Innovation Anthology #180: Vice President of Innovation
It is not unusual for a company or government agency to engage in strategic planning.
But the Alberta Research Council has taken that concept to new heights with the establishment of a position called the Chair of Foresight.
And the man holding that Chair is Dr. Axel Meisen. He left a very successful career as the President and Vice Chancellor of Memorial University in Newfoundland to relocate in Alberta.
It’s his job as the Chair of Foresight to look 50 years down the road, and figure out what scientists should be working on today to meet the needs of the tomorrow
DR. AXEL MEISEN: Foresight is basically a systematic way of looking at the future. In the first stage you look at what is the current situation. The second stage looks at the trends and where these trends may take us , what might we do in order to accelerate the trends what other new options might there be. And the third stage fundamentally takes those insights and translates them into actions.
As Chair of Foresight, Dr. Meisen sees waste reduction and localization versus globalization as major trends.
Thanks today the Alberta Research Council.
Learn more at InnovationAnthology.com.
I’M CHERYL CROUCHER
Guest
Clint Undseth,
Stuart Olson Group of Companies, Richmond, British Columbia, Canada,
Sponsor
Alberta Research Council
Established as the first provincial research organization in Canada, the Alberta Research Council is 85 years old. The Alberta Research Council (ARC) develops and commercializes technologies to give customers a competitive advantage. A leader in innovation, ARC provides solutions globally to the energy, life sciences, agriculture, environment, forestry and manufacturing sectors.
ARC performs about five per cent of the roughly $1.5 billion in R&D done in Alberta each year, and generates revenues of approximately $84 million per year. ARC operates from five sites across the province in Edmonton, Calgary, Vegreville and Devon and employs more than 600 highly-skilled people.
In January 2010, under the new Alberta Innovation Framework, the Alberta Research Council was restructured and incorporated into the new provincial agency Alberta Innovates Technology Futures.
Program Date: 2008-10-30