World's Next Practice eBook by Future Thread Co-op

The FuTure oF: global Thinking • business, people and Technology • corporaTe

Tribes • predaTory markeTing • high-sTakes conversaTions • aTTiTude and

execuTion • sTraTegic neTworking • ideaTion and innovaTion • leadership

World’s Next Practice

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World’s Next PracticeCopyright © 2010 FutureThread Co-op Ltd

All rights reserved. Except as may be permitted by the Copyright Act, no part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior permission from the publisher.

FutureThread Co-op Ltd PO Box 6215 North Ryde NSW 2113Phone: (02) 8014 [email protected]

Design and layout by Lankshear Design.

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Content

The Future of Productivity and ExecutionRowdy McLean

The Future of High-Stake ConversationsHugh Gyton

The Future of Workplace CultureMichael Henderson

The Future of Predatory MarketingAshton Bishop

The Future of LeadershipScott Stein

The Future of Business, People and TechnologyCraig Rispin

The Future of Face-to-Face Strategic NetworkingJulia Palmer

The Future of Innovation and IdeationNils Vesk

The Future of Global ThinkingAnders Sorman-Nilsson

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Frame

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IntroductionChange doesn’t care whether you like it or not. It doesn’t need your permission.

Innovation means choosing change, creating something new, and forging a path where no one has treaded before — it’s about imagining and implementing world’s next practice, as opposed to yesterday’s best practice.

This book is your thread to that future.

It will help you reveal, frame and implement the strategies that shape tomorrow’s business landscape. Curated by Future Thread’s thought leading experts from around the globe, this book delivers innovation advice from all angles to position your business for serious growth.

Grab a hold of this future thread, and come explore the key drivers of change and strategic advantage with us.

ImplementFrameReveal

For durable advantage and lasting success

The actions that will maximise ROI

The previously unseen

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The Future of Global Thinking

Anders Sorman-NilssonGlobal Thinking Expert

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Change doesn’t care whether you like it or not – it doesn’t need your permission. We upgrade, exchange, invest in and flip strategies because we know that old technological software, rusty circuitry and limited bandwidth won’t suffice in the future. Yet many of us fail to upgrade our thinking, organisational and leadership software to deal with the constant innovation, generation and communication changes around us.

The world has changed and it’s a little out of whack. Organisations and leaders are struggling to find their bearings, and many feel overwhelmed by the changes they are facing. Globally, tidal waves of new ideas and thought currents are smashing old school thinking to smitherines. You and your leaders need a thinking strategy that is as flexible as a GPS, and that enables you to stay on trend, to adapt with the times, and successfully navigate a constantly shifting business landscape.

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Digital replaces analogue, wireless techology surpasses fibreoptics, the internet has truly gone mobile and computer power doubles every 18-24 months. We are interlinked, hyperconnected, and linkedin 24/7/365, and it’s likely that the generation mobile phone you just bought will be defunct within 2 years. To stay on trend, to be future compatible, and to have a crack at being successful you and the people in your organisation need to constantly upgrade the way you think.

How Would Your Company Be Different If …• your staff were inspired about

change, rather than paralysed by it? • your leaders could raise

performance, do more with less, and innovate their way into the future?

• your senior leaders knew how to profoundly connect with your emerging leaders?

• you were able to harness the power of social media to your organisation’s advantage?

• you knew which trends were impacting your industry today and how to position your thinking favourably for the future?

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• are your teams equipped with the strategic foresight required to take your organisation forward?

• is your salesforce confident that what they’re selling is something that will be relevant not just today, but tomorrow and for the foreseeable future?

Your Brain Trust Needs to Start to …spot disruptive trends, feel the underlying currents of change, and position their ideas successfully

• are your leaders longing for the days when a Blackberry was just a fruit, when we used to express our emotions without adding an emoticon, or the re-assuring sound of the 56K modem as we slowly connected over the fax line?

• does what your organisation deliver really and truly matter tomorrow?

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Innovation happens at the intersection of thought. Your team members all have unique gifts and talents – one of them is the authentic ways they think, communicate and solve problems. Is this what they bring to your work? For too long, we have been asked to conform and turn up as organisational drones which creates group-think and ‘same old / same old’ products and services. To harness the thinking capital in your organisation you need to create innovation intersections that encourage your people to turn up and contribute their unique intelligence at work.

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• do your leaders reflect the diversity of thinking in your organisation, or do they at least encourage heterogeneous thought?

• is your organisation known as an innovation champion or is it known as a reactive laggard?• are your teams vibrating with enthusiasm, passion and a love for ideas and bringing the

organisation into the new decade of thinking?• is your salesforce aware of and capable of adapting their sales pitches depending on what

style of thinker they’re communicating with?

