Get There Early: Sensing the Future to Compete in the Present (Hardcover)

~ Bob Johansen (Author)
Key Phrases: flexible firms, action workshop, corporate athlete, Action Cycle, United States, Pal Mickey (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

It's the ultimate paradox for leaders: you can't predict the future, but you must make sense of it in order to thrive. To be successful, leaders need to sort out what's important, devise strategies based on their own point of view, and get there ahead of the crowd. But most leaders today are just concerned about getting there in time. Many are even willing to settle for getting there fashionably late. They focus on quick-fix problems, avoiding the kinds long-term of dilemmas that will characterize the future. But as Institute for the Future's ten-year forecast--which is included in the book--makes clear, today's leaders face more and more dilemmas: recurring, complex, messy, and puzzling.

Bob Johansen shares techniques refined over nearly forty years by the Institute of the Future to help you navigate your own organization's road to the future. He details real-world examples of how organizations like Procter & Gamble, Disney, Reuters, UPS, and the Centers for Disease Control have put these approaches into practice.

Through fascinating and illustrative examples--including the Toyota Prius, the iPod, Crest Toothpaste, and many more--he shows that getting there early means finding new markets, new customers, and new products ahead of your competitors. It means anticipating the needs of your stakeholders. It means you'll be able to establish a position before your late-arriving competitors even have a chance to organize. It helps you think through what might happen and what should happen. It gives you time to consider alternative strategies. Ultimately, getting there early helps you see beyond the problems of the present and recognize possible futures before others do.

Get There Early lays out the Institute's three-step Foresight to Insight to Action Cycle that allows you to sense, make sense of, and win when faced with dilemmas. Johansen offers hope for leaders facing the constant tension--a dilemma in itself--between judging too soon and deciding too late.

From the Publisher

"No one can guide leaders from every sector through the challenges of a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world like Bob Johansen! As one of our leading thinkers, he offers insights, advice and practical steps we can use to anticipate the future."
--Robert Ivany, Former Commandant, US Army War College; current President, University of St. Thomas

"Get There Early is an indispensable new book for today's business leaders. We at Procter & Gamble having been working with IFTF and Johansen for many years, and have found their forecasts of the future and the process of taking these to action extremely helpful."
--Robert McDonald, Vice Chairman for Global Operations, The Procter & Gamble Company

"'Foresight to Insight' has been extremely valuable to inform and provoke the Campbell's s strategy. We worked with Johansen and IFTF to identify the Driving Forces and Impact Areas through a ten-year lens. The map we created will continue to influence how we lead and deliver on our mission to `nourish people's lives everywhere, everyday.'"
--Denise M. Morrison, President, Campbell USA

"Johansen's methodology of using foresight to stimulate insight is a starting point for understanding the effects of current demographic shifts on tomorrow's world."
--David E. Hayes-Bautista, Professor of Medicine, UCLA, and author of La Nueva California: Latinos in the Golden State

"Charities seek to make the world a better place. Get There Early is essential reading for us, since it teaches the why, what, and how in one source. If we don't get there early, we probably won't get there at all."
--Stephen Bennett, President and CEO, United Cerebral Palsy

"Johansen demystifies the proven tools of forecasting so they're accessible to everyone. Get There Early is a DIY handbook for anyone curious about the future."
--David Pescovitz, Co-Editor, BoingBoing.net; Editor-at-Large, MAKE; and Contributing Writer, Wired

"A masterful book, full of professional and personal wisdom and great examples every step of the way to getting you there first. If you are leading or hoping to lead in today's world, this is the stuff you don't get in school--but must have to compete."
--Bradley A. Perkins, MD, MBA, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 258 pages
• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers; illustrated edition edition (August 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576754405
• ISBN-13: 978-1576754405
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #57,632 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent roadmap to help you stay ahead of the curve, February 11, 2009

By	Rebecca Clement "Publisher, Soundview Executi... (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

Whether you work at a corporation, non-for-profit or government agency, one of the biggest challenges facing any organization is planning for the future. At the heart of the planning process is educational guessing, which is most commonly known as forecasting. In his book Get There Early, Bob Johansen, former president and CEO of the Institute for the Future (IFTF), - (yes, such an organization does exist) - shares tactics developed at the IFTF to help organizations plot a future-road map. To that end, the book outlines five key drivers that establish the foundational context for what Johansen calls the "10-Year Forecast" that he believes will ultimately impact all of us. Additionally, the author uses examples from Apple, Wal-Mart, IBM and Disney to showcase how these organizations continue to stake claims far ahead of their competitors - recognizing future challenges and opportunities before others. Soundview recommends this book because of the compelling value it places on the process of forecasting itself, not necessarily the outcomes. Basically, a forecast doesn't have to be spot on to add value to an organization. The mere exercise of organizational hypothesizing can generate new strategies, approaches to problems and powerful insights. We predict you will like this book!

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Prepare for the future! "Get There Early", November 24, 2008

By	Alan Edward Yue (Honolulu, HI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

We cannot predict the future, but we can prepare for and possibly shape the outcomes. This is a really great book that conveys a process of "Foresight to Insight to Action" to make sense of, and to address possible futures. Further discussion about gleaning Vision, Understanding, Clarity, and Agility in a world that is Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous is also helpful. Finally, an exploration of the difference between "problem solving" and "dilemma sense-making" is a key concept for a shift in thinking in how to mangage through the challenges that face us today, and in the future.

This book is very useful for those who must think strategically to lead their organizations. I have benefitted both personally and professionaly from the content of this book.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent account, GET THERE EARLY is perfect for business collections, October 17, 2007

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

GET THERE EARLY: SENSING THE FUTURE TO COMPETE IN THE PRESENT provides a survey of techniques developed by the Institute for the Future, which has been refining such ideas for nearly forty years. It develops the Institute's three-step Foresight to Insight to Action cycle that allows readers to understand and navigate the world of dilemmas and problems, using simulation gaming and real-world problems to encourage innovative thinking and strategies. An excellent account, GET THERE EARLY is perfect for business collections appealing to business and community leaders.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch