The text discusses the concept of future shock, which refers to the overwhelming psychological and systemic effects of rapid technological change. It highlights Alvin Toffler’s book, “Future Shock,” published in 1970, which explores the remedies for future shock. Toffler emphasizes the need for management practices that enable continual adaptation in fast-changing environments. The text also delves into the broader critique of how societies and economies cope with complex systems. It suggests the importance of creating a system of governance that anticipates the future and allows for reflection and course correction. Lastly, it mentions the relevance of agile management practices and the potential integration of user-centered practices in public services.
| Signal | Change | 10y horizon | Driving force |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rapid technological change causing societal motion sickness | From adapting to change to losing control | More adoption of agile management practices | The need for continual adaptation in fast-changing environments |
| Need for change in management practices | From old-school corporations to agile methods | Greater adoption of contemporary management practices | Increasingly unstable environment and need for rapid feedback |
| Critique of how we govern in complex systems | From narrow technocratic apparatus to broader system of governance | Development of a post-technocratic social intelligence system | Better anticipation of the future and reflection on societal direction |
| Importance of anticipating and imagining different futures | From lack of utopian ideas to collaborative utopianism | Development of imagination infrastructures and democratic reform | Filling the gap of expressing ideas about the future |
| New forms of democracy needed in a high technology society | From traditional democracy to new information systems | Reimagining democracy in a high technology society | AI’s impact on the pace and complexity of change |
| Adoption of participatory and iterative practices in public services | From traditional practices to user-centered and participatory approaches | Public services run in a participatory and iterative manner | Integration of democratic principles with agile management practices |