foresights
The decisions leaders make today are shaped by what they understand about tomorrow. That's precisely why we built foresights—a dedicated space for sharing the ideas, trends, issues, and signals influencing the futures of leaders and their organisations.
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The Power of CPQQRT to Manage Complexity.
You should read this if… you are struggling with unclear briefs, misaligned expectations, or work that becomes more complicated than it needs to be. This article introduces the CPQQRT framework—Context, Purpose, Quality, Quantity, Resources, and Time—as a practical way to manage complexity by dramatically improving clarity in how work is defined and delegated. It explains how using CPQQRT helps leaders articulate what needs to be done, why it matters, what “good” looks like, and the constraints involved, reducing confusion, rework, and frustration while enabling teams to deliver stronger outcomes in complex organisational environments.
How to Think About Futures.
A good way to create alternative views of futures is by building scenarios. This involves bringing together different trends, phenomena, and uncertainties to understand their interdependence and joint implications.
Why organisations need to start thinking 5 to 10 years ahead.
One way that long-range planning is enhanced is through the creation of various alternative futures, which are significantly different from one another. The scenarios that planners create can be based on different assumptions about technology, demography, economics, politics, and other factors.
Looking Beyond the Rearview Mirror.
When it comes to planning, looking at what's in the rearview mirror is not enough. You need to look ahead through the windshield at the road ahead.
Elephants, Swans and Jellyfish for planning.
You should watch this video if… you are interested in better ways to plan in the face of uncertainty, complexity, and uncomfortable realities. This article explores the concepts of Black Elephants, Black Swans, and Black Jellyfish as practical lenses for future‑informed planning—helping leaders distinguish between risks they see but avoid, shocks they don’t expect, and issues that appear manageable but can escalate unexpectedly. It shows how deliberately identifying and exploring all three concepts expands strategic thinking, supports more resilient and diversified plans, and strengthens an organisation’s ability to respond thoughtfully to disruption rather than being surprised by it.
Two Frames for Planning & Decision Making.
You should read this if… you are a leader in business who wants a clearer way to strengthen planning and decision‑making in an uncertain, fast‑changing environment. This article introduces two simple but powerful frames for planning: understanding that every plan is built on a mix of knowledge and assumptions, and recognising that real‑world outcomes are shaped by how plans collide with reality. It explains how making assumptions explicit, testing them with foresight tools, and planning for shifting conditions helps leaders design more adaptable strategies—reducing surprise, improving execution, and increasing the likelihood that plans deliver impact and future growth even as circumstances change.
Real Growth Takes Time.
Build a lasting future for your business with foresight-driven planning. Discover how tools, data, and aligned actions can help you stay agile and achieve long-term goals.
Change is Happening.
Forward thinking leaders need to develop the ability to scan for signals, issues and trends that are developing now and create a view on how they might play across a range of futures.
How To Be a Good Ancestor.
It can be easy to believe that tomorrow will be like today—that customers will have the same demands, that businesses will operate in the same way, or that Governments will make similar decisions. These beliefs are comforting, in part because they suggest that nothing fundamental will change in our futures. But if we believe these things about futures, then we are limiting those who come after us to live in a world that is less than what it could be.
You Don't Have to Fear Your Futures.
Forward-thinking CEOs and Boards are using foresight to plan for tomorrow. They're looking 5,10,20 years into the future to see what might happen. By doing this, they're able to make today's decisions with more confidence and greater reliability.
The Futures Triangle
You should read this if… you are looking for a simple, powerful way to make sense of the forces shaping your organisation’s future. This video introduces the Futures Triangle, a foresight tool developed by Prof. Sohail Inayatullah, and explains how it helps leaders map the push of present trends, the pull of preferred futures, and the weight of past assumptions and structures. By visualising how these three forces interact, the Futures Triangle creates a shared frame for better planning and decision‑making—helping organisations clarify what is driving change, what is holding them back, and what kind of future they are actively working towards to support impact and future growth.
What’s the Difference Between Forecasting and Foresight?
You should watch this if… you are business leader who relies on forecasts but suspects they are no longer enough to guide decisions in an increasingly uncertain world. This article explains the shift from forecasting to foresight, showing why forecasts—based on extrapolating past data—struggle when conditions change, while foresight explores multiple possible futures to inform better choices today. It clarifies how foresight broadens thinking beyond single predictions, helps leaders anticipate disruption, challenge assumptions, and plan with greater resilience, making it a more reliable foundation for strategy, impact, and long‑term growth than forecasts alone.
Thought Starter: Responsive Innovation.
You should read this if… you are a leader in business who wants your organisation to stay agile and relevant in the face of rapid change rather than relying on slow, reactive innovation cycles. This article introduces responsive innovation as the capability to adapt strategies, processes, and operations quickly as new information, risks, and opportunities emerge. It explains how responsive innovation goes beyond last‑minute change by embedding agility, experimentation, and learning into everyday decision‑making—enabling organisations to respond faster to shifting customer needs, unlock new opportunities, and build resilience and long‑term success in uncertain environments.
Foresight: helping us prepare for what might happen next.
At insight & foresight we define foresight as the skill of looking forward to preparing for what might happen next. This is not about predicting the future with but rather using proven foresight tools and skills to explore a range of plausible, possible, probable, and preferred futures so we can better understand what could happen and…
7 Ways to Remain Curious in the Face of Uncertain Futures.
CEOs and Boards who stay curious about what's around the corner can find numerous ways to deliver impact and future growth. You can resist becoming paralysed by fear, allowing your actions to be driven by opportunity rather than uncertainty. Here’s 7 ways to help you stay curious…
A Quick Refresher on How to Evaluate Growth Plans.
Before not-for-profit CEOs and Boards decide what to do to deliver growth its best to start with a refresher on how businesses grow. Business growth can occur in two categories; Organic growth and inorganic growth. Understanding which is which can help your decision making….
Three Tomorrows for Planning in Uncertainty.
You should read this if… you are struggling to plan and make decisions in the face of deep uncertainty rather than a single, predictable future. This video introduces the Three Tomorrows framework by Sardar and Sweeney as a practical foresight method for navigating uncertainty by distinguishing between the extended present, familiar futures, and unthought futures. It explains how using these three time horizons helps leaders make sense of emerging trends, disruptions, and unknowns, enabling more robust planning, better strategic conversations, and decisions that support impact and future growth even when the future cannot be forecast with confidence.
Foresight For Our Futures.
Discover how foresight strategies can help leaders navigate uncertainty, uncover opportunities, and drive transformational growth in their organisations.
4 Ways to Find Clarity With Foresight.
If you are facing an uncertain or unfamiliar path, using foresight tools helps you find clarity, plan, and make decisions for success in the future. With a focus on what happens next, foresight tools help CEOs and Boards explore opportunities and challenges to deliver…