Introduction to Futures Thinking
Presented at Fjord Equinox 2020, DC Design Week 2021, Austin Design Week 2021, and the closing keynote for Amplify A|E|C 2023.
This presentation is an introduction to the futurism process, business value, and design/marketing involvement.
Organizational Value of Futures Thinking
Since futurism is an emerging practice still making its way into the business world, I shared both some psychological theory and more concrete examples of the benefits it can bring.
Design Thinking and Futures Thinking
Next, I emphasized how as designers we are uniquely positioned to be successful as futurists due to our pre-existing skills in making future visions real while being rooted in research on current-day problems. I propose a new way of incorporating the traditional design thinking process into a larger futures thinking scope.
Futures Thinking Process in Practice
Finally, I outlined the methods and activities in the foresight process to bring research, prototyping, and business strategy together.
Feedback
After the Austin Design Week presentation, I received positive feedback from the attendees. Six out of six respondents to the optional survey gave me an 8-10 rating out of 10.