Idea NuancesIdeas are the new currency. Branding and marketing is no longer just about capturing attention. It’s about spreading idea viruses and about your organisation being seen as the ‘go-to-expert’. Your leadership brain trust’s and thought leaders’ ideas and intellectual property is what will give life to your logo today and in the future. The question is whether you’re nurturing, harnessing and helping your thought leaders be brand advocates and live their brilliance inside and outside your organisation.

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Outside is the New InMisfits change things. Your people are demanding to bring their whole selves to work. The question is whether you can handle them. It’s so much easier when people behave and respond in predictable ways. It doesn’t demand as much cognitive bandwidth from leadership.

However, a global shift is occurring where new generational trends are equipping, empowering and encouraging employees to bring their genuine selves – with both positive and negative connotations for you – to work. These misfits can be both your most brilliant team members and your most challenging team members, but lead them in a way that profoundly connects with them, and you have a profit and inspiration centre to count on.

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The Future of Business, People and Technology

Craig RispinBusiness Futurist & Innovation Expert

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Photo by SnaPsi Photo by Lida Rose

Corporations’ structure was copied from the military from over 400 years ago. The future of business is real-time networked organisations with entirely new structures based more on biology rather than pyramids.

From Hierarchy to NetworksTH

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From Hierarchy to Networks

Businesses are beginning to realise that someone else already has their customer. Cooperation, enabled by technology, will empower the organisation of the future.

From Competition to Cooperation

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A new way of thinking in business is emerging. Can I make a profit and do good works too?

Tom’s Shoes - for every pair of shoes sold, one pair is given away to a child in need.

From Grabbing to GoodTH

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Tiny Technology

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Robots on the RiseTH

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Generation of Genomics

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In 2010 Craig Venter created the first synthetic life form. In a 2007 interview with New Scientist when asked “Assuming you can make synthetic bacteria, what will you do with them?”, Venter replied:

“Over the next 20 years, synthetic genomics is going to become the standard for making anything. The chemical industry will depend on it. Hopefully, a large part of the energy industry will depend on it. We really need to find an alternative to taking carbon out of the ground, burning it, and putting it into the atmosphere. That is the single biggest contribution I could make.”

Photo by jurvetson21

Smartphones (aka Superphones) now connect many of us full-time to the internet, provide supercomputer-level processing, access to 100,000’s of Apps, global positioning systems and megapixel imaging. Very soon this type of capability will be available

on a single chip for under $75, making it available to a budget-minded or developing world consumer.

How different will your workforce, your customers, the rest of the world behave when they all have access to this enabling technology?

Digital DenizensTH

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denizen – inhabitant: a person who inhabits a particular place

digital denizen – a person who spends a significant amount of time in the digital word, connected to the ‘net

There are more than 200 million active users currently accessing Facebook through their mobile devices.

People that use Facebook on their mobile devices are twice as active on Facebook than non-mobile users.

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Being connected full-time to the internet allows instant connection with like-minded individuals anywhere, anytime. This can lead to amplification of ideas and attitudes almost instantly, globally – like a digital echo chamber.

These ideas or attitudes amplified might help or hurt you – or your business. What are you doing to monitor, engage or participate in the digital conversation? Amplified Attitudes will be growing exponentially in the future and impossible to ignore.

Amplified Attitudes

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ultimate upgrades

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Will we be able to regrow body parts, organs in the near future? Scientists are making major breakthroughs right now.

KidneyEsophagusBladderSmooth MuscleCartilageUrethraUreterVesselsSalivary glandsTracheaBoneBreastSkeletal MuscleLungRetinaUterusHeartTestesNerveLiverPancreasGenitalia

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The Future of Leadership

Scott SteinLeadership Strategist Expert

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Leadership Snapshot: 2000What was the focus of leadership 10 years ago …

Business Week Best Sellers: Who moved my cheese? The Millionaire Mind, The Tipping Point, Gung Ho, Fish! etc

Of the top 10, five titles focused on fostering a happier and more efficient workplace—trend: employers competing for workers

1st major downloadable e-book with Stephen King’s novel Riding the Bullet downloaded more than 500,000 copies

in 3 days—trend: instant internet

This was then, let’s look at now.

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5 Leadership ImperativesThe 5 things for you to focus on in 2011

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The New Leadership Structure

Web matrix vs pyramid

Circular vs triangle

Coordination vs control

Collaboration vs specialisation

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Balancing Individual vs Collective

Label vs role

Me vs we

Office vs virtual

Leverage vs linear

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Micro Leadership Teams

Label vs role (again!)

