Congratulations on your new Trend Cards.
The Trend Cards are a core tool in Trend Management workshops and foresight work. Each Card represents a building block of the future and can be used in multiple ways, some of which you can read about below.
What are Trend Cards
The Kjaer Global Trend Cards are a set of future drivers and current forces shaping tomorrow’s world. The toolkit is versatile and adaptable to all foresight projects, from large-scale strategies to everyday conversations that need a future perspective.
For deeper insights and practical uses, Kjaer Global offers workshop. Reach out to learn more or read more about the types of workshops we offer here.
On one side of each card, you will find:
- A visual that conveys the trend mood, either literally or metaphorically.
- An inspiring or thought-provoking quote that captures the trend’s essence.
On the other side, you will find:
- What: Key drivers of the trend with examples
- Why: Why the trend matters and its potential impact
- How: Ways to apply the trend within your organization
- Inspiration: Further exploration pathways
- Supporting illustration: or infographic to validate the trend
- Quick reference guide: to the 4P (People, Planet, Purpose, Performance)
How to PLAY
At Kjaer Global we know that everybody is different, have different needs and different modes of engagement. This is why we offer three levels of serious PLAY that uses the cards and can be used by individuals and teams alike – in workshops or as a solo exercise. Below you will find examples to suit your preferences and level of engagement.
SMALL
Using the cards for quick simple exercises:
SMALL exercises can all be used by smaller groups from 2-6 people. We recommended splitting bigger teams and larger workshops into groups of 5-6 people.
- Consider This Trend – Group Discussion
Who: Groups of 5-6
What: One deck of Trend Cards per group
How: Each participant picks a trend from each dimension, presents it, and the group discusses its relevance to the workshop agenda – this could be e.g. current practices, product development or communication or other strategy.
- Consider This Dimension – Conversation Starter
Who: Groups of 5-6
What: Trend Card deck or a deck split into one dimension per group
How: Each group or person selects one trend from one dimension, then discusses its relevance to the workshop agenda – this could be e.g. current practices, product development or communication or other strategy.
- Consider This Story – Storytelling
Who: Groups of 5-6
What: Trend Card deck per group
How: Each group or person picks a trend from one dimension and discusses its connection to the workshop focus – this could be e.g. current practices, product development or communication or other strategy.
- Time to Think – Flow of Ideas
Who: Individual exercise and contemplation
What: Trend Card deck and optionally, pen and paper
How: Use the cards to spark new ideas or challenge your thinking. Draw one card daily to focus and stimulate creative thinking.
MEDIUM
Workshop and team exercises:
Scenario Building: Divide participants into groups and provide each group with a set of trend cards. Ask them to use these cards as inspiration to construct scenarios depicting possible future worlds based on the trends depicted. Encourage participants to explore various combinations and interactions of the trends to create rich and diverse scenarios.
Trend Analysis Matrix: Create a matrix with axes representing various aspects of society (e.g., economy, technology, environment, politics). Use the trend cards to populate the quadrants within the axes with trends relevant to that aspect. This matrix can help identify potential future developments and their interconnections across different societal or business relevant domains.
Trend Mapping Workshop: Organise a workshop where participants visually map out the relationships between trends, using the trend cards. They can connect related trends and identify feedback loops, tipping points, and potential areas of intervention. This exercise can help uncover underlying dynamics and emergent patterns shaping the future of your business or society. The findings can lead to actionable roadmaps and other strategy initiatives.
Backcasting Exercises: In a backcasting exercise, participants start from a desired future scenario – so you start by having each group ’Dream Big’ to imagine a desired future – and work backward to identify the steps needed to reach that future. Use the trend cards to brainstorm potential pathways and interventions required to achieve the desired future state. This approach can help identify strategic actions and policies to steer society, organisation or businesses toward preferable futures.
Wildcard Integration: Introduce wildcard cards representing unexpected events or disruptions into the mix along with the trend cards. Challenge participants to consider how these wildcards might interact with the trends and influence future trajectories. This exercise can foster creativity and prepare participants to anticipate and adapt to unexpected developments in the future.
LARGE
Full scale Workshops: Combine with Kjaer Global tools
Sample Exercise: Using Trend Cards to create a Trend Compass
Depending on group size, each participant selects 1-3 macro trends – overall society drivers. Discuss and refine the selection, then use the chosen trends to create a Trend Compass using the template. Revise and refine until you are happy with the result, then have a group member present to the workshop.
Do you need help getting started? Contact us to get a quote on a workshop.
Kjaer Global Trend Compass template – use the Trend Cards to build your own
Kjaer Global trend management tools
A comprehensive foresight toolkit
The Trend Cards are part of a larger ecosystem of tools in the Kjaer Global comprehensive set of tools for trend management. These tools are vital to foresight practice. They guide research, analysis, trend mapping, and forecasting – they enable scenario creation, mindset development, and persona building and not least, actionable implementation for strategy. The illustration below gives you an idea of how the tools fit into a typical trend management process.
Toolkit Ecosystem and Process
See how workshops facilitated by Kjaer Global can support any strategy or project here.
How the Trend Cards and The Trend Compass typically fit into a larger foresight project
Download the Trend Compass template
Using the Trend Cards as building blocks
The Trend Cards each represent a macro trend, an overall society driver. They can be used to create a Trend Compass, where a compass typically contains 8 macro trends and 16 micro trends, shaping society. All the trends will impact our future and taking them into account today enables us to act on them with timely and focused strategies. Learn how to work with macro and micro trends combined and how to index trends in a Trend Compass by signing up for our Think, Work an Play like a Futurist course.
Kjaer Global Trend Compass template – use the Trend Cards to build your own
The WORK module takes you through the work of a futurist. We explore practical tools, methodologies and how a diverse range of futurists works. Why investing in tomorrow, today, is key to sustainable performance. How past and present knowledge can help us understand the future.
In PLAY, we bring the skills from module 1 + 2 into action. What are trends and how do you apply them? We explore foresight in action, and how our toolkit and system can be applied in your context. Hands-on learning for anyone who wants to be a practicing futurist.
