Futurecasting for Product Innovation

We live in a rapidly changing world, and that includes the world of business. To be successful, companies have to develop products and services that not only address the needs of today, but anticipate the needs of tomorrow. That’s why futurecasting is so important.

While no one can see the future, we can model and rehearse potential futures, which is what futurecasting is all about. This essential tool for design innovation and business strategy helps us imagine what the future might be so we can create a long-term vision and make it a reality.

Using techniques adapted from the military, global corporations and top design schools, this course will help you map out the best- and worst-case scenarios of the future and prepare for them.

In this class, you’ll learn how to:

• Craft and model different future scenarios to “rehearse” for the future.
• Engage your team in the futurecasting process.
• Stop thinking only in the short term (e.g., annual planning, quarterly earnings) and find the space and time to think about the longer term.
• Develop your vision and imagination about best- and worst-case future scenarios.
• Inspire your organization to better understand and utilize futurecasting.

• Intro Futurecasting For Product Innovation
• Sci-FI References And Inspiration
• Moments: 2007 And 2027
• Driving Forces
• Weak Signals And Wildcards
• Spiral Of Implications: Ripple Effect
• Backcasting: How Did We Get Here
• Bringing Future Scenarios To Life
• Q&A And Reflections