What would the walls of your office say if they could speak?
Perhaps they would speak of brilliant achievements and sharp insights. But maybe they would also reveal unspoken conflicts, difficult decisions, and transformations that left invisible marks. Every place holds a story. But not everyone knows how to listen.
When memory lives where we stand
Across European cities, we often walk over small brass plates set into the pavement: Stolpersteine, or stumbling stones. They are simple, discreet, and yet deeply powerful. The Stolpersteine commemorate the names of individuals deported to concentration camps.
Placed in front of their former homes, they force us to confront the past exactly where we are. They don’t ask us to visit a museum or read a history book; they ask us to pause right there, in the present moment, and remember.
This idea of “active memory” embedded in physical spaces is profoundly relevant for today’s business world.
Places as living narratives
Organizations are quick to celebrate success, but more inclined to erase failures, crises, and painful transitions.
Yet every organizational space holds memory. The open space where digital strategies are now envisioned may once have witnessed a sweeping restructuring. Every meeting room has hosted conflict, insights, bold decisions—or ones that were postponed.
As the Stolpersteine teach us, it is in the conscious recognition of these memories that a leadership rooted in authenticity and vision can emerge. David Boje (2008), an American scholar known for his pioneering work in organizational storytelling, demonstrated how organizations are fundamentally composed of stories—some told, others silenced—which inhabit not only mental but also physical spaces.
Memory as a lever for meaning
In a time when purpose and coherence are critical for attracting talent and maintaining stakeholder trust, forgetting the past becomes a strategic liability.
Many organizations construct a selective memory, remembering what flatters and forgetting what challenges them—but these omissions can create profound cultural misalignments (Anteby & Molnár, 2012).
Organizations can instead choose to reinterpret their history in a narrative, inclusive, and truthful way. This means not only celebrating excellence, but also giving space to stumbles, to the moments where learning, redirection, and listening were necessary.
Companies that are already moving in this direction
Patagonia, for instance, has built a culture of radical transparency, where past environmental mistakes and strategic missteps are shared openly. The company discusses its failures in material sourcing, past decisions, and ecological impact. Rather than weakening the brand, this strengthens the trust of customers and employees, positioning Patagonia as an authentically self-critical company.
Interface, one of the world’s largest carpet manufacturers, has based its sustainability identity on the acknowledgment of its previous environmental damage. Founder Ray Anderson described his “ecological epiphany” as a turning point. Recognizing the harm done was the first step toward transforming Interface into a pioneer of the circular economy. That past, rather than being hidden, became a cornerstone of its internal storytelling and education.
Microsoft, finally, has embedded its cultural transformation in a powerful narrative act: Hit Refresh, the book in which CEO Satya Nadella redefined the company’s trajectory. Nadella does not merely outline a new vision - he candidly reflects on the company’s past rigidity and mistakes. Change, here, is anchored in memory, and even the shadows become opportunities for learning.
Giving depth to organizational action
Reimagining corporate spaces as “speaking places” offers new depth to organizational life. It means building a future not only projected forward, but rooted in place. In times of rapid transformation, memory is not a brake; it is an anchor.
Today’s managers need more than vision; they need historical awareness. They must learn to look at their surroundings with new eyes and ask: What happened here? And what can we learn from it?
Practical ways to put this into action
1. Map the organizational memory of places
Organize participatory sessions with long-tenured employees to collect stories connected to specific locations within the company. These stories might include successes, conflicts, or significant transitions.
Why it works: It reveals the living history of the organization, values those who experienced it, and creates a sense of continuity. These stories can be shared during meetings, anniversaries, or dedicated events to learn from the past.
2. Integrate the past into onboarding and culture
Develop onboarding modules that include key moments from the company's history - not just triumphs, but difficult or transformative periods. Use these examples to show how the organization learns, evolves, and adapts.
Why it works: Newcomers better understand company values and internal dynamics, rooting themselves in the real (not just stated) culture.
3. Make memory symbolically visible
Dedicate physical or digital spaces to organizational memory: a “wall of change,” a living archive, a series of panels or articles that recount pivotal moments. Not just celebrations, but meaningful stumbles, too.
Why it works: It gives tangible form to the company’s identity and strengthens coherence between past, present, and future.
Toward a time-sensitive leadership
Just as cities honor Stolpersteine by integrating them into urban life and transforming public space into a living narrative, companies too can find their own visible or symbolic markers. These can become moments of collective reflection, symbolic care, and meaning-making.
Because in business, as in life, stumbling is often the first step to truly walking forward again.
References:
Anteby, M., & Molnár, V. (2012). Collective memory meets organizational identity: Remembering to forget in a firm’s rhetorical history. Academy of Management Journal, 55(3), 515–540.
Boje, D. M. (2008). Storytelling Organizations. SAGE Publications Inc.
Nadella, S. (2018). Hit Refresh: A Memoir by Microsoft’s CEO. William Collins.