Key Features

Strategy—a plan of action—is absolutely vital for businesses, organisations and communities to survive and thrive in the face of complex change. However, most of the strategic planning methods we have today are designed for relatively stable conditions and focus mainly on assets, efficiency, and problem solving.

There is a new way forward. The Resilient Futures Framework is a strategic method and a way of thinking that tunes into complex change and enables individuals, businesses and communities to ‘generate opportunity withing complex change’ and to stay there.

The Framework has a number of differentiating and compelling features and attractions:

Opportunity Focus: The Resilient Futures Framework focuses on being proactive and creating your own future rather than being a victim of complex change. You stay ahead of the game, ‘playing to where the ball is going to be’ rather than where it is.

Bullet Proof: Whole systems thinking and analysis ensures that all opportunities are unearthed and problems have nowhere to hide.

Flexible in Scale and Context: The Framework and its way of thinking can be used on any proposed plan of action, big or small, and can become bigger or smaller as required. Also, learning to becoming a more effective strategist in dynamic environments is useful in everyday situations and for managing any project and its stakeholders.

Strategy in Action: Generating opportunities is about taking action. In changing, complex and interconnected systems, things begin to happen when you know what catalytic actions to take. These then inform strategy again, and actions follow, in a continuous feedback loop. Knowing how to do this well is vital and very effective.

Conscious and Alert: The Resilient Futures Framework focus on being awake to what is happening in the world by making constant, informed and conscious decisions. It is not about processes, templates or measures—most organisations already have these and they can easily be accommodated by the Resilient Futures approach.

Skills Transfer, Self-determination and Collaboration: People are easily coached in how to use the Resilient Futures Framework through skills transfer so that Strategy in Action becomes integrated at all levels, as it must, into the way organisations and communities adapt and thrive in an increasingly volatile world. It is a simple and highly effective way to get teams and stakeholders involved and aligned.

Leadership and Vision: With the Framework, leaders and managers in this era of complex change will learn a new set of fundamental skills and practices to help guide and motivate them and their people in any situation.

Networking and Support: Because there needs to be a focus on practising new strategic methods and ways of thinking, the Resilient Futures Network and Teaching and Learning Environment is a place where practitioners (budding and expert), coaches and advocates get together, formally and informally, to share experiences and learn from one another.