Future Search: Getting the Whole System in the Room for Vision, Commitment, and Action

The latest edition of the classic, definitive book on a change method proven effective worldwide Thoroughly revised and updated, with nine new chapters Provides a wealth of tools, handouts, and other practical aids Future Search is one of the best established, most widespread and most effective methods for enabling groups of people to collectively move forward. It has been used all over the world for all kinds of purposes: to redesign an IKEA product line in Sweden,… (more)

The latest edition of the classic, definitive book on a change method proven effective worldwide Thoroughly revised and updated, with nine new chapters Provides a wealth of tools, handouts, and other practical aids Future Search is one of the best established, most widespread and most effective methods for enabling groups of people to collectively move forward. It has been used all over the world for all kinds of purposes: to redesign an IKEA product line in Sweden, develop an integrated economic development plan in Northern Ireland, organize the demobilization child soldiers in Southern Sudan, and help a Hawaiian community reconnect with traditional values, This book, written by the originators of the process, is the most up-to-date edition of the definitive work on this powerful change method. Incorporating input from the worldwide Future Search community, the third edition has been completely revised, reorganized and updated, including nine brand new chapters. There are new cases and examples throughout, as well as new material on using virtual technologies to hold Future Searches, combining Future Search with other change methods, and the growing global reach of Future Search. Marvin Weisbord and Sandra Janoff have greatly streamlined the process, providing specific guidance for Future Search sponsors, steering committees, participants, and facilitators, and new suggestions for how to sustain action after the Future Search is over. They've added information on the economic benefits of a Future Search, striking evidence of Future Search's efficacy, information how Future Searches can go green, and more. Future Search uniquely enables people to take down the walls that keep them apart, and Weisbord and Janoff take you through every step of the process. They include a wealth of resources such as handouts, sample client workbooks, follow-up reports, and other practical tools. If you want to do strategic planning, product innovation, quality improvement, organizational restructuring, or any other major change in a participative, whole system way, this book is your guide.