In this Philips column "new value by One Design" entitled Making sense of the future give some food for thoughts about foresight:

Philips Design's foresight research takes into account technological change but understands that this is driven by human interests and their context. This means also taking into account culture, society, individual value systems, economic and political change and the physical environment itself. Specifically, it looks at what the implications of changes in these areas could mean for sustainable and increased business growth aligned to the organization's values. (...) people are very much at the center of the foresighting process hich as Green explains, "offers us a much richer set of insights to drive innovation. Looking through the lens of people, you have a higher hit rate."

So, who used foresight scenarios at Philips? "Foresight provides an approach to engage strategic infl uencers and decision makers in the organization to deepen the collective understanding of the systemic nature and potential consequences of emerging changes. The approach can inform, empower and inspire the 10 organization to refl ect on its own potential to infl uence the path to a preferable future of sustainable growth," says Reon Brand, Senior Director Foresight, Trends & People Research.

Why do I blog this? only to help me making sense of what a company like Philips expect from foresight issue. I am curious about the process and wonder to what extent their user experience research feed foresight scenarios along with tech roadmaps. Might be interesting to see the whole process.