Dubai: As part of its Summit masterclass series which are hosted with the goal of motivating the current and upcoming leadership generations to improve their learning and future planning, the World Government Summit Organization recently organized the “Working with Complex Futures: Scenario Planning” session.
New scenario planning models for complex futures, their influence on governmental decision making, and the significance of acknowledging the signals and trends of today that will determine the future were all among topics which were covered in the Summit masterclass session, which was moderated by Ms. Amy Webb, the founder and chief executive of Future Today Institute.
Mr. Mohamed Yousef AlSharhan, Deputy Managing Director of the World Government Summit Organization observed that the Summit focuses on leveraging cutting-edge technology and government exchange to develop creative solutions for upcoming problems and solidify its position as a global knowledge platform.
Mr. AlSharhan pointed out the significance of future scenario planning for leaders and governments in order to meet future problems and provide a better climate for societies to prosper.
The Deputy Managing Director further stated that for governments to innovate and create solutions that are future focused, they must pose fresh questions about the problems they are facing today.
The UAE is an inspiring example of future foresight, specifically Dubai with its vision to become a global model to design the future through planning for the upcoming challenges. Foresight has to be the foundation part of governments which is what the UAE government is doing.
Ms. Amy Webb remarked during the masterclass.
“Governments need new insights with fresh perspective in order to understand the future, take in better signals and data, and make the scenarios actionable.” Ms. Webb noted.
THE MASTERCLASS
The masterclass focused on important concepts of scenario planning and shaping the future by investigating new and existing trends, predicting changes in the future, and creating a futuristic perspective on molding tomorrow.
The session outlined five factors that prevent governments from coming up with the best solutions to problems, including:
- Experts still work in the traditional way of asking the same question and trying to come with different answers
- Refusing to confront deep-rooted beliefs and convictions
- Using narrow signal data in trying to minimalize sources of studies and reports
- Assuming that today’s circumstances will resemble what governments will face tomorrow and
- Not all governments resort to scenario planning
Moreover, the masterclass stressed on the significance of changing the way governments operate today, given that most continue to prioritize enhancing services over people’s lives and that most experts take a horizontal approach to all problems rather than considering the big picture, as well as changing economic tools.