Freeform vs accountable Projects

Multiple reporting lines

Own turf vs our turf

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Leadership Footprint

Five Critical Areas Determine Success

1. Direction

2. Intent

3. Impact

4. Attention

5. Legacy

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Thought Leadership

New business imperative

Admired as leaders in industry, country, world

Ability to bring new ideas, approach and/or execution to life

Master nine essential skills

Will separate the successful up and coming from the “left behind”

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What MuST Organisations Do?Develop your strategy—involving your thought leaders

Map out critical leadership touchpoints

Position your organisation as a thought leader

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What MuST Individuals Do?Promote Yourself as a Thought Leader …

• Clarify your expertise in a memorable way that others will remember

• Develop a visual model that others can understand and use

• Identify key influencers within your organisation and share your expertise

• Externally promote your expertise through …• Industry Conferences• Publishing in Industry Journals• Client and/or supplier Presentations

• Get the Book: Thought Leaders: How to Capture, Package and deliver your ideas for greater commercial success at www.scottstein.com.au/thoughtleadersbook

Monitor your Leadership Footprint

• Regularly assess your impact on others• Seek feedback from others on this impact

Get the Book

www.scottstein.com.au/thoughtleadersbook

The Future of Innovation and Ideation

Nils VeskInnovation, Ideation & Design Thinking Expert

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Innovation Is In Flux Innovation is in constant change

The changing future of innovation is dependent on three key elements:

1. Cognition – the way we think to innovate

2. Knowledge – our understanding of innovation

3. Application – where and how we innovate

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If You Want Innovation use an Innovation ArchitectThe Innovation Architect’s skill-set and mind-set eliminate ad-hoc innovation and replace it with bankable and sustainable innovation.

Innovation Architects:

• Are on the increase

• Their thinking and skills can be easily learnt

• Are problem seekers and problem solvers

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Innovation Planning is Insurance Against a Bleak Business LandscapeInnovation plans enable you to develop your innovation capital

Clarifies

Prioritises

Codifies

Simplifies

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Aesthetics are Optional, Structure is EssentialYour innovation structure determines how big, how strong and how fast you can build your innovation hot house

Consider the blueprint level

Consider the bottom-line level

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Quantifiable Innovation Means Profitable InnovationInnovation’s biggest curse is in measurability

The changing future of innovation is dependent on what can be measured, how it relates to profit, and the impact we can have on it

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Ideas are the Keystone to Innovation Ideas are plenty but great ideas are rare

Quantity determines quality

Ideas only come when we provide the space, time and permission for:

• Facilitating

• Stimulating

• Generating

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Smart Innovators Take Their Ideas to the CourthouseSelection is crucial

Have a process and make it:

• Simple

• Transparent

• Effective

• Efficient

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Crash it Before it Goes to MarketPrototyping is now becoming second nature

Beta versions are often final versions

Keys to prototyping are:

• Speed

• Function

• Representation

• Cost effectiveness

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Execution Is ParamountOwnership

Outsourcing

Partnership

Coordination

Implementation

Inspection

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The Future of Predatory Marketing

Ashton BishopPredatory Marketing Expert

The great news ...is there’s a bunch of people out there just waiting for

your product and service

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Somebody Else Has Your Money and There Are Only Two Ways to Get It1. By encouraging new people to use your product or service

2. By getting existing customers to spend more and more often

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Effective Positioning

Space in the mind is limited

Who remembers number 2?

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Who was the second man on the moon?

Who made the second solo trans-pacific air crossing?

What’s the second highest mountain in Australia?

So you want to be a market leader, even if that means you define

a smaller market

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Let’s Get Predatory

Identify the weakness that arises out of your competitor’s greatest strength

Avoid merely looking for parity

Inflicts the greatest damage and makes response difficult

Focus on relative strengths

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Nutrition Iron Man Food

10 days, $1 million media, $50 million to bottom-line

Reposition the Competition

VS

3.2 grams of sugar 32 grams of sugar

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The Four Reasons Predatory Marketing is the Future

Everybody’s got a bully

You don’t want to just annoy them

Markets are niching

Stand-out or die-out51

It pays to be ‘on-trend’

Tune into WiiFM “what’s in it for me”

Take a stand52

Risk = reward

Innovate or die

Be true to yourself

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If you’re not winning change the game

You have to let go to succeed

Play big!

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The Future of Workplace Culture

Michael Henderson Corporate Anthropologist

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What is Culture?The way we do things around here?

Our company values?

What happens while were busy making strategic plans?

Meaning making!

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Organisations are Failing at CultureGlobal staff engagement surveys show that on average, only 20% of the millions of working staff members worldwide are engaged with their work and the organisations that employ them

The 20/80 rule suggest that 20% of an organisations people deliver 80% of the results the companies achieves

who are most likely to be the 20%? you guessed it … those with highest engagement

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Why do so Many Organisations Fail to Engage Most of Their Staff? The leaders of the organisations aren’t perceived as worth following

Leaders and managers don’t know how to create a culture worth belonging to

Leaders fail to position the work as worth doing

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What Makes a Leader Worth Following? Provides dignity for all

Practices integrity and wholeness

Creates a compelling story

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What Makes a Culture Worth Belonging to?Community

Connection

Conviction

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What Makes Work Worth Doing? Aspirational Practice

Inspirational Direction

Deeply meaningful Service

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Culturings Futurenow

Iconic brands

Process driven performance

Work life balance

H.R.

next

Brand tribes

Personality driven performance

Woeisure

R.H.

