Ford futurist: ‘Imagine a future that is unimaginable'

Henry Ford once said: If I asked consumers what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.

Sheryl Connelly drew a connection to Ford and how the car company that bears his name approaches doing business in the future, using the quote to reflect on the creativity and imagination to create automobiles, yet defying what the public thinks it wants.

It's incumbent to try and imagine a future that is unimaginable, Connelly said.

Connelly reflected on the worldwide trends she sees as a futurist for Ford Motor Co. at a luncheon Monday with the Livonia Public Schools Foundation at St. Mary's Cultural and Banquet Center.

The event was a benefit for the LPS Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides financial support to Livonia Public Schools for innovative programs and services.

Connelly said officials at businesses can study market sales time and time again, yet the difficulty in predicting world events presents unimaginable challenges to firms. For innovations, people need to look for wild cards, expect the unexpected, and learn to build products that are practical and follow trends. Prepare for all scenarios, she said. You have to write a story with great optimism, but if you do that, you also have to write one of great collapse, Connelly said.

Global trends are crucial, including environmental, economic and political ones, Connelly said. Population and demographic shifts are trends that need to be examined and studied, Connelly said.

Connelly showed a map reflecting population growth. The borders of countries and continents experiencing larger growth were expanded, while others with small growth shrunk.

U.S., Canada populations shrinking

The map showed a smaller United States and an even smaller Canada, while Asia and the Middle East appeared much larger. The growth appears in nations that are least able to handle it, Connelly said.

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Ford futurist: ‘Imagine a future that is unimaginable'