Rediscovering the human art of storytelling with Abs Hassanali
Wed Jan 14 2026
"You don't build trust overnight. Any good communication needs to do three things: help people understand, help them believe, and make them act."
Abs Hassanali, Global Head of PR and Communications at Basware, has seen how tech often struggles to tell stories that truly resonate. With AI changing the scale and pace of content, generic announcements no longer cut through - audiences want to connect with human voices and authentic experiences.
In short, the press release (as we know it) is dead.
In this episode of the XTech podcast, Abs joins Debbie Forster MBE to talk about why real people and stories must sit at the heart of communications. They explore how Basware uses visual storytelling, human voices and curiosity-driven teams to make tech feel human, and why creativity matters as much as measurement.
Listen now to find out what it takes to build comms that resonate, how to balance strategy and authenticity and why focusing on the people behind the story can transform the way tech is experienced.
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"You don't build trust overnight. Any good communication needs to do three things: help people understand, help them believe, and make them act." Abs Hassanali, Global Head of PR and Communications at Basware, has seen how tech often struggles to tell stories that truly resonate. With AI changing the scale and pace of content, generic announcements no longer cut through - audiences want to connect with human voices and authentic experiences. In short, the press release (as we know it) is dead. In this episode of the XTech podcast, Abs joins Debbie Forster MBE to talk about why real people and stories must sit at the heart of communications. They explore how Basware uses visual storytelling, human voices and curiosity-driven teams to make tech feel human, and why creativity matters as much as measurement. Listen now to find out what it takes to build comms that resonate, how to balance strategy and authenticity and why focusing on the people behind the story can transform the way tech is experienced.