The World Economic Forum and Deloitte present this first-of-its-kind report, equipping today’s readers with the insights and foresight critical to tomorrow’s leaders. We project historical technology and socioeconomic trends through a new foresight tool and add speculative fiction to bring the possibilities (and personalities) of the future to life.
The COVID-19 crisis is shining a klieg light on the immense challenge leaders face in planning for the future amid extreme uncertainty. In parallel, new technologies of the fourth industrial revolution, such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud and robotics, are changing the way we live, learn and do business at a rate unprecedented in human history. These historic changes, considered within the increasingly urgent context of shifting political landscapes and environmental instability, suggest that now, more than ever, leaders need tools that can help them understand the future beyond the near term and then plan accordingly.
Hear about the report’s key highlights from Deloitte’s Chief Futurist, Mike Bechtel
Tools for foresight
Oxford provides the word “future” with nine distinct definitions. Some are anodyne (“the time that will come”), others declarative and deterministic (“what will happen”).
Many people will tell you that the future is clear, transparent and entirely predictable. Others see it as opaque and unknowable. To them, time and energy spent divining the future feels like folly.
In this report, we argue that neither extreme is accurate. Indeed, we see the future as being translucent, a collage of intriguing shapes and shadows, but few fine details. The pragmatist sees futurism (i.e., the study of the future) as a strategic discipline—a means of harnessing tailwinds, dodging headwinds and setting a more intentional course toward a preferred tomorrow.
Which is why a third Oxford definition, “the possibility of being successful or surviving at a later time,” perhaps best describes what we explore in this report: We examine possible future scenarios and identify how and where technology can play a role. We want to help you consider which technologies will be relevant to your organisation not only in a few years, but also in a decade or longer.
Highlights from our research include: