From an introductory half day workshop to a 6 month multi-stakeholder industry initiative, or thought leadership research, we design each collaboration to suit the aims and scope of the unique challenge.

The Centre for Future Studies provides external scanning resources and expertise and also works with organisations to assist in building an in-house environmental scanning capability.

Scanning provides information to inform the development of flexible strategies that enable organisations to respond quickly to the changing environment rather than react to it. Scanning helps organisations to create their preferred future.

Horizon scanning is the art of systematically exploring the external environment to:

• better understand the nature and pace of change in that environment; and,

• identify potential opportunities, challenges and likely future developments relevant to your organisation.

At the Centre for Future Studies, we see thought leadership as a critical paradigm for how businesses market themselves and build brand. But no longer does thought leadership need to be a synthesised industry leading report, it can also be delivered in thematic chunks and across multiple platforms.

Thought leadership evolves through the efforts of both individuals and businesses making the commitment to develop a deeper understanding of the specific forces shaping their industry.

Good Thought Leadership gains recognition from the outside world that the company or organisation deeply understands its business, the needs of its customers and the broader marketplace in which it operates.

The Centre for Future Studies designs and facilitates group visioning workshops tailored to the aims of the organisation.

Visioning the future typically focuses on setting a preferred future for the organisation and integrating the vision to strategy using foresight tools including:

• Drawing roadmaps to that preferred future

• Scenario planning

• Backcasting

The Centre for Futures Studies runs scenario exercises for individual organisations and for multi-stakeholder initiatives across industries. Scenarios build an understanding of how to manage in the context of uncertain and ambiguous change.

Applying scenario planning to strategic challenges can help to identify game-changing opportunities and risks, as well as make more robust strategic decisions even amid great uncertainty.

Scenario planning involves:

• Challenging the mental maps that shape perceptions.

• Identify emerging opportunities / threats,

• Formulating innovative strategic / policy alternatives.