The Tell Me Collective · For organisations
Let the people behind the work speak.
Who are the people who keep your organisation running every day, and does their character get the face your organisation deserves?
On request. Every trajectory is shaped together with your organisation. It starts with an introductory call, without obligation.
The trajectory
Every organisation has an invisible character.
It lives in the people who work there, in what drives them, in the stories they carry. That face is rarely felt by the outside world, and sometimes hardly by each other.
The Tell Me Collective anchors that character in a book and an online page, carried by the whole organisation.
“Culture books are usually imposed, or written by one person. Here, the story grows out of daily practice.”
For which organisations
Organisations that see people as people.
With shared leadership and a culture of dialogue, where inclusion, connection and meaning are the foundation. This collective is the ultimate thank-you to those who consciously choose you.
Possible reasons to start
Safeguarding the spirit
When rules or growth bury the motivation and meaning of the work.
Keeping the mindset
When the pioneering spirit threatens to fade as the founding generation leaves.
Connection after change
When a merger, reorganisation or new direction calls for a shared compass.
Human proof to the outside
When stakeholders or new talent look for the real face of your impact.
From organisation to story
External: an outside view, for the distance needed to uncover the human essence.
Internal: you strengthen your direction, for more substance in your culture.
What it brings
Why it matters?
The stories bring colour. The book and page give that colour a home.
People who feel seen
Recognition that lasts. Those who are heard, stay.
New people at home sooner
New colleagues quickly understand what really matters.
Hiring that attracts the right fit
Candidates see who you are, and choose for themselves.
Connection that holds
Everyone sees they are part of something bigger.
Meaning made visible
Living proof of what you stand for.
Trust beyond your walls
More than a service or product, for clients and partners.
The ripple effect
- Cultural foundationCapturing the ‘human scale’ creates connection between teams.
- Collective meaningNew people land faster, current colleagues find renewed meaning.
- Lasting ownershipTimeless evidence of your culture for talent, clients and stakeholders.
The outside view
You can’t read the label of the bottle when you’re inside it.
Inside, attention goes to the rush of the day. An experienced author from outside sees what has become self-evident to insiders. Together we reach the deeper, unspoken core.
Revealing the core
How it works
Six phases, little time from your people.
Leadership spends 2 to 3 hours at the start. Those who share a story spend fifteen to thirty minutes, those interviewed an hour and a half. We take care of the rest.
The Framing
A vision session sets the common thread, from your direction and core values.
The Selection
Anyone who wants to shares a short story. Colleagues click ‘Tell me more’ on the people they want to hear.
The Opening
Youri conducts every interview himself. A photographer portrays the interviewees in one day.
The Craft
The conversations become high-quality chapters, with care for what is sensitive in the organisation.
The Tangible
Independent final editing, approval, printing, and the online page goes live.
The Anchoring
An activation plan gives the book and page a role in onboarding, dialogue and relationships.
Above is The Manifest, the seven-month trajectory. The Essence takes four months, The Trilogy twelve.
Craft
The power of editorial architecture.
A book of value needs a clear structure: which stories sit side by side, how they strengthen each other, and what the whole wants to say.
Where architecture meets craft
How does the story stay human?
What was actually said
Every story is checked against the conversation itself and approved by the person. Nothing is added that wasn’t said.
Careful with your data
Conversations stay in a protected environment. Only what each person has approved goes public.
Craft over algorithm
Technology only helps to order large amounts of text. Structure, voice and quality remain human work.
The narrative assurance cycle
- Patient gatheringDrawing out the essence in human conversations.
- Careful data handlingOrdering everything within a protected environment.
- Editorial structuringGuarding coherence and the common thread, under human direction.
- Authentic validationChecking against what was really said, and getting approval.
- Lasting anchoringLetting the stories keep strengthening the organisation.
The result
On paper and online.
Deliberately not about processes or strategy, but about who the people are and what moves them, in their own words.
On paper
The book
Professionally published, designed by a designer and printed on high-quality paper. Enough for participants, colleagues, leadership and stakeholders, and always reprintable.
Online
Tell Me Online
A unique About-us page where visitors click through to the people behind it. Shareable with a link and embeddable on your website. Only what each person approves becomes public.
