Recent research in the field of business strategy has shown that strategic flexibility can be achieved through a scenario planning perspective for long-term competition and performance. The authors have drawn upon examples and case studies to develop a new model for scenario planning that is closely integrated with strategy and innovation.
If you’re new to the area of future thinking and scenario planning, this book is definitely a great place to start. Not only does it provide a sufficiently detailed context of scenario planning which you’ll be able to use as a framework for further explorations on the topic, it also includes a lot of practical tools carefully described so you can immediately apply them for the right purpose the right way.
As the introduction mentions, you can start reading this book in any of the 5 chapters. However if you’re mainly interested in the tools and methods included in the annex, I would recommend to start by reading chapters 4 and 5 explaining the principles behind scenario thinking and strategic thinking. It’s only 30 pages, and these 14 principles will help you interpret the tools with the appropriate mindset to apply them correctly.
Chapter 2 and 3 explain clearly how you could go through a complete scenario planning project using the TAIDA framework. Each step is explained thoroughly to allow the reader to have a good understanding of each step of the process and which tools to use when.
The book strikes a good balance between theory and practice which makes it a practical manual to be referred to frequently during a scenario planning project.
I should have quit when the authors coined their own jargon, "raplex" to add to the other corporate jargon littering the pages. Although this guide us some good use, especially with the shorthand listing of methods in the first appendix, there are better introductions and explorations of scenario planning.