Imagining the future: Why leaders need more than vision to succeed with Lisa Kay Solomon

Insights Unlocked

Episode web page: https://bit.ly/4dDbMuy In this thought-provoking episode of Insights Unlocked, Jason Giles sits down with Lisa Kay Solomon—designer in residence at Stanford’s d.school, bestselling author, and strategic foresight expert—to explore how leaders can better prepare for an uncertain and rapidly evolving future.

Lisa shares insights from her 20+ years in scenario planning and design, reflecting on the transformative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and how it highlighted the critical need for imagination, empathy, and long-term thinking in leadership. She discusses the value of futures thinking in education and business, emphasizing how anticipatory leadership, scenario planning, and rapid prototyping can help organizations build resilience and stay ahead of disruption.

Whether you're leading a team, crafting customer experiences, or shaping strategic decisions, this episode will inspire you to stretch your thinking, foster creativity, and embrace your role as a designer of the future.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

• Why the pandemic marked a turning point in how leaders perceive uncertainty

• How imagination is an underdeveloped but essential leadership skill

• Practical tools like futures wheels and scenario planning to anticipate change

• The role of design and prototyping in shaping strategic foresight

• How to nurture a culture that values long-term thinking and experimentation

• Why attention is the new currency in the battle for meaningful innovation

Resources & Links:

• Lisa Kay Solomon on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisakaysolomon/

• Jason Giles on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaygiles/

• Leading like a Futurist course on LinkedIn Learning https://www.linkedin.com/learning/leading-like-a-futurist/you-are-a-futurist

• Harvard Business Review: 5 Pandemic-Era Lessons on Leading Through Change https://hbr.org/2025/03/5-pandemic-era-lessons-on-leading-through-drastic-change?ab=HP-hero-latest-1

• Stanford d.school profile: https://dschool.stanford.edu/directory/lisa-kay-solomon

• Learn more about Insights Unlocked: https://www.usertesting.com/podcast