A word from the Managing Director Mats Lindgren
Dr. Mats Lindgren, Founder, CEO Kairos Future Group
Kairos Future was founded by me and Ivars Jegers in June 1993 for two major reasons. On the one hand we wanted to spend all of our time with questions that fascinated us - and the frontline between futurism and strategic work was where we wanted to be.
Secondly, it was evident to us that the ability to understand and interpret changes in the surrounding world was absolutely crucial for companies and organisations in turbulent environments.
We brought a great deal of experience with us from the corporate world, the public sector and NGOs.
We recognized that these different environments could cross-fertilize to good effect. We had quite different educational backgrounds, yet it was clear to us that the combination of these divergent perspectives could also work in our favour. We had international backgrounds, and we realized how limited much of the debate was on the national arena. We had both worked with strategic questions, trend and scenario analysis, organisational issues and individual development. We had seen how rare it is for the watertight demarcations between these various disciplines to break down. We had worked as entrepreneurs, both in loose "network organisations" and in commando-like corporate structures, and we had seen the advantages and disadvantages of both. We had spent time reflecting, writing, lecturing, problem-solving and working as process consultants.
This was the background to the emergence of the idea of Kairos Future. We wanted a company, not a loose federation of consultants. We wanted to put effort into an integrated diversity of people with different backgrounds but a common focus. We wanted to create a company dedicated to the future without disappearing into the future - a company that worked actively with strategic measures based on a thorough analysis of the world and future. We wanted to create a consulting company that did not work with obscure concepts, but engaged with public debate through public studies, disseminating ideas and giving talks and lectures. In short, we wanted to create an environment in which we could combine ideas with business, training with strategic consultancy, technology with humanities. And, above all, to tackle serious tasks with a sense of energy and zest.
Since then, a lot of water has passed under the bridge. The world today is considerably different from the early 1990s. As a company we have developed – not painlessly – from the small group of friends that started it, into the company as it is today with almost 40 brains and a network of international partners. In the same period we have become the leading player in our niche market: tackling questions that spring up in the frontline where the future meets a need for strategy. In later years, many other companies have set up in the same niche. This gives us a great deal of pleasure and confirms our feeling that we are heading in the right direction. It also motivates us to keep evolving into the future.
Over the last four or five years we have developed several new concepts such as Kairos Agora that consists of several knowledge networks focused on the future of consumers and marketing, the future of leadership and organisations, general futures and the future of tourism and experiences. We are also establishing international communities of partners and experts to enhance our position globally.
We have published books for an international market, among others Scenario planning - the link between future and strategy and The MeWe Generation, that have received a lot of attention. During the fall of 2005, we have moved forward with the study European Youth, establishing a network of research associates and launching several projects on new markets.
Furthermore, we have launched a successful concept that supports organisations in their ambitions to integrate strategic business intelligence and trend analysis with business development, innovation and planning.
The biggest challenge for companies today is not getting their hands on crucial information. The real challenge is to draw a speculative map - to understand driving forces and repercussions in the shape of conceivable futures - and to develop visions and strategies to fully exploit and benefit from those changes.
Welcome to Kairos Future!
