HOW CAN I BE A FUTURE BUILDER?

We spend a lot of time talking about the processes used in Future Building (like scenario planning and environmental scanning), but I was recently asked by a client “what do I have to do (or be) in order to become a Future Builder?”

I have isolated four key characteristics that seem to characterise people who successfully practice Future Building. I’m sure there must be others, but these are the four that I find most significant:

A growth and learning mindset:

They seem to treat each day as a ‘school day’ and look for lessons to be learned. They readily seek new experiences because they know that they can learn new things from these experiences. And they accept the inherent uncertainly and discomfort that is created by being in a new situation, because they recognise that this is how they can broaden their repertoire of skills.

Prefer people over data:

Interestingly, I observed this by working with some really good market researchers! They obviously understand and respect the data they work with, but they also know that they will only truly gain new insights by immersing themselves in the situation they are researching. So, for example, they will go up close and interact with communities and markets so they can experience first-hand the behaviours and psychology of potential markets. Techniques such as ‘ethnographic research’ are becoming increasingly popular to generate breakthrough insights into markets and customers.

Avoid risky bets:

Future Builders do not appear to be high-risk operators. Instead, they adopt a fairly considered approach and seek to understand something before committing to it. Importantly, they are also not perfectionists who need to cover all the bases before acting. As Matt Church has highlighted, this is often a foil for procrastination and not wanting to subject your work to comment and feedback. They know that feedback is important in forming a well-informed view.

Rational optimists:

This seems somewhat contradictory, but Future Builders understand that rational optimism is not simply the opposite of pessimism. Instead, rational optimists have an understanding of the whole system of which they are part. They understand the possible leverage points and what can be achieved. It is a recognition of both strength and weakness; an interest in building the best as well as repairing the worst; and a concern for finding self fulfillment as well as serving the community. Rational optimists are realists, but their defining point of difference is that they don’t give up on themselves.

So, this is where I’ve got up to. What do you think are the key characteristics of Future Builders? I’d be keen to hear your views.

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Part 3: Accelerate Performance With Strategic Alignment - Develop The Appropriate Culture

By Norman Chorn • March 27, 2023

In my previous article "Accelerate Performance with Strategic Alignment - Define the logic of your strategy", we demonstrated the alignment between the market and business strategy by matching the logic of the market with the logic of the strategy. The Explore logic emphasises a market where customers seek new solutions for emerging requirements. The strategy responds by exploring new opportunities and driving for growth. The Exploit logic occurs in a more stable market where customers seek lower costs and reliability of supply. The appropriate strategy focuses on operational efficiency and building close customer relationships. Culture is key to shaping the capabilities of the business to successfully implement strategy . It drives the way that people behave, decisions are made and actions are taken. It determines, therefore, the strategy that is actually realised in the market, as opposed to that which is merely intended. We make a key distinction between the desired culture and the appropriate culture. The desired culture is what people may choose because it sounds attractive and in vogue. However, the appropriate culture is the culture that is required to successfully implement the chosen strategy. Often, these can be different. For example, people might seek to develop a culture that is ‘innovative’, ‘flexible’ and ‘empowering’, but this may not be the appropriate culture needed to successfully implement the business strategy. DEVELOP THE APPROPRIATE CULTURE FOR YOUR STRATEGY Developing the appropriate culture requires a deliberate emphasis on certain cultural attributes and making trade-offs on others. As we will see, the attributes that are traded off are usually the opposites of those that are emphasised.

Part 2: Accelerate Performance with Strategic Alignment - Define the Logic of your Strategy

By Norman Chorn • March 27, 2023

In Part 1 "How to Accelerate Performance with Strategic Alignment - Understand the Logic of the Market" we outlined different market conditions and defined them in terms of two overarching logics — Exploring and Exploiting . To briefly recap, an Exploring logic is one where customers are seeking new solutions for emerging needs. It’s all about change and action. An Exploiting logic occurs in a more stable market in which the issues are about lowering costs and working collaboratively with customers. It’s a market that focuses on stability and cohesion. FORCES THAT SHAPE YOUR STRATEGY Clearly, it is one of these two logics — or a combination of both — that will shape your strategy as you operate in these markets. See figure 1 below that describes how these logics will form your business strategy: