Situation normal all futured up (SNAFU) with Sanjay Khanna

PodcastJune 14, 2021
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Because the timeframes are collapsing, there’s less time to do more and more things. You need the foresighting piece, but you also need the behavioral science to understand how to help people perform in a more constrained and likely higher stress environment.

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Intro

In this episode of The Decision Corner, Brooke is joined by Sanjay Khanna: strategic advisor, foresight expert, and one of the lead authors on The Decision Lab’s joint report with the Boston Consulting Group. Sanjay’s job is to be ahead of the curve on wide-ranging issues, whether they be geopolitical, socioeconomic, sociocultural, psychosocial, technological, or ecological. This has led him to have a unique and interesting career, with his evidence-based insights informing scholarship, innovation and foresight practice at a global law firm, numerous businesses, governments and NGOs, including a senior advisor to Biden’s transition team. Drawing on his knowledge, this conversation focuses on issues such as converging crises, how to model plausible future scenarios, and how behavioral science can help us understand the future. 

Some topics discussed include: 

  • How we build robust and plausible scenarios of a future that hasn’t happened yet
  • Transforming robust scenarios into action
  • How we can mobilize organizations to solve the biggest problems
  • The intricate ties between decision-making and navigating our uncertain future
  • The “500 year company” and what contributes to an organization’s ability to withstand crises 
  • Cognitive diversity and foresight: Why who you hire will help you handle future crises
  • The biggest roadblocks that are holding the foresight approach back

About the Guest

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Sanjay Khanna

Sanjay Khanna is a strategic advisor and foresight expert. Previously the futurist at global law firm Baker McKenzie, today Sanjay works with leading organizations to illuminate risks and opportunities associated with the converging crises of geopolitical fragmentation, socioeconomic reordering, population health issues, technological acceleration, environmental and climate change. The Financial Times, the Globe and Mail, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, among other media outlets, have featured Sanjay’s wide-ranging insights on twenty-first century change in their publications.

About the Interviewer

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Dr. Brooke Struck

Dr. Brooke Struck is the Research Director at The Decision Lab. He is an internationally recognized voice in applied behavioural science, representing TDL’s work in outlets such as Forbes, Vox, Huffington Post and Bloomberg, as well as Canadian venues such as the Globe & Mail, CBC and Global Media. Dr. Struck hosts TDL’s podcast “The Decision Corner” and speaks regularly to practicing professionals in industries from finance to health & wellbeing to tech & AI.

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