Blog

From signals to shared vision: What we learned studying 5 foresight trailblazers

Written by Dani Pärnänen | Jun 27, 2025 1:29:53 PM

Collecting trends is easy. Turning them into a shared vision and real action is where the value lies. But what actually makes that possible inside an organization? What turns scattered signals into a living, breathing foresight practice?

Over the past six months, we’ve taken a closer look at five of our many foresight platform customers, organizations we regularly speak with as part of our ongoing collaboration. For these five, we conducted deeper interviews to explore how they’re building and embedding foresight in their work. They include a global consulting firm, a major music rights organization, a university preparing the next generation of foresight professionals, and two industry associations leading futures work in their sectors.

Each team is different. Each operate in very different environments. But they all share one thing: a future-facing mindset, backed by practical tools and collaborative habits that make foresight stick. Here’s what we learned.

Foresight, embedded

In 2025, change is not a wave on the horizon. It’s the environment we all operate in. AI is transforming industries in real time. Consumer expectations evolve week by week. And relying on instinct or past performance is no longer enough to make confident strategic decisions.

That’s why foresight must be more than a periodic research exercise. It needs to be embedded: a shared, ongoing practice that shapes how teams think, plan, and collaborate.

The organizations we studied didn’t treat foresight as something separate from their day-to-day work. They wove it into the fabric of their strategy, innovation, and culture. They made futures thinking a habit, not a report.

What sets future-ready teams apart

We noticed four recurring patterns in how these organizations approach foresight, and they may just be the keys to doing it well.

1. They create living trend radars, not static reports

Forget PowerPoint decks that gather dust. Each organization we profiled built something dynamic and continuously evolving.

These radars weren’t just internal tools. They became catalysts for dialogue, alignment, and shared understanding within teams, across networks, and with external partners.

2. They prioritize collaboration and accessibility

Foresight isn’t locked away in strategy departments. It’s made accessible, visual, and part of everyday work.

These teams didn’t just use foresight tools. They built foresight culture. And that meant lowering the barrier to entry, enabling diverse participation, and fostering curiosity.

3. They frame foresight as a mindset shift, not a research task

Too often, foresight is seen as a niche function or occasional exercise. The most effective teams challenge that view.

They treat futures thinking as a mindset that belongs in every strategic conversation. They use foresight not to validate decisions already made, but to expand the range of possibilities being considered.

  • EY moved from being a “specialist resource” to being embedded in strategic planning conversations from the beginning. Their insights became essential, not optional.
  • GEMA explicitly positioned foresight as a way to lead industry change by turning their radar into a shared platform for innovation partnerships.

The result? More confidence in decisions. More creativity in solutions. And more alignment between long-term thinking and near-term action.

4. They leverage the right tools to move faster and go deeper

Speed and scale matter especially when signals are coming from every direction. Each organization we studied chose FIBRES not only for its structured approach, but also for its ability to accelerate insight generation.

  • AI features in FIBRES helped teams like EY drastically reduce research time. What once took days or weeks can now be done in hours.
  • Organizations appreciated the ability to customize, collaborate, and evolve their foresight systems as needs changed.
  • Even smaller teams, like those at HOST and Näe ry, were able to build professional-grade foresight outputs thanks to the tool’s intuitive design.

In other words, the right platform made a different level of foresight possible while supporting the day-to-day foresight work as well.

Lessons you can apply to your own foresight work

No matter your industry or team size, these insights can help you strengthen your own foresight practices. Here are five key takeaways:

  1. Start with a living radar, not a static report. Trend radars make foresight visible, accessible, and interactive an help teams move faster from analysis to proactive action.
  2. Make it collaborative. Involve people across functions and levels. The more perspectives, the richer your insights.
  3. Focus on mindset, not just methods. Build futures thinking into your culture. It’s not about predicting but rather about preparing and shaping.
  4. Leverage AI and automation. Let smart tools do the heavy lifting so your team can focus on sense-making and strategy.
  5. Build something you can sustain. Foresight isn’t a one-off project. Make it part of your ongoing rhythm with a platform that supports iteration and growth.

Ready to upgrade your foresight capability?

What these five organizations show is that you don’t need a massive team or budget to take futures thinking seriously. You just need the right approach and the right tools.

At FIBRES, we help teams turn scattered signals into shared intelligence and embed foresight as a continuous practice and source of inspiration and insight throughout the organization. Whether you’re just starting or looking to scale, we can support your next step.

Explore how FIBRES works or book a demo to see how future-ready teams are making it happen.

Let’s shape what’s next—together.