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Numbers tell the story

Structural driven culture

Knowledge capability

Intellectual property

next

Stories tell the numbers

Social driven culture

Ideas & thought leadership

Social equity

Cost effectiveness

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E-commerce

Motivation

Company

Communication

next

Social exchange

Commitment

Community

Connection

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Julia PalmerStrategic Networking Expert

The Future of Face-to-FaceStrategic Networking

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The Networking Shift

what you know

who you know

who knows you

who is promoting you

The ability to Net [work] effectively is essential

to every job title in every industry sector

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You Must Have a Networking Strategy Some are good at creating and others at managing, but rarely do business professionals have a networking strategy that focusses on both AND aligns to personal and business outcomes

infact 75% of business people admit that their existing networks do not support the results they need

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The Face-To-Face Facts: “Every dollar a company invests in a conference or trade show produces $4 to $6 in return.” Oxford Economics

“85 percent of business executives believed face to face meetings are the most effective way to gain potential customers.” Oxford Economics

Research at institutions such as Harvard and M.I.T. has consistently shown that employees’ personal networks are in many cases the single biggest factor impacting their productivity and ability to contribute to the company

One of the top 15 trend watching tips is to secure senior backing in 2011 or be doomed

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Old World Formal hierarchies (linear)

Human capital (tangible assets)

Dyads and triads (autonomy)

Now World Flatter structures (organic)

Social capital (intangible assets)

Structured networks (partnerships)

New World Networked organisations (invisible)

Social and spiritual capital (legacy)

Informal networks (collaborations/ conversations)

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Simple Network

one wayrelationships

two wayrelationships

in uencereachesyournetworks’network

Strategic Network

What Network Structure are You Working Towards?

90% of the information that the most senior executives receive and take action on comes through informal networks

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Effective Leaders Have High Social CapitalSocial Capital: a new concept from an old idea

Connections within and between networks

The benefits of social capital are many, most importantly it builds competitive advantage

Leaders with high social capital• View leadership as a position with responsibility to

a diverse set of stakeholders

• Take a partnership approach

• Work as coaches within a community to build collective energy

• Manage the paradox of both competing and collaborating with other enterprises

The whole is greater than the sum of the partsAre you a central or peripheral player?

Does your network see you as a hub or broker?

Who are you promoting and who is promoting you?

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How Connected Are You? Our online and real worlds are colliding

Warning: technology is an enabler – NOT a relationship

Do you have a networking strategy?

Will You Invest? In future, simply being in relationships and part of networks isn’t going to be enough.

Clusters will form within structured networks (like hubs of connectedness).

These invisible links will become the real source of influence and power.

Are you visible enough … committees, interest groups, sub and social groups that allow more continuity, visibility and ability to move (both people and ideas)?

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Hugh GytonHigh-Stakes Conversations Expert

The Future of High-Stakes Conversations“be alert not alarmed”

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What is a High-Stake Conversation?

“A spoken interchange of thoughts and feelings that impact participating parties positively or negatively”.

Successful conversation requires:

Conscious effort, ability to listen, willingness to view things from another persons perspective,

imagination, an ability to share of self and to project an interest in others. ultimately to connect.

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Should we be alarmed? Are we losing the art?Non-spoken “conversation” is taking over …

Nearly 75 million people visited twitter.com in Jan ’10 worldwide. (Source: Commscore)

… and still the audience is growing exponentially with 44% of Twitter’s users joined between Jan ’10 and Aug ’10. (Source: Sysomos)

Over 28% of knowledge workers time is spent on Email

“Conversations start in one place and move us on to other fabulous places that we would never go on our own. We’re in a culture at the moment that’s encouraging us to run on the spot.” (Ron Carter, co-author Cambridge Grammar of English)

Non-EmailEmail

28%

72%

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Facebook Press Room States Over 500 Billion Minutes per Day is Being Spent in Facebook, That’s Over 400 Lifetimes

http://www.nanaroo.com/400-lifetimes-lost-on-facebook-daily.aspx78

Technology is more pervasive and portable; Blackberry, Android, iPhone, iPad. With more and cheaper band-width available. It is only going to continue to grow.

