IT’S A STORY THAT HAS BEEN TOLD time and time again: Kodak’s journey from global photography giant to bankruptcy in the era of digital photography. The narrative usually plays out as a cautionary tale: Once upon a time, an incumbent failed to innovate and lost out to technically savvy new entrants. However, this misses an interesting subplot.
Between 1974 and 2006, Kodak had a nuclear reactor loaded with 3.5 pounds of enriched uranium in a secret underground laboratory in Rochester, New York. The reactor — which was used to perform neutron radiography testing — was an investment in cutting-edge technological research that should have kept Kodak at the forefront of new photography and imaging products. But we all know what happened next: Kodak found itself blindsided by new developments in digital photography and unfairly labelled laggards.
For many leaders, with today’s backdrop of accelerating technological convergence, the climate crisis and wider societal and systemic shifts, it can feel like one moment of inertia could lead to obsolescence, or even to becoming the next cautionary tale. The challenge lies not just in the ability to adapt to profound transformation driven by new technologies and elevated data literacy, but also, in finding ways to proactively contribute toward a better future.
To make your mark, it is vital to carve out a path that is innovative, resilient and adaptable in the face of relentless change and complexity. But how? Our work with clients like the Associated Press and the United Nations has enabled them to imagine possible futures and act accordingly. In this article we will show that the way forward demands one skill above all others: strategic foresight.
Strategic Foresight 101
Strategic foresight is a discipline
