We’re starting a three or four part inquiry at Gennova about business narratives and storytelling (I’m on the hook for some conversation-starting content with my colleagues Bruce Hoppe and Barbara Kivowitz). I’ve been scouting out a bit on the web (lots of Steve Denning, Dave Snowden, and Anecdote, of course). But I’ve also been thinking about methods I’ve used for many years that elicit narrative as part of the data collection process and then use them for design or sensemaking:

• Contextual design — developed by Karen Holtzblatt and Hugh Beyer during my days at Digital
• EL Maps — developed by Marilyn Darling whom I met during my days at Nortel

I’ve also been reviewing some story-related work in progress by John Caddell, whom I met at Shawn Callahan’s workshop in April. He posted a good bit on the DoD’s Encyclopedia of Ethical Failure, a catalog of stories that we really wish we didn’t have to hear!