Social mores are changing, our dependency is increasing. The online addiction is analogous to poker “We keep pressing the button because occasionally something really good comes in …” (Andrew Leigh: ‘Disconnected’, New South Press) “community and family life is fraying. In business we are getting busier but not necessarily more productive, communication and engagement are still major issues.”

“Forces sapping conversation seem stronger than forces nourishing it”

(Stephen Miller, ‘Conversations, A history of a Declining Art’)

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Should We Be Alarmed?Is The Cost Too High?Workplace engagement continues to be low and poor relationship with peers and manager are THE key issues. Since 1998 Fortunes “100 Best Companies to Work For” has shown their stocks have returned 5 times as much to investors as the market in general. Better conversations are good for business.

We are busy but not productive. An estimated $10.11 billion per year is lost through stress and depression. Workplace counselling for anxiety and stress has increased by 68% and 76% respectively since 2007. (ABS data)

Not Engaged

EngagedActively Disengaged

61% 18%

21%

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Australian EngagementSurvey 2008

Social Cost?The Australian Bureau of Statistics tells us that every year some 40% of marriages end in divorce and 20% of de-facto relationships split within 18 months of having a child. Subsequently, each year, some 70,000 children under 18 years of age experience their birth parents separating. Main reasons given for separation? Lack of conversation, too many arguments, not feeling appreciated.

In response to more than 2,200 suicides per year in Australia, more than our road toll, ruok.org.au have established 7th October as R u OK? Day. A day to consciously initiate a conversation with someone, to ask “are you OK?” Suicide is the biggest killer of our 18-35 age bracket with an estimated 30 attempts for every suicide, some 65,000 adults are affected. (Lifeline)

Might these be High-Stake Conversations?

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That Said, Maybe we Just Need to be ‘Alert’Australia leads the world in social media engagement but still only averages about 7 hours per person per month.

Nearly two in five online Australians are now interacting with companies via social networking sites, reinforcing notions that Australians are open to engaging with brands and companies online.

For Australians, more than any other country, it provides an efficient and effective way to hook into a community of interest. 62% of Australian internet users visited a message board or forum in 2009. (Source: The Nielsen Company) It does in fact make it much easier to find like-minded individuals to engage and connect with.

Online access is creating an ease of maintaining past contacts and networks. Research, requests for help can be targeted to a broad, personal community. LinkedIn is enjoying one of the fastest growth trends with unique audience numbers increasing by 99% from July 2009 to May 2010.

Email

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So What to Do? Be Alert and Not Alarmed!

We humans have a wonderful history of communication development, language and medium are always evolving … embrace it.

Can’t avoid, so master your craft. Develop your verbal skills and your writing skills, tell great stories, and be your authentic, unique self.

Engage with the new medium appropriately. Where can it add value to your relationships and your work?

Don’t hide behind the technology, catchup with clients and friends. Look for opportunities to have more spoken conversations. Invest time in understanding others, what motivates and energises them.

Printing press

Email

www

Telephone

Facsimile

Two-way Radio

Semaphore

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What Do You Want to Eat?There are times when all we have time for, or need, is a quick processed, ‘happy meal’. There is nothing quicker, easier than a text to verify data, to confirm you’re on the way. It does its job, it looks and tastes the same from everyone.

Equally, there are times the taste buds, the soul craves something more. The delight of a freshly prepared meal, unique in it’s flavours and textures courtesy of the personal whim and subtlety of the chef. Such nuance of ‘flavour’ can only be truly experienced

and enjoyed in the presence and connection of a face-to-face conversation.

Enjoy a balanced diet.

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The Future of Productivity and Execution

Rowdy (Ron) McLeanExecution Expert

www.playabiggergame.com.au

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The number one strategy for organisations in the last

two years has been Improving productivity.(Source: Telstra enterprise survey)

Less than 50% of organisations measure productivity,

even less have a strategy to improve it

and even less actually manage to do something about it.

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How do we improve

productivity?The only way to

improve productivity is to improve

execution

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The S.T.E.P.™ Elements to improving execution

and therefore improving productivityS.T.E.P.™ = Systems Technology Environment, People

People Last? Why?

People can only execute within systems

they understand and that work effectively

People perform at their best when their

environment is stimulatingso when the Systems,

Technolgy and Environment are right we can motivate

people to perform – productivity improves

Peoples ability to execute is limited by their access to and understanding of

Technology

Improving Systems Create an understood way of doing things

Map out roles and processes so anyone can do any job

Continually review and refine for efficiency

Make them flexible enough to adapt to rapidly changing circumstances

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Improving Technology Technology is critical! it saves you time and money and makes tasks easier to perform

Get the right technology for the right job

Make it accessible to all

Provide comprehensive training on how to use it

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Improving the Environment

The nature of work has changed

Their has been a shift from process and systemised work to creative work practises

