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Price: $27.95    $22.36
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ISBN 9781576754405
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Amazon Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review to be helpful:

An excellent roadmap to help you stay ahead of the curve,  February 11, 2009

By Rebecca Clement

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 to be helpful:

Prepare for the future! "Get There Early",  November 24, 2008

By Alan Edward Yue

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 to be helpful:

An excellent account, GET THERE EARLY is perfect for business collections,  October 17, 2007

By Midwest Book Review


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





5 of 9 people found the following review to be helpful:

How to use future forecasting,  July 26, 2007

By kitode

This is a very readable book that demystifies "futurism" while simultaneously explaining how foresight work focused 10, 20, or even 50 years into the future can be indispensably helpful to organizations, whether profit-based or with other missions.

Inside the book jacket is an actual Map of the Future, which is explained in detail in the text.

If you're responsible for strategy or innovation, this is one of those few books that is undeniably worth the investment.


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Full disclosure: I'm affiliated with Institute for the Future, and know Bob.





0 of 1 people found the following review to be helpful:

late arrival,  March 29, 2010

By Mary Motyka

The book was fine but it took forever for it to arrive and therefore I didn't have the book in time for spring break to read it, so I had to go get a library book instead. What a waste of money.







GET THERE EARLY
Sensing the Future to Compete in the Present

• Offers a proven approach for making sense out of future challenges and devising positive responses, using methods developed by the respected Institute for the Future

• Features examples of how organizations like Procter & Gamble, Disney, Reuters, UPS, and the Centers for Disease Control have put the approach into practice

• Includes the institute’s ten-year forecast of trends, challenges, and opportunities

These days, every leader struggles with a paradox: you can’t predict the future, but you have to be able to make sense of it to thrive. In the age of the Internet, everyone knows what’s new, but to succeed you have to be able to sort out what’s important, devise strategies based on your own point of view, and get there ahead of the crowd.

Bob Johansen shares techniques the Institute for the Future has been refining for nearly forty years to help leaders navigate what, borrowing a term from the Army War College, he calls the VUCA world: a world characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. As the institute’s ten-year forecast makes clear, leaders now face fewer problems with neat solutions and more dilemmas: recurring, complex, messy, and puzzling situations. Get There Early lays out the institute’s three-step Foresight to Insight to Action Cycle that will allow readers to sense, make sense of, and win with dilemmas. Johansen offers specific techniques, ranging from storytelling to simulation gaming, as well as real-world examples to help readers turn the VUCA world on its head through creative use of vision, understanding, clarity, and agility. This book offers hope for leaders facing the constant tension—a dilemma in itself—between judging too soon and deciding too late.