The aptly titled Foresight & Trends conference wrapped up its first day today. Held at the beautiful SLS Beverly Hills, it's no surprise that the overarching pattern on day one of Foresight & Trends 2014 seemed to be holistic well-being. Shining this theme through a completely fresh lens was Patti Streeper, Vice President of Corporate Innovation & General Manager at Hallmark. Patti discussed the pervasiveness of well-being, specifically in today's information age, and the difference between timely desires, and timeless needs. In a similar vein was Olesya Govorun's discussion on 'Why vs. What.' Armed with her PhD in Social Psychology and experience as the Senior Manager of Strategy and Insights at Dannon, Govorun took the audience through her three surprising findings regarding "wellness" and what it means to consumers.
As the day continued on, the shift focused toward wellness in the workplace. Gregory Burdulis, self-professed 21st-century monk, discussed the importance of corporate mindfulnesss (and, meditation), while the Trend Hunter team -- President Shelby Walsh, Senior Editor and Research Advisor Armida Ascano and Research Advisor Courtney Scharf -- capped off the day with a workshop on how to remain your best mentally despite chaos, ditch complacency and make better choices, faster.
Foresight and Trends: The First Day of the Visionary Conference Comes to a Close -
Foresight And Trends 2014
Trend Themes
1. Holistic Well-being - Disruptive innovation opportunities lie in developing products and services that address all aspects of well-being - physical, mental, and emotional.
2. Wellness in the Workplace - Opportunities for disruptive innovation arise in creating workplace environments and practices that prioritize employee well-being and mindfulness.
3. Timely Desires Vs. Timeless Needs - Innovation opportunities exist in finding ways to differentiate between temporary trends and long-lasting consumer needs for well-being, and developing relevant products accordingly.
Industry Implications
1. Health and Wellness - The health and wellness industry can capitalize on the trend of holistic well-being by creating innovative products, services, and experiences.
2. Human Resources - The human resources industry can embrace the trend of wellness in the workplace by offering programs and solutions that prioritize employee well-being and mindfulness.
3. Consumer Goods - The consumer goods industry can leverage the understanding of timely desires and timeless needs in the wellness space to develop sustainable and desirable products.