As a result our approach to workspace must change

no more nine to 5, create flexible hours

no more cubical ownership, create innovative layouts

it could even be, no more office, work from home

Improving People

The values of people has changed

Their is a trend toward the values of self actualisation

People want to be part of something bigger, let me contribute, elicit my thoughts and input

We want to chart our own destiny, allow me responsibilty

I will buy into where we are going – only if I feel it is part of my personal journey, I have some ownership of the outcome

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But wait! Theres more

People Level OneIndividuals – personal ownership equals personal productivity

Make me Responsible – has ownership of tasks, projects and outcomes

Ensure I am Motivated – is passionately interested in the result

Help me become Engaged – actively contributes of their own accord

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People Level TwoTeams – functional equals effective

Give us resources – supporting mechanisms for getting thigs done

Let us know the rules – how, who, why and when

Assign us clear roles – what, exactly, is each expected of each individual

Make us aware of the risks – how far can we go

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People Level ThreeOrganisation – clarity on why we exist and where we are going

objectives – a clear understanding of what we want to achieve

milestones – indicators of how far we have come and how far there is to go

deadlines – draw a line in the sand, a commitment to completion

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Future ThreadFuture Thread is where companies turn to for support. Future Thread’s innovative minds, diverse skills and collective intelligence reveal opportunities that would otherwise remain unseen in the business. We are the innovation catalysts that CEOs trust to help them make the bold shifts needed for exceptional profits. Future Thread frames your path to growth and implements bold innovations for lasting success.

potent advisory boardWe’ve assembled a potent advisory board of recognised thought leaders comprising multiple areas of expertise and diverse perspectives. The team is specifically curated to challenge stale thinking and ignite innovation with creative new initiatives and by facilitating change.

behind the world’s fastest growing brands We work with the world’s fastest growing companies to produce breakthrough results.

Fresh models and delivery modes Our models and delivery modes are derived from real world experience to deliver more engaging experiences and innovative results.

brutal honesty Free from vested interests, we can handle the truth and deliver the mindset shifting benefits that will open up opportunities for quantum leaps in business growth.

work to results We focus on the results you’ll gain from our insight. Not on time sheets or our own bottom line.

end to end solutionsWe take you from ideas to actualisation and profits.





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Global Thinking :: Anders Sorman-Nilsson

As a reformed lawyer, avid social commentator and somewhat funky thinker, Anders Sorman-Nilson has worked with Macquarie Bank, Singtel Optus, Commonwealth Bank, Fuji Xerox, Wella, Johnson & Johnson, Apple, MTV and more to future-proof their business brains.

He is the Creative Director and founder of the consultancy, Thinque. Swedish by design, Germanic by schooling and Australian by choice, he is a linguistic gymnast who challenges his clients to upgrade the way they think. A self-described cultural transvestite, Anders draws on a smorgasbord of international ideas and trends to inspire ideas and facilitate conversations.

Anders is an expert on generational trends, thought leadership branding and innovation. He is the author of the book ‘Thinque Funky: Upgrade Your Thinking’ (2009) and several articles. His keynotes, Thinque Tanks and consulting provide GPS directions for individual and organisational brands to successfully navigate a constantly changing business landscape and successfully position their intellectual property in a wacky world.


• Global Thought Leadership Programs

• Strategic Thinque Tanks

• Trend Spotting Across Innovations, Generations and Communications

• How to spot and monetise trends in innovations, generations and communications

• Tuning into the zeitgeist (vibe) of the times to profoundly connect with clients and talent

• Global thinking across industries, cultures and markets

• GPS directions to a constantly shifting business landscape

Benefit from a current global mindset: implement the latest thinking strategies being applied around the world to stay two steps ahead of your competition.

ProfileOutcomes

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The Future of High-Stake Conversations





The Future of Face-to-Face Strategic Networking



Future Trends and Innovation :: Craig Rispin

Craig Rispin is a Business Futurist and Innovation Expert.

His expertise lies in emerging business, people and technology trends—and how companies can profit from them.

Craig has over 20 years’ experience working where the future has been created with some of the most innovative companies in the world in IT, consumer electronics, internet and broadcasting organisations.

He is an award-winning speaker and thought leader mentor who has addressed audiences of 15 to 3,000 people on 5 continents. Craig has been engaged as a foresight and innovation consultant by CEOs of leading companies worldwide.

His clients include BHP Billiton, Canon, Colonial First State, IBM, Kimberly-Clark, Mallesons, NRMA, Sportscraft, Symantec, Toyota, the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) and countless professional industry associations.

