Projects

applied methods:

• Futures Thinking

  Futures Thinking offers ways of addressing, even helping to shape, the future; but it is not about gazing into a crystal ball. It illuminates how policy, strategy, and action can promote desirable futures and help prevent those we consider undesirable. It stimulates strategic dialogue, widens our understanding of the possible, strengthens leadership, and informs decision-making.
  
  Futures Thinking is a method for informed reflection on the major changes that will occur in the next 10, 20, or more years in all areas of social life, including education. Futures Thinking uses a multidisciplinary approach to pierce the veil of received opinion and identify the dynamics creating the future.
  
  While the future cannot be reliably predicted, we can foresee a range of possible futures and ask which are the most desirable for particular groups and societies. A variety of methods – qualitative, quantitative, normative, and exploratory – help to illuminate the possibilities, outline policy choices, and assess the alternatives.

• Radical Openness

  How people connect and collaborate is transforming. By shunning old, secretive practices and embracing transparency, smart organisations share intellectual property within themselves and the community. Through this practice they gain speed and interaction productivity that reconnects them to the pace of change happening around them.

• Exponential Organisation

  SCALE model:
  
  S: staff on demand. Just like Uber doesn't actually employ its own workers, we're moving to a model where companies outsource most of their major work, giving them more flexibility to quickly adapt to market changes.
  
  C: community and crowd. Exponential organisations use collaborative means to build community and scale their work.
  
  A: algorithms. UPS is a good example of a company using an algorithm to maximise efficiency--in this case, finding the best routes for trucks.
  
  L: leased assets. Similar to having staff on demand, exponential companies have assets on demand and don't own much of what they use.
  
  E: engagement. To create connectedness between the organisation and the community, exponential organisations use things like digital feedback, incentives, and gamification.
  
   
  
  IDEAS process:
  
  I: interfaces. These organisations have very customised processes for how they interface with customers and other organisations. An example of this is Apple's strict rules on what reaches its app store.
  
  D: dashboards. To manage employees with a lightweight and high touch, exponential organisations use real-time management systems and dashboards to measure business metrics.
  
  E: experimentation. Exponential organisations operate like lean start-ups--constantly adapting, tweaking, and tuning their efforts to match external factors.
  
  A: autonomy. Many exponential organisations streamline with a decentralised authority structure, which means no reporting structure or job titles.
  
  S: social. Using collaborative technologies, these organisations manage real-time communication to keep all employees up to date.
• further information about our methods