As I celebrate another birthday, I’m struck by how this past year has crystallised around a central theme: the power of structured, customer-focused storytelling in creating genuine business value. Whether working with industry analysts, supporting academic innovation, or helping technology providers navigate complex markets, everything connects through stories that matter to the people who need to hear them.
Digital Influence and Market Learning
My LinkedIn engagement this year revealed something fascinating about what resonates in our industry. The post about a client paying $38,000 for each Gartner inquiry struck a nerve with over 8,400 impressions, whilst the “Rich Get Richer” analysis of how top tech firms are widening the analyst relations gap reached 8,000+ impressions.
But the real revelation was how LinkedIn became my primary market research tool. With 18,082 total followers (48.6% growth) and 565,505 impressions reaching 98,703 members, the platform transformed from broadcasting into genuine market intelligence. The comments and interactions fundamentally shifted my understanding of how buyers make decisions, how analysts serve clients, and what practitioners actually experience in the field.
This interactive learning perfectly embodies what I call the CLEAR principle—prioritising Customer Benefits, using Lucid Examples, adopting an Engaging Voice, providing Accessible Context, and leading with Relevant Business Value. The most successful posts weren’t just clear—they invited substantive dialogue that deepened everyone’s market understanding.
Expanding Academic Impact
This year marked a significant expansion of my involvement with the University of Edinburgh Business School. Beyond co-directorship of the Analyst Observatory, I became a business associate in their entrepreneurship and innovation group—perfectly aligned with my professional focus on helping organisations navigate complex technology markets.
This dual role allows me to bridge structured communication with practical market insights, particularly valuable as we study how analyst influence shapes innovation adoption. The work reinforces a key insight: the most effective influence comes from evidence-based narratives that solve real customer problems. And a big part of that has been partnership between the Observatory and SageCircle, who generously have allowed data I have helped them collect over the last years (first as at CCGroup and then as freelancer) to be used for scholarly research.
Professional Focus: Elisa Industriq’s Market Transformation
Leading analyst relations for Elisa Industriq provided a fascinating laboratory for testing customer-focused storytelling across energy, manufacturing, and telecommunications markets. Rather than explaining what our solutions do, I’ve focused on why they matter to customers who use them.
I’ve seen, and contributed to, some key achievements by the extended Elisa Industriq family:
- Strategic positioning of AI-powered automation solutions across multiple verticals
- Portfolio integration of camLine, sedApta Group, Elisa Polystar under the Industriq umbrella
- Analyst communications focused on business value rather than technical features
- Market narrative development connecting innovation to measurable outcomes
The London Stock Exchange briefing with analysts (both in person and online) from Analysys Mason, CCS Insight, Forrester, Omdia, PAC, STL Partners, and Verdantix exemplified this approach—leading with customer value propositions rather than technical specifications.
Three Strategic Insights That Emerged
The Customer-Centricity Imperative
Analysts face the same tension as their clients: research directors want innovative technology coverage, but buyers need business case help. The solution isn’t choosing one—it’s leading with business value and showing how technology enables it.
The Goldilocks Zone Opportunity
Markets that are neither too cold (minimal analyst coverage) nor too hot (dominated by tech giants) represent tremendous opportunities where strategic storytelling creates disproportionate impact.
Beyond Product Reviews to Problem Solving
The most engaging discussions centred on how analyst firms need to pivot from product expertise to business problem solving—relevant for everyone in the technology ecosystem serving buyers.
Manufacturing Intelligence Perspective
My deep dive into manufacturing automation through the camLine Forum, working with Bosch, STMicroelectronics, and GlobalFoundries, reinforced a crucial point: customers don’t buy automation—they buy business outcomes. Whether improved quality, cost reduction, or growth enablement, stories must start with the customer’s business challenge.
This proved equally valuable in telecommunications, where my 5G Standalone analysis showed technical capabilities only matter when solving real operational problems.
Looking Forward: Integration and Impact
The most powerful narratives combine structured clarity with commercial relevance. My expanded Edinburgh volunteering perfectly complements my Elisa Industriq work—both require translating complex innovations into stories that drive action.
Future success belongs to organisations that can:
- Lead with customer value rather than technical features
- Use the CLEAR principle to bridge innovation and adoption
- Focus on measurable business outcomes
- Balance structured communication with practical guidance
A Year of Connection and Growth
Beyond the metrics—565,000+ impressions and 48.6% follower growth—what matters most are conversations that genuinely shifted my market understanding. The 25-year milestone in analyst relations marked with a still-ongoing SageCircle book project represents evolution from process-focused methodology to relationship building, strategic influence, and customer-focused storytelling.
The Birthday Reflection
As I celebrate another year, I’m energised by how customer-focused storytelling, structured communication, and market transformation are converging. Whether helping analysts understand manufacturing automation, supporting entrepreneurs at Edinburgh, or crafting narratives for Elisa Industriq, the mission remains: turning complex innovations into CLEAR stories that create measurable impact.
The technology markets I work in—energy, manufacturing, telecommunications—are undergoing fundamental AI and automation-driven transformations. The organisations that will thrive are those telling authentic, customer-focused stories about value creation—stories that follow the CLEAR principle and invite meaningful dialogue.
Here’s to another year of strategic storytelling, meaningful innovation, and customer-focused narratives that drive real business value. The best stories are yet to be written.
My final comment is to thank everyone who has been part of this year’s journey, but also to remember one friend over these most recent decades who left us two years ago: Dominic Pannell. I’ve written a note about his contributions here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/remembering-dominic-pannell-doms-framework-influencer-duncan-chapple-vsltc.
