Stuart Maister on Building Trust Through Flexible Storytelling and Strategic Narrative

In this episode of Trust and Influence in B2B Marketing, Joel Harrison sits down with Stuart Maister, author of "Choose Trust: Building Relationships for Successful Businesses" published by The Economist. Stuart brings a unique perspective as a former TV and radio journalist turned B2B marketing strategist, combining his background in distilling complex stories for broadcast with deep expertise in strategic narrative development. What happens when trust becomes the intentional foundation of every business relationship, rather than just a nice-to-have byproduct?

➡️ Stuart introduces his "Trust Triangle" framework—clarity, character, and capability—and explains why trust isn't just about being trustworthy, but about consciously designing high-trust relationships that can weather the inevitable changes and challenges in long-term B2B partnerships. He shares a compelling real-world example of how two major organizations on a mega infrastructure project nearly derailed their partnership when trust collapsed, and how rebuilding that trust became critical to project success. The conversation explores why clarity forms the foundation of trust (and how lack of alignment on ambitions guarantees disappointment), how to establish behavioral expectations that work both ways in true partnerships, and why monitoring relationship health is just as important as tracking technical deliverables. Stuart's jazz metaphor for modern business storytelling is particularly powerful—explaining why you need a central "tune" that people can riff on, rather than trying to control every message in classical symphony style.

Follow Stuart Maister

https://www.linkedin.com/in/stuartmaister/?originalSubdomain=uk

Visit  https://.strategic-narrative.com/  

If you care about building genuine partnerships rather than just winning transactions, this conversation is essential listening. Stuart's framework provides practical tools for intentionally designing trust into your relationships, while his journalism background brings clarity to how strategic narrative and consistent storytelling amplify trust-building efforts.

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