Tag Archives: foresight

4 Simple Steps to Becoming Your Own Futurist

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An Introduction to the FutureHacking™ methodology

FutureHacking Foresight and Futurist Primer

by Braden Kelley

The starting point for becoming your own futurist is of course to first understand what futurology (or a futurist) is. Then we must also understand what strategic and market foresight are as well.

What is Futurology (or a Futurist)?

  • Futures studies, futures research, futurism or futurology is the systematic, interdisciplinary and holistic study of social and technological advancement, and other environmental trends, often for the purpose of exploring how people will live and work in the future. Predictive techniques, such as forecasting, can be applied, but contemporary futures studies scholars emphasize the importance of systematically exploring alternatives.

Source: Wikipedia

What are Strategic and Market Foresight?

  • Strategic Foresight is about combining methods of futures work with those of strategic management. It is about understanding upcoming external changes in relation to internal capabilities and drivers.
  • Market Foresight is about the consideration of possible and probable futures in the organization’s relevant business environment, and about identifying new opportunities in that space.

Source: Aalto University

Now we are ready to look at the four simple, but powerful steps to becoming your own futurist using the FutureHacking™ methodology:

STEP ONE: Picking the Signals That Matter

FutureSignals™ Radar & NowBuilder™ Canvas

  • Identify up to the eight most critical signals to monitor or amplify in order to look back, reach an innovation goal, describe them and capture for each signal what the status quo, small change and big change scenarios might look like – and which scenario is most likely.

STEP TWO: Mapping Signal Evolution

FutureSignals™ Radar Summary & Tracking

  • Summarize the most likely scenarios for up to the eight most critical signals along with their descriptions and whether you plan to monitor or amplify each. Use a tracking sheet to record changes in the signal over time – revisit and re-prioritize as needed.

STEP THREE: Choosing the Possible, Probable and Preferable Future

FutureCanvas™ & Picker (macro view)

  • Leveraging your FutureSignals™ summary, create a headline for an imagined future. Then capture the problems that have been solved, how society has changed, the new problems that may now exist and what we must do to shape the future. Rinse and Repeat.

STEP FOUR: Making Your Preferable Future a Reality

FutureSignals™ & FutureCanvas™ Action Plans (micro)

  • Leveraging your FutureSignals™ summary, create a headline for an imagined future. Then capture the key signals related to this headline, how the customer is changing and how the company must change in response.

These four simple steps to becoming your own futurist are accelerated by adopting the 20 new tools of the Futurehacking™ methodology that I have created.

“FutureHacking™ is the art and science of getting to the future first.”

It’s a methodology I’ve created that contains a suite of simple, but powerful tools at its core that will enable you to be your own futurist.

FutureHacking™ is designed to make foresight and futurology accessible to the average business professional.

Prototyping the Future

FutureHacking™ is a revolutionary approach that empowers cross-functional leadership teams to visually prototype the future and collaboratively create the roadmap and guideposts for manifesting your preferred, possible future.

FutureHacking Tool Collection

Why is Investing in Futures Research (or a Futurist) important?

  • Every stakeholder-responsible organization is compelled to realize its vision, execute its strategy, and achieve its goals – indefinitely. But, the future is uncertain. We cannot extrapolate that what has made an organization successful this year or last year will make it succeed in future years. Responsible organizations must invest in understanding the possible futures and realizing their preferable future. FutureHacking™ makes this investment much easier, cheaper and faster – helping you get to the future first.

“FutureHacking™ tools help you facilitate the future.”

Click the image to download a PDF flipbook:

Two Ways to Join the FutureHacking™ Ecosystem

  • Data and trend research partners to create service offerings as an input into the FutureSignals™ component
  • Futurists, consulting partners, and technology providers (interactive whiteboarding, etc.) to get FutureHacking™ certified and profit from the delivery of services to help people leverage the FutureSignals™, NowBuilder™ and FutureCanvas™ tools

One Way to Connect and Succeed

Contact me if you think you have a compelling partnership value proposition and subscribe to my newsletter below to find out when the certification program and facilitated off-site offerings are launched!

Image credit: Pixabay

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Latest Interview with the What’s Next? Podcast

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Latest Interview with the What's Next? Podcast

I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Shannon Phillips and Tristan Ham of the What’s Next? Podcast, about altering your mindset to become future-focused and the impact this can have on your business.

We had the opportunity to discuss the links between curiosity, imagination and creativity. And how to bring urgency to imagination leveraging among other things – The Nine Innovation Roles.

From there we explore how imagination can atrophy in an organization, how our educational and corporate institutions fail us and how we can bring back imagination and innovation through world building.

