Researching the future 

It has been said that there are ‘no facts about the future’ so Synthesys' field of research is in effect whatever is changing in the present, plus everything that can be theorized or inferred about the nature and direction of future change. 

This involves a multi-faceted set of skills and activities, brought together in combinations best suited to particular types of problem. These skills span the key dimensions of engaging with the future, including: contextual research, deep listening, system mapping, creative exploration, participatory interaction and organizational learning. 

Sometimes the results are best communicated by simply painting a picture of the future, and sometimes by directly pointing the way ahead. Either way the aim is to align strategy with the most powerful potentials for the future.