Self Funded Innovation Programs

A simple 5-principle innovation system for business leaders

Keynotes and Workshops

Regular delivery of in-house tailored keynotes and workshops

Mentoring

1:1 and/or group mentoring, delivered face to face or virtually

Foresight & Innovation Forum

Access to a CEO-only innovation forum, which has been innovating for over 15 years

Know First – Develop Foresight: Identify opportunities and threats that are affecting your business now and those just over the horizon

Be First – Implement an Innovation Program: Learn how easy it is to develop a self-funding innovation program to leverage opportunities and minimise threats

Profit First – Return on Investment: Through cost savings and new income streams

Keep abreast of Business, People and Technology Trends transforming your industry and have the ability to leverage opportunities and minimise threats.

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Leadership Strategy :: Scott Stein

Scott has worked with over 35,000 senior executives, leading corporations and small businesses to help them improve their impact on others over the past 20 years on 4 continents.

He blends his Native American heritage with contemporary principles—including a Masters Degree in Communication — to help business leaders improve performance and get better results from their people.

Scott is known for his ability to work collectively or one-on-one, and many people refer to him as “the pathfinder”. His clients include State Water, Hyundai, Westpac, QLD Child Safety, GM-Holden and more.

Leadership Pathway Program:

• Measures the impact of leaders

• Measures the ROI of leaders

• Increases leadership skills

• Involves individual 1:1 mentoring

Coaching and workshops:

• Pathfinder Leadership Strategies

• Pathfinder Leadership Stalls

• Pathfinder Leadership Actions

Unlock your Pathfinder Leadership abilities for increased results.

Have the strategies to get people to want to contribute to your organisation.

Save time and increase profits by effectively enrolling partners, staff, suppliers and customers in your cause.

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Innovation Ideation and Design Thinking :: Nils Vesk

Ideas are born naked. It’s no wonder so many are shy and never make it into the public eye. The Innovation Architects take a stand for ideas. To see them make it, be recognised and evolve into true innovation.

They take ideas out of their hiding places - be it in bottom drawers or the dark reaches of your employees’ minds; identifying the ideas with the most potential - giving them the right foundations, investment, development and support to succeed. With your help, we take all these naked ideas, dress them up and walk them all the way to your bottom line.

Nils Vesk is a professional designer but you won’t find him designing your workplace layout or your company website. For 18 years Nils has been applying the process of design thinking to generating and realising ideas. His clients include the world’s fastest growing companies who use Nils as an idea architect and change catalyst for accelerating business growth through innovation. Nils’ clients include IBM, CBA, Optus, Bluescope Steel, Microsoft Origin Energy and many more.

Ongoing monthly sessions work in real time to solve problems, create new solutions and implement them step-by-step.

Frame a path for why we need to innovate, how to do it consistently and where to apply it in your business.

Learn where and how to access brilliant ideas when your business needs them most.

Reveal the thinking behind brilliant ideas, information insights and the obstacles to innovation and creativity.

Identify the creative intelligence and innovation skills your business already possesses.

1. Identify the ideas with the most potential

2. Give them the right foundation, investment and support to succeed.

3. Take them to your bottom line.

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Predatory Marketing :: Ashton Bishop

Ashton is a Co-Founder of Step Change Marketing and works with Toyota Australia as one of their Lead Communications Strategists.

He’s a commerce law graduate with a passion for communications. Ashton has over twelve years’ experience both in Australia and the UK.

He’s worked with top-tier advertising agencies on major campaigns, new product development, new brand launches, brand re-positioning and innovations for leading brands like Westfield, News Limited, Nokia, Pizza Hut, Nestlé, CommSec, GSK and FOXTEL.

Full implementation: Future Thread offers the complete services and capabilities you’d expect from a top-tier advertising and communications agency, but with a more competitive value proposition.

• Business Growth Plan—Develop a clear positioning message that makes your brand irresistible to your customers.

• Practical Marketing Plan—Define where, when and how to say it for the optimal return on investment.

• Learn the marketing secrets behind the world’s fastest growing brands.

• Predatory thinking—how to have the mindset of a “challenger brand”.

• Get the best ROI out of your marketing dollars in a changing media landscape.

Gain clarity and precision on where you spend your marketing dollars to deliver the greatest impact to your business and against your competitors.

1. Develop a serious competitive advantage.

2. Position your brand for successful long-term growth.

3. Create the right message to make yourself irresistible to consumers.

4. Attack your competitors’ weakest points and take advantage of their strong points to win market share.

5. Determine where to spend your marketing dollars for maximum return on investment.

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Corporate Anthropology :: Michael Henderson

One of the most essential roles of a leader is to influence their organisation’s culture, but many don’t know how.

Michael has the insight and foresight needed to create and sustain high-performance business cultures. He draws on his knowledge and experience of over 70 cultures across 40 countries—each with their unique strengths.

Michael provides the quantum leap in perspective that allows cultures to be identified, understood and changed.