Some of the elements of the conversation came from things I have incorporated into a set of tools designed to help anyone be a futurist called FutureHacking™, which is designed to take some of the mystery out of futures research and foresight, and help you get to the future first!

But most importantly, we spoke about how a futurist is not the same as a fortune teller.

I think you’ll enjoy the conversation!

Here is the Spotify version of my visit with the What’s Next? podcast:

If you’d like to sign up to learn more about my new FutureHacking™ methodology and set of tools, go here.


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Top 10 Human-Centered Change & Innovation Articles of February 2023

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Top 10 Human-Centered Change & Innovation Articles of February 2023Drum roll please…

At the beginning of each month, we will profile the ten articles from the previous month that generated the most traffic to Human-Centered Change & Innovation. Did your favorite make the cut?

But enough delay, here are February’s ten most popular innovation posts:

  1. Latest Innovation Management Research Revealed — by Braden Kelley

  2. Apple Watch Must Die (At least temporarily, because it’s proven bad for innovation) — by Braden Kelley

  3. Unlock Hundreds of Ideas by Doing This One Thing (Inspired by Hollywood) — by Robyn Bolton

  4. Using Limits to Become Limitless — by Rachel Audige

  5. Kickstarting Change and Innovation in Uncertain Times — by Janet Sernack

  6. Five Challenges All Teams Face — by David Burkus

  7. A Guide to Harnessing the Power of Foresight (Unlock Your Company’s Full Potential) — by Teresa Spangler

  8. Creating Great Change, Transformation and Innovation Teams — by Stefan Lindegaard

  9. The Ultimate Guide to the Phase-Gate Process — by Dainora Jociute

  10. Delivering Innovation (How the History of Mail Order Can Help Us Manage Innovation at Scale) — by John Bessant

BONUS – Here are five more strong articles published in January that continue to resonate with people:

If you’re not familiar with Human-Centered Change & Innovation, we publish 4-7 new articles every week built around innovation and transformation insights from our roster of contributing authors and ad hoc submissions from community members. Get the articles right in your Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin feeds too!

Have something to contribute?

Human-Centered Change & Innovation is open to contributions from any and all innovation and transformation professionals out there (practitioners, professors, researchers, consultants, authors, etc.) who have valuable human-centered change and innovation insights to share with everyone for the greater good. If you’d like to contribute, please contact me.

P.S. Here are our Top 40 Innovation Bloggers lists from the last three years:

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A Guide to Harnessing the Power of Foresight

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Unlock Your Company’s Full Potential

A Guide to Harnessing the Power of Foresight

GUEST POST from Teresa Spangler

Foresight is the superpower of the 21st century business world, allowing companies to see beyond the horizon and seize opportunities before they become trends.

Innovation has always been the driving force behind progress and growth in the business world. However, in today’s rapidly changing landscape, it has become even more essential to stay ahead of the curve and uncover major shifts and hidden opportunities to remain competitive. Companies that can harness the power of foresight and innovate in response to changing market conditions will be well-positioned to succeed in the years ahead.

So, what exactly is foresight, and how can it be leveraged to drive innovation? Simply put, foresight is the ability to anticipate and prepare for future trends and developments. It involves a deep understanding of the current landscape and an awareness of emerging technologies, consumer preferences, and macroeconomic forces. By staying attuned to these trends and developments, companies can stay ahead of the curve and take advantage of new opportunities.

Company leaders can take several key actions to tap into the power of foresight and drive innovation in their organizations. Here are a few steps to get started:

1. Develop a culture of innovation: To truly drive innovation, creating a culture that encourages and supports creative thinking and risk-taking is essential. This can be accomplished through a variety of means, including:

  • Encouraging open and transparent communication among employees
  • Providing opportunities for employees to share their ideas and collaborate with others
  • Offering training and development programs that help employees develop new skills and knowledge
  • Encouraging a “fail fast, learn fast” mentality

2. Invest in research and development: To stay ahead of the curve and uncover new opportunities, companies must be willing to invest in research and development. This could involve dedicating resources to exploring new technologies, conducting market research, or experimenting with new business models.

  • Protect your ideas is easier now leveraging the blockchain, sign up and protect your ideas at no charge for the first three and manage the features along the sprint cycles. Link

3. Foster partnerships and collaborations: Collaboration is key to unlocking the full potential of innovation. By working with other companies, universities, and organizations, companies can access new ideas, technologies, and expertise that would be difficult to acquire on their own.

  • Your best customers want to be your most collaborative partners. How are you engaging them in foresight and planning for the future?
  • Stay connected to customers: Understanding customer needs and preferences is critical to driving innovation. Companies should regularly engage with customers and solicit feedback to stay attuned to their changing needs.

