A tool for strategy building, innovation and resilience
As of 2018, we are putting the Trend Map in your hands, which for many of you is a guidepost for your strategy work. However, we realise that working with trends is not easy and that making key decisions based on their analysis poses many challenges. Therefore, we have decided to prepare an additional tool for you – the Trend Cards – which will help to systematise this work and thus make it easier and faster.
The Trend Cards can open up new topics for discussion in the organisation, and they are also an excellent tool for motivating you to take projects out of the drawers, the implementation of which has not been sufficiently argued for so far. Above all, however, the Trend Cards provide a different perspective on the organisation, thus facilitating its development in dynamically changing times.
How to work with Trend Cards?
You can work with the cards in at least several ways.
1. they can serve as a comprehensive source of information on the most important changes in the world. This is because the cards contain descriptions of a total of 81 trends broken down into 7 megatrends, which we call worlds: World of Social Transformation, AI World, Mirror World, Sustainable World, Alternative Worlds, World of Health Crises, World of War.
2. They can be used as a clear guideline in the area of trend work. On each card, in addition to a description of the trend, there was information about the time perspective in which the trend is or will be visible.
3. Trend cards are an excellent tool when working on strategy or innovation. Use the suggested paths for this purpose. The Exploring Innovation path helps you generate new solutions; the Creating Strategy path helps you understand the impact of trends on your organisation’s short- and long-term strategy.
4. The Trend Cards are helpful in building your organisation’s resilience to global change. If you want to map uncertainties and consider what consequences they may have for your organisation, choose the Building Resilience pathway. It will help you define the main changes and challenges arising from uncertainty and support you in building business resilience.
How to read the Trend Card?
At the top of the card you will find the name of the megatrend. Trends are assigned to 7 megatrends, the descriptions of which are available in the PDF file. In the middle section, below the trend name, you will find the trend description. The lower part of the card is an indication of the time perspective of the individual trends. It covers four zones: now – the now perspective, new – the short-term perspective (1-5 years), next – the medium-term perspective (5-15 years), beyond – the long-term perspective (15+ years). The QR code redirects to the platform, where you will find a broader definition of the trend, the causes and consequences of the trend and the supporting technologies. There you can also observe the change in trend over time based on the Trend Momentum Index (TMI) and track the manifestations of trends emerging in three areas – innovation, science and journalism.
How do I prepare a trend work workshop?
The Trend Cards are a DIY (Do It Yourself) tool. The document is prepared as a .pdf file.
1. Print the document in A4 format
2. Cut up the cards
3. Choose a strategic journey:
– innovation search
– strategy development
– resilience building
4. Prepare workshop mock-ups (attached or your own)
5. Start working on the workshop.