Grounded in the realities of business, Michael has worked with the world’s largest brands in creating and sustaining powerful cultures that deliver real business results. His clients include Baileys, GHD, CCA, Canon, Lion Nathan, Vector, Microsoft and the New Zealand Air Force.

Michael’s culture plan will ensure you continuously meet your culture objectives to align with your business strategy by:

•Engaging your staff

•Driving performance

•Enhancing the impact of leadership on performance

•Aligning workplace culture to business strategy

Using presentations, keynotes and workshops to up-skill you, Michael will show you how to unlock the power of your business culture to drive performance.

How to see, understand and evaluate the impact of workplace cultures on your business.

Unlock the power of culture in your organisation.

Culture is eight times more powerful than strategy alone.

The world’s most successful organisations all share one characteristic. They each have a unique and well-defined culture.

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Strategic Networking :: Julia Palmer

Develop a networking matrix with a strategy to execute.

Resources are always available through the Business Networking Academy to reinforce behaviours, strategies and lessons.

• Behaviour and skill-gap training

• Creating Net[work]s Program

• Managing Net[work]s Program

• Network Relationship Management Program (3 to 6 months including diagnostics and reporting)

• 1:1 mentoring sessions for senior leaders

Map and manage your internal and external networks. Most importantly, leverage your social capital.

More profitable business from stronger relationships with customers, key suppliers and partners.

Develop and implement a networking strategy and gain the skills to:

• Seize more opportunities

• Build a strong reputation

• Expand your network in the most beneficial way possible

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Julia Palmer is a respected Networking Strategist, best known for leading the ‘face to face revolution’. Her expertise includes 15 years of practice and research combined with Advanced Certifications in Neuro-linguistics, Emotional Intelligence (MSCEIT), Performance Consulting, Training and Assessment. By age 25 Julia was the General Manager of a multi-million dollar global organisation, and has built her career by organising and attending thousands of networking events across all industries internationally. Now as CEO of the Business Networking Academy, Julia and her team help empower people to create and manage more sustainable and viable networks.

Julia presents at functions and conferences around the world. She has authored two books ‘Schmoozing the Globe’ and ‘BUZZ’, and appears regularly in TV, radio and print media to promote the growing importance of networking relationships in business today.

Her clients include; AMP, Nestle, Sara Lee, St George Bank, Sun Microsystems and Vodafone











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High-Stakes Conversations :: Hugh Gyton

Develop conversation mastery through one-to-one and one-to-many modalities:

• Keynote Speaking

• Workshop facilitation

• Tele-mentoring

• Blended Learning Program

• Executive Coaching

Learn the skills for successful conversations:

• Being Present

• Being Open

• Active Listening

• Engaging

• Building Trust

• Handling Objections

• Successful Self-Talk

Get conscious about conversations that matter:

• Leadership

• Selling

• Difficult

• High-stakes

• Presenting

• Personal branding

• Coaching

• Improved relationships

• Reduced conflict and stress

• Enhanced ability to influence for your desired outcomes

• Heightened trust and engagement

• Increased confidence and credibility

• Improved projection of your personal brand

• Learning to identify, select and manage your team

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With a 25-year career in IT, sales and management in the UK, Asia and Australia, Hugh believes people buy people first, not their products or services. He enhances his clients’ skills in high stakes conversations to win them more business, engage their teams, build trust, and increase their personal and business performance.

Hugh’s expertise is sought by individuals and teams in large and small organisations across a range of industries. He shares his expertise in his book The Art of Conversation, and he is a frequent interview guest on Channel 7, ABC Radio, Bnet, Kochie’s Business Builders and Flying Solo.

His clients include Hilton Hotels, AMP, Westpac, KMPG, Salmat, iSOFT, AQIS and more.











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Execution and Follow Through :: Rowdy McLean

Rowdy McLean is an expert on productivity, personal growth and achievement.

He is a master of making things happen and getting things done. His life’s work has been to search for the key drivers of success. As a result he retired at just 34.

As a successful entrepreneur, author and speaker, he has delivered keynotes, seminars and workshops to thousands of people across the globe, working with some of the world‘s top companies.

Rowdy shakes out limiting beliefs, inspires confidence in what‘s possible, motivates people to achieve amazing results and agitates them to take actions that create massive outcomes.

Rolling responsibility backed back accountability coaching.

• EXECUTION: Learn key ideas and strategies for making things happen fast.

• FAST: Implement an accountability program for getting results.

• PEOPLE AND PERFORMANCE: Imagine if everyone on your team performed at or above expectations.

In most organisations, excuses override execution. But people are capable of far more than they imagine.

When actions deliver outcomes, the resulting momentum builds productivity, morale and results.

• Make your organisation more effective, productive and efficient by turning ideas into action and actions into outcomes.

• Increase momentum: people become accountable and responsible for outcomes when projects are completed, items are actioned and ideas are delivered.

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