McCann

Since 2017 we have worked with McCann on dozens of projects, using innovative primary and secondary data analysis and storytelling to create compelling though leadership reports. Topics covered include the future of education, the role of protectionism in shaping the geopolitical and economic climate, the importance of organisational and supply chain resilience, health and wellbeing at work and the transition to Net Zero.

This work has involved both global and UK-based analysis, and featured contributions from industry experts around the world.

Department for International Trade – The Future Impact of Digital on Trade

New digital technologies – from artificial intelligence to blockchain – could have an enormous impact on what the UK trades, who the UK trades with and how that trade is done. We were commissioned by the Department for International Trade to conduct horizon scanning to explore the impact a suite of technologies could have on the landscape of trade.

In addition to digital technologies, our work also considered wider trends in geopolitics, demographics and economies as these have crucial interplay with both trade and technology. The results of our work were delivered to the Department for Trade in a workshop and confidential report at the end of 2019.

Vodafone – Loneliness 2030

In 2020, while the pandemic and lockdowns were giving us all a taste of social isolation, we worked on a long term scenario planning project with Vodafone exploring what the future of loneliness might be in the UK.

Drawing on detailed trends analysis and expert interviews, the report details the drivers of loneliness and social isolation and outlines three possible future scenarios for the UK, including implications for the public, private and third sector on how we can avoid the darker path to increasing loneliness and instead make progress after the pandemic. Our report was published in December 2020 and is available here.

Macmillan Cancer Support – The Experience of People Living with Cancer in 2035

We worked with Macmillan to develop detailed scenarios describing the possible lived experiences of people living with cancer in the middle of the next decade. These long-term forecasts considered a wide range of possible trends or disruptors – including medical advances, the role of predictive risk, socio-demographic and economic changes and the landscape for charitable giving and doing good.

The scenarios and their implications were informed by detailed discussions with experts from a range of fields, and Macmillan’s own senior stakeholders. The final report, which included detailed scenarios, recommendations for Macmillan and ‘day in the life’ pen portraits to bring the narratives to life, was completed in 2020.

Sport England – Horizon Scanning for Strategy

In 2020 we were appointed, through public tender, to support the development of Sport England’s future strategy through Horizon Scanning. As they considered their future strategic framework, Sport England needed to ensure that their aims were aligned with and informed by likely future developments, including those driven by the pandemic.

Through and iterative and consultative process we identified 15 key trends that would be crucial to shaping the future of sport and physical activity, and Sport England’s role within it. These trends were explored in depth, with their future trajectory informed by rigorous analysis and interviews with experts. Our Horizon Scanning work concluded with the development of a detailed report as well as briefer, high level outputs. Sport England’s new strategy, Uniting the Movement, was published in 2022.

Brown Forman – Trends Review

As vaccines allowed organisations to consider a longer term, post-pandemic future, Trajectory were commissioned by Brown-Forman to review their UK trends – evaluating how the pandemic had changed their direction and trajectory. Were they still relevant? Had they changed – and how? Our team conducted an in depth review of the trends, drawing on internal Brown-Forman insight, stakeholder interviews and wider analysis to deliver a review of the trends, identifying what had – and hadn’t changed – and updating implications for the next decade accordingly.

The results were delivered at a detailed workshop. Following the conclusion of this project, Trajectory were delighted to complete a similar exercise for the European Trends, and have subsequently worked with Brown-Forman on other projects examining changing trends in consumer behaviour.

British Council – The Future of International Cultural Relations

In 2021 we were selected to lead a long term futures project for the British Council, exploring the future of international cultural relations. Our team worked closely with the British Council to explore national and global trends in geopolitics, technology, demographics, culture and economics and create a range of scenarios that describe plausible, possible futures for cultural relations and soft power in the mid-2030s. These considered both the global picture and the UK’s post-Brexit, post-pandemic role within it.

Our work for the British Council was a huge success. Following the completion of this project we have worked with the British Council on several subsequent projects, including global scenarios on the future of International Tertiary Education.

WRAP

Segmentation to inform the Love Food Hate Waste campaign

WRAP’s Love Food Hate Waste campaign helps UK consumers reduce their food waste. The reasons for food waste are many and complex and vary massively by household. This means that segmenting the target audience is essential to maximise the campaign’s effectiveness. We worked closely with the various teams at WRAP to create a segmentation that met their requirements for both rigour and practical application.

Waitrose

Understanding the impact of the recession to inform the launch of ‘Waitrose Essentials’ range

As the credit crunch turned into full blown consumer recession in the early part of this decade, retailers (especially premium retailers) needed to respond strategically without undermining their brands. The work we conducted for Waitrose on consumer responses to the recession was used to inform the incredibly successful launch of the Waitrose Essentials range which, as forecast, continues to be a great hit as recovery takes hold.

United Nations World Tourism Organisation

Blending econometric modelling and qualitative methods to create global industry forecasts

The UNWTO produces the travel and tourism industry’s most authoritative forecasts of global tourism flows. When it came to producing the forecasts for 2030, the UNWTO asked Trajectory to assist them with the modelling and forecasting. This was an ideal opportunity for us to showcase our unique approach that blends different quantitative and qualitative methodologies and generate forecasts that can be relied upon by the whole travel and tourism sector http://media.unwto.org/sites/all/files/pdf/unwto_2030_ga_2011_korea.pdf 

Royal London

Ground-breaking research to understand the impact of bereavement on household finances

Working in association with Dying Matters (part of the National Council for Palliative Care) we conducted ground-breaking qualitative and quantitative research with people recently bereaved by the loss of their partner. This research made major breakthroughs in understanding the financial consequences of the death of a partner and identified the benefits of discussing and planning for the financial consequences of bereavement.

We have also undertaken a wide variety of other work with Royal London, particularly assisting in the development of product propositions that meet the financial needs of the Over 50s audience.

Greene King

Identifying the trends driving out of home leisure to inform strategy and concept development

We conducted an extensive horizon scanning exercise to understand the long term drivers of out of home leisure. Working closely with the relevant Board Directors at Greene King, among other things, our work was used to develop new bar and restaurant concepts.

We also support Greene King in providing analysis and commentary for the monthly Greene King Leisure Spending Tracker