 The future of work isn't coming. It's here. And most companies? Still marketing like it's 2019. Still running talent campaigns that feel generic. Still separating leadership voice from employer brand. Still wondering why trust and advocacy are fading. Deloitte's 2025 Human Capital Trends Report says it clearly: Human outcomes are business outcomes. Story is now a leadership tool—not a marketing trick. Episode 200 of my Story-Driven Business Podcast shows how to evolve your brand—and your leadership—for this new era. 💡 Why campaigns alone won't work 💡 How story builds affinity 💡 Why leaders must market through culture and narrative—not slogans Show notes available: modernemployerbrand.com/podcast200📕 Learn the method: storydrivenemployerbranding.com  

Employees won't advocate for what they don't understand—or feel. Too many companies mistake "brand awareness" or internal campaigns for advocacy. But without emotional connection to your strategy—without brand affinity—you'll never build a true culture of alignment, ownership, and advocacy. Today, we're talking about a game-changing concept for CEOs and founders who are ambitious, who can achieve their vision, but whose company sometimes feels more like a loose collection of teams than a single, aligned force. Find the show notes for this episode here: https://www.modernemployerbrand.com/podcast199 Get my book to learn a LOT about story-driven branding here: https://www.storydrivenemployerbranding.com Subscribe to this podcast and please, if you loved my podcast, rate it and share the love to others who you believe will love it, too! Lots of love Susanna  

🔥 CEOs, listen up. The most powerful storyteller in your employer brand isn't HR or comms. It's YOU. When the person at the top goes quiet, so does the culture. But when you lead with a story—authentic, value-based, human story—your people don't just listen. They align. They believe. They act. In this final part of my podcast series on modern leadership branding, I unpack why narrative power is the new executive influence tool—and what it looks like when the CEO becomes the Chief Storyteller. ✔️ What stories you should be telling ✔️ Where to show up (without being an influencer) ✔️ How to build credibility, consistency and culture with story This episode isn't just for top execs—it's for every EB pro trying to get their CEO to finally step up and speak up. 🎤 Show notes available here: https://modernemployerbrand.com/podcast198 📕 Get the book: https://storydrivenemployerbranding.com  

RIP old-school EVPs. They had a good run… until nobody believed them anymore. 🙃 The world has changed. People want work that fits into their lives—not just flashy slogans and buzzword bingo on your careers page. In this episode of the Story-Driven Business Podcast, I'm showing you the modern replacement: ✨ The Modern Work-to-Life Promise ✨ Real, evolving Key Story Themes These aren't just words. They're the foundation of trust, retention and reputation. Learn the method → storydrivenemployerbranding.com

HOT TAKE: If your employer brand still revolves around your CEO, tech stack, or product features… you're not branding a company. You're feeding an ego. And egos don't scale. People do. Your people are the hero of your business strategy. Not you. In my latest episode of the Story-Driven Business Podcast, I dive into a mindset shift that turns modern leadership on its head:🎙️ "The Talent is the Hero: A Leadership Shift That Changes Everything" When leaders stop trying to be the centre of the story and start guiding their people as the protagonists, trust builds. Retention grows. Innovation takes off. And employer branding? It becomes magnetic. 👉 Are you ready to lead like Yoda, not Iron Man? Find the show notes for this episode: modernemployerbrand.com/podcast196 Get the book for the full monty here >  

What if your company culture is actually sabotaging your business strategy? In this episode of the Story-Driven Business podcast, I reveal how to decode your organisational culture using the Competing Values Framework and the OCAI diagnostic tool. You'll discover how different culture types—Clan, Adhocracy, Market, and Hierarchy—shape everything from leadership and performance expectations to recruitment messaging and talent profiles. This episode is especially powerful for modern leaders, HR professionals, and founders navigating growth, change, or transformation. I'll also show you how my Magnetic Employer Branding Method™ transforms culture insights into magnetic content, leadership communication, and employee experiences. Based on the framework behind my book Story-Driven Employer Branding, this episode will forever change how you approach culture—and help you turn it into a strategic superpower. Listen now and start aligning your culture with your business mission. Let's make your strategy magnetic!

What if your employer brand was never meant to live in talent acquisition?  What if it's the missing link between your culture, people, and business strategy? In this game-changing episode of Story-Driven Business Podcast, Susanna Rantanen—author of Story-Driven Employer Branding and the world's leading expert in modern employer branding—shares why story-driven positioning is your most underrated strategic tool. Discover: The four strategic company culture types and why knowing yours is critical How to design employee experiences that make your employer brand believable What the Master Plan is—and why you need one before you post anything online Why CEOs and founders should care about employer branding ROI (spoiler: it's not just applications) 🎧 This episode connects the dots between leadership, business success, and storytelling in a way no "recruitment campaign" ever could. 📚 Get the book: storydrivenemployerbrand.com 🎙️ Shownotes: modernemployerbrand.com/podcast194

What if I told you your employer brand already exists—and it's silently telling the world what kind of leader you are? In this episode, Susanna Rantanen—creator of the Magnetic Employer Branding Method™—reveals why employer branding has become your leadership advantage. Discover how story-driven employer branding connects your business strategy, values, and company culture into a cohesive narrative that drives behaviour, improves retention, and boosts performance. 🎯 Learn how to: Turn culture into your company's invisible compass Align your people with your strategic vision Attract talent who already believe in your mission This episode will change how you lead—from the inside out. 🔗 Get the book: storydrivenemployerbranding.com

Why do so many brilliant strategies fall flat in execution? One word: buy-in. And what unlocks buy-in? Not data. Not directives. Stories. In this episode of the Story-Driven Business Podcast, modern employer branding gal Susanna Rantanen unpacks the power of storytelling as the most underrated – and underused – leadership skill in business. Learn how to turn your strategy into a shared mission, your message into a movement, and your culture into a magnet for talent. Expect: Tangible tips for execs, CEOs and team leads Real-life examples of storytelling success The Magnetic Employer Branding Method™ in action Why communication IS culture 🎧 Listen now and discover how to inspire action, build trust, and leave a legacy—one story at a time.

Forget charisma. Ditch the data dump. The most powerful leadership tool isn't in your MBA textbook—it's storytelling. In this episode, Susanna Rantanen, the world's leading modern employer branding expert, dives into why storytelling is the most overlooked yet essential skill for leaders today. Discover how to lead with clarity, inspire trust, align culture, and boost your "Return on Inspiration"—all through the stories you tell. 💡 Featuring ideas and thoughts from masterminds such as Donald Miller, Brené Brown, Simon Sinek and Susanna from the new book Story-Driven Employer Branding, this is the mindset shift every leader needs. 🎧 Listen now and discover why storytelling isn't fluff—it's fuel. 🔗 Need to check out the show notes? Go here: modernemployerbrand.com/podcast191 👉 Grab your signed copy of the book at storydrivenemployerbranding.com 👉 Or find it on Amazon

What if your employer brand wasn't just seen… but deeply felt? In this episode of the Story-Driven Business Podcast, I (Susanna Rantanen, the world's leading modern employer branding expert) reveal the 11 powerful steps to building an employer brand so aligned with your business mission, it becomes magnetic. Using the Magnetic Employer Branding Method™, I'll guide you through how to: Transform your current culture into a Strategic Company Culture Make your people your loudest brand advocates without begging for reviews Craft a Work-to-Life Promise™ that top talent feels in their bones Win sustainable attention and convert it into long-term talent affinity If your employer brand still relies on campaigns, perks, or empty values — you're not just behind. You're invisible. 🎧 Tap play to future-proof your brand. 📕 Grab the book: storydrivenemployerbranding.com