4. Embrace new technologies: Technology is driving many of the significant shifts and hidden opportunities in the business world. Companies that are able to embrace new technologies and leverage them to improve their products and services will be well-positioned to succeed. Seems so simple these days, but there are so many new technologies.

  • Bring in experts to keep you abreast of new ways technologies are integrating
  • Explore a new technology in with a different set of filters – break it down and break down how you might use it to innovation.

5. Be open to change: Finally, companies must be willing to embrace change and be flexible in their approach. The world is constantly evolving, and companies that are able to adapt and evolve in response to new trends and developments will be better positioned to succeed. Are you tired of hearing BE OPEN TO CHANGE? I imagine so, it’s fatiguing all the change we’ve been through the last 4 years however, change in the world is accelerating, keeping pace can be daunting.

  • Ensure you have people with eyes on the future
  • Create foresight team and create scenarios of your future
  • Imagine the best possible change but also imagine the downside “what ifs”

The business world is changing rapidly, and companies that can stay ahead of the curve and innovate in response to shifting market conditions will be well-positioned to succeed. By tapping into the power of foresight and taking the necessary steps to drive innovation, company leaders can unlock new opportunities and stay ahead of the competition. So why wait? Start taking action today and seize the opportunities that lie ahead.

FutureForward podcasts (and videos) are now available on your favorite Channel:

Image credit: Pixabay

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Leveraging Hindsight and Foresight for Innovation

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Leveraging Hindsight and Foresight for Innovation

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

Innovation is essential for businesses to stay competitive in today’s ever-changing economy. To stay ahead of the competition, businesses need to be able to anticipate the future and plan accordingly. To do this, they must leverage both hindsight and foresight in their innovation processes.

Hindsight is the ability to look back and learn from the past. By understanding the successes and failures of prior initiatives, businesses can identify areas for improvement. This can help them to create better decision-making processes and develop more effective strategies. By leveraging hindsight, businesses can also avoid repeating past mistakes and take advantage of opportunities that may have been overlooked.

Foresight is the ability to plan for the future. By gaining an understanding of current trends and anticipating future changes, businesses can stay ahead of their competitors. This requires the ability to think creatively and develop innovative solutions. By using foresight, businesses can take calculated risks and create new products and services to meet emerging customer needs.

The best way to use both hindsight and foresight for innovation is to create a dynamic innovation process. This process should be agile and responsive to changes in the market. It should also incorporate feedback from customers, partners, and other stakeholders. This feedback should be used to inform the innovation process and help businesses to identify areas for improvement.

Innovation is essential for businesses to stay relevant in the ever-changing marketplace. By leveraging both hindsight and foresight, businesses can create more effective strategies and develop innovative solutions to meet customer needs. By creating a dynamic innovation process, businesses can stay agile and responsive to changes in the market, allowing them to stay one step ahead of the competition.

Bottom line: Futurology is not fortune telling. Futurists use a scientific approach to create their deliverables, but a methodology and tools like those in FutureHacking™ can empower anyone to engage in futurology themselves.

Image credit: Pixabay

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Chance to Help Make Futurism and Foresight Accessible

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I’ve been hard at work building all kinds of tools to help innovation, change, transformation and design thinking practitioners be more successful in their jobs.

The number of human-centered tools in the Change Planning Toolkit v13 from the initial fifty (50) to more than SEVENTY.

I also introduced lots of inexpensive tools like the:

  1. $9.99 – Problem Finding Canvas
  2. FREE – Innovation Maturity Assessment
  3. FREE – Visual Project Charter™
  4. FREE – Experiment Canvas™
  5. FREE – ACMP Standard for Change Management® Visualization

And the core of the forthcoming Human-Centered Innovation Toolkit is well underway.

But I’ve also been exploring the very obtuse realm of futurism and foresight and pondering how to make it more accessible to us ordinary humans, and I think I’ve done it!

Chance to Help Make Futurism Accessible

I’ve created a set of TWENTY (20) simple but powerful foresight and futurism tools to power my FutureHacking™ methodology.

To spread them farther and faster I’m looking to partner with a forward-thinking organization to bring them to market.

  • Does your organization view itself as leading its customers into the future?

  • Are you looking for an amazing marketing opportunity?

  • One that would empower thousands of innovation and strategy professionals to do their own foresight and futurism work?

If so, then contact me here and we’ll build a launch plan together that connects your brand to a powerful new FutureHacking™ movement!

FutureHacking Tools Collection

Benefits to you will include, but will not be limited to:

  1. Joint promotion of your brand via my site, social media, email newsletters, etc.
  2. Presence of your logo as a sponsor on the tools and educational assets
  3. Access to the tools for your employees
  4. Other ideas you suggest!

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What is Futures Research?

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What is Futures Research?