To illustrate the format: the page of (On)zichtbaar Leiderschap, a collective book by twelve experts from a different program.
From hidden character to book and page
- Latent characterThe existing, partly scattered character of the organisation as the starting point.
- A collection of storiesIn conversation with the people themselves: stories never written down.
- Editorial forgingFrom raw input to a structured manuscript.
- Graphic refinementProfessional design, ready for fine print.
- Book & web pageA printed book and a web page, as a lasting carrier of culture.
Choose the depth that suits you
The Essence
A focused book for your own network.
- One line, with a foreword by leadership
- Ten one-hour conversations
- One editing round
- 50 copies
The Manifest
A layered book, also suited for outside the organisation.
- Thematic, with an introduction per part
- Twelve conversations and three in-depth interviews
- Two editing rounds
- 100 copies
The Trilogy
A woven series of books.
- Three connected books
- Each volume deepens its own layer
- Three editing rounds per volume
- Print run by agreement
In every package
Strategic architecture
A vision session sets the common thread, from your direction and core values.
Curated dialogue
Colleagues share short stories and choose who they want to hear more from. Youri holds every conversation.
Writing & editing
The conversations become high-quality chapters.
Approval round
External final editing and an internal check. Everyone confirms what goes public.
Professional layout
Print-ready design that fits your identity.
Print run
Copies for staff and partners. Reprints are always possible.
Tell Me Online
A page with the stories and faces of your people, to share or embed.
Communication & activation
An activation plan and sparring session for launching book and page.
Also in every package: photography on location, and all rights with the organisation.
Payment in three instalments, or in one with a 5% discount. Extensions such as extra imagery, a public edition or a bilingual edition are possible on request.
Who does what
The co-creative collective.
Source
The organisation
Employees share their stories, leadership brings vision and direction. Together you own the story.
Direction
Youri Hermes
Designs the architecture, holds every conversation, writes the chapters and builds the online page. Your single point of contact.
Form
Designer
A professional, print-ready design that fits your identity.
Check
Final editor
An independent eye for the final quality, before the book goes to print.
The author
Who is Youri of Stepping Aside?
Youri Hermes guides professionals and organisations in writing and publishing books, as a ghostwriter, mentor and through collective writing projects. He is the author of two book trilogies.
In October 2026 he published (On)zichtbaar Leiderschap, a collective book with twelve experts, with Youri as publisher and editorial lead. He also directed the editing of the jubilee book Landsmeer 700 jaar.
See this collective book
Good to know
Questions
How much time does this ask of our people?
Fifteen to thirty minutes for those who share a short story, plus a click to nominate. Those interviewed spend an hour and a half, including reading back, or three hours for an in-depth interview. Leadership spends 2 to 3 hours on the vision session.
How are the interviewees chosen?
Anyone who wants to shares a short story. Colleagues click ‘Tell me more’ on the stories they want to hear more of. In The Manifest, the three stories with the most clicks get an in-depth interview. Youri chooses the other interviewees, spread across departments and levels.
How personal can the conversations get?
Human and recognisable, but professional. We agree on the boundaries together beforehand. Youri edits every story, the person reads it back and decides what becomes public.
What becomes public and what stays internal?
Stories are shared internally in a closed environment and never used to train AI models. Only what the person approves appears on the online page. Recordings and transcripts are deleted once the book and page are published.
What if someone leaves later?
Each participant decides per story: internal only, on the page, or also in a public edition. If someone leaves, their story is taken off the page on request and adjusted in a reprint. Copies already handed out remain.
Can we put the page on our own website?
Yes. Tell Me Online can be shared with a link and embedded on your website. The page stays online for at least four years.
In which language is the book written?
Dutch or English. A bilingual edition is possible at an extra cost.
How many copies are printed?
50 with The Essence, 100 with The Manifest, and by agreement with The Trilogy. Reprints are always possible, at cost.
How do we start as an organisation?
With an introductory call, without obligation. If it feels right for both sides, a proposal, planning and agreement follow, and we begin.
What if the collaboration stops midway?
Then the organisation pays for the work done up to that point. The remaining instalments lapse.
From hidden character
to book and page.
It starts with an open conversation about your situation and what you want the book to achieve.
Plan an introductory call →