The world around us is changing rapidly. Those who miss out on changes and trends wake up in horror.
Strategy and innovation rarely improve if you wait too long. On the contrary: strategy and innovation require a keen eye for trends and changes as well as a team that is ready to take the next step.
Using trends as orientation
New technologies, changing customer needs, social upheavals: trends are everywhere. Trends provide orientation, reveal potential and also risks. But if you just wait for a trend to become apparent, you lose valuable time. A spontaneous ad-hoc reaction to changes in the market is rarely promising. Successful companies rely on a systematic view of the future.
With methods such as foresight or scouting, it is possible to look ahead. Scouting means looking with open eyes for trends in markets, industries and societies in order to recognize changes at an early stage. It involves a structured search for trends that can be strategically evaluated and utilized instead of being left to chance. Strategic planning included. In short: discovering and understanding trends is what makes forward-looking planning possible in the first place.
A plan shows the way
Forward planning is essential to drive innovation. How often have you been sent "the latest trends" with the quick comment "fyi" from a colleague? Or walked out of a brainstorming session without a concrete next step being defined? Without a systematic approach and strategic anchoring, such valuable impulses fall asleep. To prevent this from happening, a systematic approach is needed here too. Checks and decision bases help here: Is the trend relevant for our industry? Does the trend fit in with our strategy? Are we taking a risk if we don't follow the trend? Recognizing trends is the first step, translating trends for your own business is the relevant step. The decisive factor is to translate it into your own business model and implement clear measures.
Awaken the spirit of innovation & provoke coincidences
Innovation is not a buzzword, innovation is the DNA of successful companies. Questioning, taking risks, being courageous. Employees must not only recognize trends and opportunities, but also be able to implement them in their day-to-day work. However, employees often lack the right tools or the right mindset to use trends correctly and break new ground. How do you awaken the scout in you? Tools for trend scouting are important, but one factor is particularly important: curiosity. If you are curious, you don't wait for chance - you create it. Chance is then a point that arouses curiosity. The curious person sees a trend and asks: What if? The curious person brings a breath of fresh air that shakes up the business. To encourage this spirit of innovation, you need: a systematic approach, i.e. a process that accompanies ideas from initial recognition to implementation; tools for trend analysis and evaluation; and space for curiosity, i.e. time and freedom to develop new approaches and creative solutions.
Set your alarm clock and get into the innovation routine!
Companies that work with trends are able to discover new business opportunities earlier than the competition. They avoid the risks that can arise from disruptive changes. Companies that look to the future develop a culture of openness that encourages creativity and the courage to change.
The key lies in the balance between strategic planning and the ability to react flexibly to new developments. Those who manage innovation instead of hoping for chance secure a decisive advantage - and do not oversleep the future.
With our practical book Trends, we want to support you in discovering trends and thus new business opportunities at an early stage, analyzing them and integrating them into your company in a meaningful way.
It presents and analyzes 26 social, economic and technological developments and trends with a focus on German SMEs.
Guided by methods such as checklists and trend canvas, we take a strategic approach. This allows us to identify what is really relevant for you and directly set out further process steps for implementation.
Use our practical book to plan your strategy and business optimizations simply and with guidance in the shortest possible time. The book is now available in our online store and in bookshops.
