"Innovation happens when we are faced with challenging situations" -Jordan Waid, PRECOG Futurity Lab

by  Mugdha Gaonkar Business Events | September 2, 2020 | Interview

PRECOG Futurity Lab Futurist Initiation Program EVENTFAQS Media

EVENTFAQS Media in collaboration with PRECOG Futurity Labs has announced the Futurist Initiation Program – a workshop to build the foundation of becoming a ‘thought-caster’ in the world of digitally powered experiential communication. The workshop will be hosted online from 16^th to 19^th September by the Founder of PRECOG Report and PRECOG Futurity Labs, Jordan Waid.

In this Waid, tells us more about the association with EVENTFAQS, virtual event technology, trends and benefits of the topics that will be covered in the workshop.

EVENTFAQS Media presents PRECOG Futurity Labs is an Experiential Futurist Initiation Program. Tell us how did the association come along & details about the same?

Five years ago, I spoke at the WOW Awards Asia where I talked about the FXP TREND LAB and the top 10 trends effecting the industry, additionally I ran TREND LAB workshops for the participants and took part in one of the panel discussions.  I have always stayed in touch with the founders and discussed my latest workshops the PRECOG FUTURITY Labs. Vishal (Nagdev) and I thought this would be the perfect partnership to offer to the wider market in the form of initiation program for those interested in becoming an Experiential Futurist.

How was the idea of The PRECOG Futurity Labs conceived? What prompted it?

For over 15 years, I have tracked emerging trends, cultural happenings and curiosity signals for my intelligence reports and workshops. Part of my research comes in reviewing over 1000 articles a week, which I narrow down to a final 10 headlines I share in my PRECOG REPORT - which can be found here: https://gum.co/BJmji

The PRECOG Futurity Labs was the natural next step as it triangulates my passion for design thinking workshops, the PRECOG Report and thought-casting future scenario design. 

Has the COVID-19 crisis accelerated adoption of technology by the live event industry? Could you name some new adoptions?

Yes and this has affected not just the event industry but beyond.  This is such a true global paradigm shift that is incomprehensibly unprecedented.  It has made everyone aware of how interconnected we are and what happens when the cultural blockchain is disrupted. The event industry is based on cultural needs and it is amazing to see how responsive it and the related industries are with the rapid adoption of existing technologies and development of next-gen tech.

Tech already existed for video meetings where participants were in remote locations, now it is a necessity, it is the new way of communication, as it is the new office.

F2F tech like Zoom, Airmeet, Teams, Remo, FaceTime and more have gone from occasional use to a daily necessity.

Workflow and online collaboration tech like Slack, Teamwork, Mural, Miro, Padlet is no longer an option, it is how we do things.

This has made us aware of how important face-to-face communication and team collaboration is in the current times. 

Name the different topics that will be covered in the workshop? How will it benefit the viewer?

We will explore new tools and ways of collaborating on-line, which we can immediately apply to our teams and clients. Moreover, we will begin to understand some of the nuances of online engagement psychology and the dynamics of virtual events and digital experiences.  We will also examine emerging trends and look at how they impact the industry and learn how to apply pattern recognition for prediction design, thought-casting, scenario building and the science fictioning of near commercial reality and precognitive solutions.

Which are the trends / new norms that are likely to stay beyond the pandemic?

REMOTE WORKING! There were many who doubted us, however we are seeing a real change and acceptance that work can go on and people can be productive with an effective work/life balance.  Other trends which will evolve are - new ways of traveling, new cultures and etiquette that will be locale specific, new ways of participating in live experiences and above all, tech will evolve.  Right now, we are at the beginning of VR, similar to where the iPod was when it first launched in 2001 (heavy, clunky, part analog, very pricy - yet amazingly cool and game changing). 

Virtual events are the new in-thing. How will the PRECOG Experiential Futurist Initiation Program spur growth in the Tech space?

It opens your mind to possibility that will inspire new ways of thinking and looking at the world. This will begin to set us on the paths of early adopters, innovators and mavericks.  Innovation happens when we are faced with challenging situations - just take a look at what came out of tech space after the 2008 crash: Uber, Pintrest, Instagram, WhatsApp and Slack. I am excited to see who and what will be next. 

Here's the schedule for the workshop -

Day 1: ‪16th Sept‬ - Agency Owners with 10+ years experience 
Day 2: ‪17th Sept‬ - Brand Marketers 
Day 3: ‪18th Sept‬ - Open to All
Day 4: ‪19th Sept‬ - Open to All

Time: 2:30 PM - 5:30 PM IST (3 Hours Per Day)
Cost: INR 6,000/- + GST per day

Limited Spots | Register NOW! 
https://tinyurl.com/PRECOGFuturityLabs