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

Futures research, also known as foresight, is the study of global trends and the development of plans for the future. It involves the analysis of current and emerging trends, the identification of potential threats and opportunities, and the development of strategies to capitalize on opportunities and mitigate potential threats. Futures research is an interdisciplinary field of study that takes into account social and technological trends, economic and political forces, and the influence of global events and forces.

The goal of futures research is to develop an understanding of the future and to devise a strategy to manage it. This strategy can include the development of new products, services, and business models, as well as the implementation of policies and initiatives that will shape the future of our society. Futures research is a key component of any organization’s strategic planning process, as it provides a framework for decision-making that helps to ensure the organization’s long-term success.

Futures research is typically conducted using a variety of methodologies, including scenario planning, trend analysis, and predictive modeling. Scenario planning involves the development of multiple alternative futures, each of which is based on a different set of assumptions about the future. Trend analysis is the process of identifying and analyzing trends in the present and extrapolating them into the future. Predictive modeling is the process of using mathematical models and simulations to predict future events and outcomes.

Futures research is a rapidly growing field of study with a wide range of applications. It is becoming increasingly important for organizations to remain competitive in the future and to be prepared for the changes and challenges that may come their way. By understanding the future and developing strategies to manage it, organizations can ensure their long-term success.

Image credit: Pixabay

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Difference Between Possible, Potential and Preferred Futures

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Difference Between Possible, Potential and Preferred Futures

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

The role of possible, potential and preferred futures is an often-discussed topic within the field of futures studies. Futures studies, also known as “foresight”, is an interdisciplinary field of study focused on understanding and anticipating the future. Within the field, there are three distinct concepts of the future – possible, potential and preferred futures – each with their own distinct roles and implications.

Possible futures are those that are considered to be theoretically feasible and within the realm of reality. These futures are often explored through scenario planning, a technique used to identify possible future states and their potential consequences. Possible futures are important to consider as they provide a starting point for deeper exploration and analysis.

Potential futures are those that are considered to be likely to happen, based on current trends and technological developments. Potential futures are important to consider as they provide an indication of what is likely to happen in the future and can be used to inform decisions and strategies.

Preferred futures are those that are desired, often based on values, visions and goals. Preferred futures are important as they act as a guiding light for decision-making and help to ensure that actions are taken in line with desired outcomes.

The role of possible, potential and preferred futures is to provide a comprehensive view of the future, and to enable informed decision-making and strategy development. By exploring the potential implications of each type of future, it is possible to gain a better understanding of the future and make decisions accordingly.

Bottom line: Futurology is not fortune telling. Futurists use a scientific approach to create their deliverables, but a methodology and tools like those in FutureHacking™ can empower anyone to engage in futurology themselves.

Image credit: Pixabay

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Exploring the Benefits of Group Foresight

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Exploring the Benefits of Group Foresight

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

Foresight is the process of predicting the future, whether it is on an individual, organizational, or industry level. Group foresight allows multiple voices and points of view to be stimulating discussions and debates, offering valuable insights for accurate future predictions. Group foresight offers multiple benefits, which has been evident in a range of case studies.

Collaboration and Critical Thinking

The first benefit of group foresight is that it encourages collaboration and critical thinking. This is important to breaking into new areas of analysis, as different perspectives and ideas can open a new dialogue on a particular topic. In a case study conducted by the University of Dayton, faculty leaders explored possible scenarios for their university’s future. The group was asked to explore the various diverse University contexts, such as the changing student demographics and the regulatory environment, among other things. Through a facilitated discussion among the participants, a collective vision for the University’s future was created, which was later implemented in the University’s strategic plan.

Understanding the External Environment

The second benefit of group foresight is that it creates an understanding of the external environment. This is especially important in industries like finance, which are under constant market fluctuation and change. Group foresight can provide a platform for discerning underlying trends in the market and seeing their potential impact on the organization’s future. In a case study conducted by the Foresight Team of the Bank of Australia, the team organized a series of workshops, where different stakeholders were invited to explore future scenarios and analyze their potential impacts. These workshops allowed the participants to gain an insight into the future of the market and the industry, thus enabling the Bank to better position itself in this constantly changing environment.

Conclusion

Group foresight is a valuable tool for organizations and businesses looking to take a deeper dive into the future. By encouraging collaboration and critical thinking, as well as understanding the external environment, group foresight provides insights on how to create and implement successful plans. These benefits are evident from a range of case studies, making it a valuable tool for any organization looking towards the future.

Bottom line: Futurology is not fortune telling. Futurists use a scientific approach to create their deliverables, but a methodology and tools like those in FutureHacking™ can empower anyone to engage in futurology themselves.

Image credit: Pixabay

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