In response to seismic shifts in your industry or working to plan for the long term changing the future orientation of your company could yield significant advantages. Research has shown that companies with a strong future-oriented mindset are more efficient and innovative. To become more future-oriented it is possible to encourage managers and employees to design and implement new methods and strategies that help the organization prepare for the future and adjust to changing trends.
The development of forward-looking innovations requires a dialogue approach to analyze business opportunities and possible barriers. This can be achieved by using a framework of futures literacy which incorporates futures knowledge, futures awareness, and futures capabilities. Futures literacy is the ability of an individual or a company to recognize future possibilities, create their own, and articulate them. It is based on the idea that the process of articulating and constructing futures is multidisciplinary. It involves various domains, spheres and stakeholders. Futures awareness is the capacity to recognize the existence of future possibilities and is built on an individual’s understanding of their perception of the world around them.
In order to bring about future-oriented innovation, it is important to develop products and services that will improve the lives of people. These improvements are the result of collaboration among several high-tech process stakeholders. They require a detailed analysis of the current challenges and possible alternatives. This type of innovation also requires a radical epistemic view and the ability to take in suggestions from the long term future.