Nov 3, 2023 | Envision Success Stories
John Werner, Sr. VP & Chief Strategy Officer, Schreiber Foods
“It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you in trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” This statement, often attributed to Mark Twain, has been written on the wall in my office for the past four years. Around that time, Schreiber Foods had implemented a new organizational structure to support a recently developed, long-term growth strategy. Along with my teammates, I had the opportunity to take on new challenges and learn new skills to deliver growth for our company and impact to our communities. At that point, I felt like I had a lot of things figured out in life. Little did I know, when I wrote those words on the wall, the volume of change I was about to face: a pandemic, supply chain shortages, inflation, and more. Click Success with Strategic Foresight.
Nov 3, 2023 | Community Spotlight
Jim Golembeski, board member
I met Michelle Schuler in 2014 when we were organizing what is now the NEW North Digital Alliance. Michelle had taken six years off from her business career to raise her children, and she was ready to reenter the workforce.
As she went through the networking process, Michelle discovered two important realities:
1. Everything was going digital, and
2. There were a lot of high level, professional women who did not know each other.
In addition, only 24% of computer related jobs were held by women. Furthermore, women comprised only 5% of the leadership positions in that growing field. Those facts led to the formation of Women in Technology Wisconsin. Click Women for a Digital Future.
Nov 3, 2023 | Envision Success Stories
Resurrection Envisions the Future of Spiritual Growth
Tony Pichler, Mission Outreach Director, Resurrection Parish
On March 1, 2023, the entire leadership team from Resurrection Catholic Parish attended Envision’s World Futures Day at the KI Center in downtown Green Bay. Our minds were stretched as we learned more about artificial intelligence, bots that can create a speech and so much more, and other futuristic changes that were predicted on the Jetsons cartoon show sixty years ago. Yet, as our team listened, engaged, and grew, the same questions came to each and every one of us: Where is the spiritual in these signals of change? What does the future hold for religion, spirituality, and institutions and communities like ours that promote spiritual growth and development? Click Spirituality Futures Day.
Nov 3, 2023 | From our Leadership
A tribute to the memory of Phil Hauck
Our community celebrates the life of Phil Hauck, 1942-2023, Envision president 2006-07, 2022-23.
A mentor and cherished friend to so many, Phil chose to be exceptional. He did nothing half-way – and he brought the rest of us along. It was only his understated and modest demeanor that kept him from being recognized as a giant in Green Bay’s economic landscape. Phil placed great importance on fostering foresight as the best-known way to secure happy, prosperous futures. A dedicated advocate for the future of Northeast Wisconsin, he created the community, the action, the passion, and commitment he wanted, and we all needed – and we are all better for it. His energy, inspiration and leadership were legend. We will miss his focus and his dedication to our community and its prosperous future. We will miss his humble curiosity, but our sense of loss is tempered by a greater sense of gratitude. Click tribute to Phil Hauck.
Nov 3, 2023 | Upward Mobility Signals
Gratzia Villarroel, Ph.D. , Director of International Studies, St. Norbert College
The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) emerged in the late 1990s when the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) identified a need for an international assessment beyond traditional performance measures. The first PISA assessment took place in 2000 and included 32 countries, which has risen to 80 in recent test evaluations. The test occurs every three years, and improvements are made each time to address different needs. To read the complete article click PISA Study.
Sep 28, 2023 | Strategic Foresight
Lynn Gerlach, Envision Communication Consultant
We welcomed 23 new Strategic Foresight students to our fall workshop, held at the beautiful Green Bay Botanical Garden – our biggest class yet. Collectively, they represent ten local organizations, some new to strategic foresight and others in training to enhance teams already established. Pictured in back on the far right is Garry Golden, certified futurist, who travels to Green Bay from New York City twice each year to train local organizations in the Greater Green Bay area.
Click here to read entire article.
Sep 28, 2023 | From our Leadership
Alexa Naudziunas, Executive Director
It is with great enthusiasm that I share some news with you about the ever-evolving landscape of our community. As we look ahead to the future, I believe it is our duty to equip ourselves with the tools and insights needed to navigate the challenges and opportunities that lie on the horizon.
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Sep 25, 2023 | Signals to Watch
Nan Nelson, Envision Board Member and Economic Transformation Signals Team
A new startup is using AI to make non-English call center employees, who are often located in India, Pakistan or the Philippines, sound American. Founded in 2020, Sanas now provides companies with a proprietary AI software that works in real-time to alter users’ voices to sound more “Western.” Its aim is to “improve human-to-human relationships,” but critics argue the plan is fraught with ethical and psychological implications. Some say it puts the onus on non-Westerners to cater to Western interests. Read more here.
Sep 7, 2023 | Horizons Newsletter by Envision
Enjoy the September 2023 Horizons, Envision’s bi-monthly newsletter. Meet Alexa Naudziunas, Envision’s new executive director; read how Karmen Lemke, Director of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Green Bay, has helped implement Strategic Foresight Training in her agency; and benefit from valuable insights on current trends and signals from Envision Board members.
Sep 2, 2023 | Upward Mobility Signals
Jim Golembeski, Envision Board member and Upward Mobility Signals Team
It takes 18 years to grow a worker.
That makes workforce forecasting one of the easiest things that Envision can do in our efforts to identify trends and challenges. It is easy to gather live birth data for our region on an annual basis and extrapolate out into the future.
We know the numbers of each age group, year by year, in NEW North. I have been speaking about these numbers for more than twenty years. The writing, as in the book of Daniel, has been on the wall: too many Baby Boomers retiring and not enough replacement workers coming into our workforce.
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