Memories of the Future: Exploring Scenarios About the Future of HR

In the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008 the global recession of 2009, a large and diverse series of forces are at work shaping the future of work and employment. The confluence of these forces has a significant impact on the future of organizations and the role of leaders and managers, setting the stage for a new climate in which HR has to operate.

Many firms are fighting for their very survival as they struggle to come to grips with an uncertain future.  Emerging from the current state of the global economy, the well prepared and positioned firms will find opportunities for pursuing growth strategies and increasing scale. Ill-prepared firms will cease to exist.

The challenges facing HR leaders are to identify trends and uncertainties that will likely shape the future and to act on these in partnership with members of the management team to prepare firms for success.

V. Michael Mavaddat is a co-founder and Executive Vice President at Decision Strategies International, Inc. (DSI) a management consultancy, executive education and software firm focused on helping clients prepare for and profit from uncertainty and disruptive change and a Senior Fellow at the Mack Center for Technological Innovation at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He was Managing Director and Head of Consulting Services prior to assuming firm-wide responsibility for innovation and renewal at DSI. During his consulting career, Mr. Mavaddat has helped clients develop and implement strategies for managing uncertainty, innovation and emerging technologies. His focus is on developing actionable solutions that draw upon leading edge research and his own expertise in scenario planning, strategy, managing innovation, and behavioral decision theory. He has been a consultant and advisor to numerous organizations across various industries. His clients include 3Com Corporation, Abbott Laboratories, Astra Zeneca, AAHSA, Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Bristol-Myers Squibb, CASE Corporation, Chase, Ciba-Geigy (Novartis), Cornell University, Credit Union Executives Society, Defense Logistics Agency, DuPont, Eli Lilly, Endurance,  Filene Institute, Genentech, General Chemical, Glaxo Smithkline Beecham, , LIMRA International, Microsoft Corporation, Memorial Sloan Kettering, Merrill Lynch, National Grid (UK), New York Life, Pfizer, Progress Software, Siemens, Unocal, UNFCU, UNUM, US Army Corps of Engineers, Wells Fargo, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals.

Once registered, you will receive two links to preparation materials for this presentation:

• a two-question survey from which responses will be used during the presentation, and
• an article entitled "Disciplined Imagination"

We request you engage with these materials to get the most from the presentation.