Our relationship to products and brands is complicated. Our opinion of them is shaped by how they make us feel as much as what they do for us. Tim Kobe, founder of strategic design firm Eight Inc., knows this all too well. Starting with his pioneering work on the initial Apple Store concepts, he's helped global brands find their voice -- and new heights of profitability -- by leveraging the emotional experience they provide to customers. Kobe and Roger Lehman, INSEAD Senior Affiliate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Family Enterprise, wrote the new book Return on Experience, which explains how and why great experiences are what move the needle most for companies these days. Essentially, it's all about empathy, expressed through great design that provides "extraordinary human success". Example: the contagious creativity and innovative spirit infused in the first iPhones. But too many executives are suspicious of leveraging empathy as a business value. Consequently, they risk missing out on the greatest source of value they could bring to their customers and organisation. Read more: https://knowledge.insead.edu/entrepreneurship/whos-afraid-of-the-experience-economy-16411