Authenticity is an essential part of an experience. However, authenticity is more complicated than you might think at first.
We are discussing authenticity here because one of our podcast listeners asked us to discuss it. They are struggling with it in their experience and want advice on authenticity.
Now, it seems simple. If you want to be authentic, then…be authentic. In other words, be genuine in your thoughts and actions.
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However, it gets complicated, as many things we discuss here do. For example, consider the Sherlock Holmes Museum in London.
Many might not know this, but the London Business School is near Baker Street, as in 221 B Baker Street, where Sherlock Holmes "lived." It's in air quotes because he's a fictional character. He only lived in the imagination of us all.
Nevertheless, a nearby museum has set up a replica of Holmes's apartment (because someone lives at 221 B Baker Street…a real person). As part of the team at the London School then, Professor Kent Grayson, MA, PhD. who is interested in the topic of authenticity, would ask museum-goers if the apartment depicted at the museum was authentic.
Now, this question is absurd. It cannot be authentic. Sherlock Holmes isn't even authentic.
Nevertheless, people answered him in earnest. Sometimes they were authentic in their criticism, calling out anachronistic furniture pieces and other details. It's silly because it bears repeating, it was all fictional.
So, Was it Authentic?
Now, if it felt authentic, then it was authentic. But since it couldn’t be authentic because the apartment never actually existed, is it really authentic? Then again, if it felt authentic to the attendees, does it matter if it was?
The answer to that last question is, it depends. If we are talking about whether the Sherlock Holmes Museum's representation of Holmes' apartment felt authentic, it doesn't matter if it was or wasn't. On the other hand, authenticity is paramount when discussing an insurance agent writing a policy to cover your medical care. It should both feel and BE authentic.
So, what about AI? As we know, ChatGPT can write compelling works that are reasonably accurate. However, they don't always feel authentic. As one of the Top Voices on LinkedIn, I have been collaborating with other Top Voices to help authenticate articles written by AI. We add our two cents by putting our comments after the paragraphs. In a way, the AI article brings it 80 percent of the way, and we take it the last 20 percent.
That said, not everyone appreciates the contribution of AI. Some companies have implemented AI screeners, so they can chuck resumes and cover letters that they think leverage too much AI in their composition. This defensive move means these companies feel these resumes and cover letters feel inauthentic.
Perceptions of authenticity drive many of our reactions to things, but not all things. They matter a lot for certain things, and for others, they'll matter less.
Many organizations want their experience to be authentic. I could argue all experiences are authentic in that they reflect the organization's real focus. For example, a bad experience that leaves the customer frustrated could be the genuine manifestation of an operations-minded company that doesn't put the customer at the center of everything they do.
Therefore, when our listeners ask us how to provide an authentic experience, I realize that isn’t what they are really asking. Instead, they ask us how to be a genuine version of something else.
However, that doesn't work. It's inauthentic to be something else by definition.
If you want to provide an authentic experience, you have to start at the beginning. So, the first question you should ask is why you need an authentic experience.