Start from the future

We always start from the future and work our way back. Where you will end up in due time is also determined by your past (heritage and company DNA) and your present situation (skills, capabilities and resources). We call this approach 'applied futures'. We work with tools and methodolgy that help you to translate any idea about the future into something you can start activating in your organization today. Our approach of applied futures is based on Hermann Minkowski's 'cone of possibility' underpinned by a 4-step philosophy for transformation.

Minkowski

Agency for Applied Futures

Designing a cone of possibility

We have based our approach on Hermann Minkowski’s ideas. He was a German mathematician and Albert Einstein’s teacher and showed that Einstein’s theory of special relativity could best be understood as a theory of four-dimensional space-time. This understanding is known as Minkowski spacetime. Minkowski illustrated that there is only a cone of possible positions a particle can take in the future (it can not move faster than light and cannot go back in time). We use this idea in our work with organizations to identify that possibilities in the future are determined by their past and present. There’s only a cone of possibility that you can transform into. We can help you design this space of possibilities for the future of your organization.

Four steps for successful transformation

We use a four-step model to enable successful transformation. In order to transform people in organizations first have to see the future from a new perspective. We call this step ‘awaken‘ because seeing the world around you from a future perspective through the lens of possibility is very often a wake-up call for people: seeing with fresh eyes.

The next step is one in which we challenge the limiting beliefs of the organization and a step in which we are building the belief that change and transformation is possible. We call this ‘assess‘ because from the outskirts of the cone of possibility you can assess what needs to change in your organization to accomplish your ambitions.

The third step is called ‘accelerate‘: as soon as you have a strong founded belief in the future and you’ve overcome the things that hold you back, your organization can begin to speed up and get ready for transformation.

Then finally you can ‘activate‘ the future by implementing the designed actions and road towards a more sustainable future. Minkowski enables all these steps with you.