HP Innovation Journal Issue 12: Summer 2019 | Page 41
FUTURE-PROOF
HOW CAN YOU BETTER
PREDICT AND SHAPE THE FUTURE?
Here are some tips and tricks I’ve Resources Officer, led the initiative might it evolve in 5, 10, or 20 years?
learned along the way: which grew out of two distinct com- What new customer experiences
ponents: a continual focus on getting might be enabled?
Keep a pulse on the latest trends.
Pay attention to trends, analyze their
meanings, identify their underlying
drivers, and give yourself time to
examine how they might make an
impact on you or your business.
As a futurist, I do a lot of reading and
watching. Personally, I stay on top of
trends by reading the latest technol-
ogy news, speaking with customers
and industry pundits, paying attention
to university and academic research
areas, and monitoring venture invest-
ing trends and startup activity. I also
draw from my personal experiences,
better (as opposed to being the best)
and defining what HP prioritizes as
an organization, so that it could build
the habits and systems to make those
priorities come to life. Tracy and team
adopted a growth mindset and crafted
an innovative future for HP.
Adopt a growth mindset. If you
have a fixed mindset, your qualities
are carved in stone. If you lack a skill,
you will continue to lack it. However,
when you adopt a growth mindset,
you can grow and change through
persistence and experience.
Allow yourself to time-travel (in your
mind for now) to a future date. Keeping
your research in mind, imagine what
the world might look like, what a daily
routine would be in different parts of
the world, and what experiences our
future selves might encounter.
Now work back and think about
how we arrived there. Ask questions
about timing and what trends, market
conditions, business models, and
technologies spearheaded those
experiences. Now think about how
your company, your team, and you
media coverage, and public data Observe, ask questions, have an personally played a role in arriving at
sources. You have to do your research open mind, and suspend judgement. this future state.
to come up with provocative points Be bold. Be passionate about what of view that you can then test and do you’re doing. Most importantly, have further research on. Once you have fun. I often say that boredom is not that, you can look for strategic choice a corporate objective, and when points and long-term implications for you enjoy what you do, you will be your business. better at it.
Singapore is an example of a city that
is outlining future goals and strategies.
At the recent launch of their Smart
Nation initiative, Singapore’s prime
minister Lee Hsien Loong outlined their
smart future with data-driven services
When HP separated from Hewlett- Futurecast outcomes. Create a that will help residents make informed
Packard Co. in 2015, senior leader- framework to look to the future, decisions about their life in the city. For
ship recognized they would need to and base it on the outcomes you example, every citizen will be provided
establish a new culture for the 50,000 are wanting to explore or influence. with a digital ID to do things like check
employees moving to the new HP Inc. Ask yourself some questions: What medical records, submit tax returns,
Tracy Keogh, HP’s Chief Human is your company’s vision and how and sign up for government services.
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