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motivated large numbers of people in a rich, collective process, the prospective takes this a
stage further by proposing a path towards real, implemented action.
10. Move to Strategic Planning
Traditionally, strategic thinking through scenarios has been separated from strategic planning,
and quite deliberately so. This has often been a strength, in that is has allowed creative
exploration untrammelled by the need to take action. But is has also been a weakness, because
it has isolated imaginative thinking and curtailed continuing ‘future proofing’. In one way, the
prospective provides a bridge between strategic thinking and strategic planning across which
ideas and actions can continue to pass. In another, it builds a kind of ‘scaffolding’ within which
a strategic plan can be constructed and refurbished.
In terms of ‘making-it-happen’, the prospective process through scenarios contributes to
strategic planning and management by (van der Heijden, 2002):
• creating wide awareness of the environmental imperative requiring change;
• guiding the formation of operational plans;
• enlisting the people in the organisation who have the power to act; and
• establishing coherence in management action through development of a shared view.
2.2.2 Methods and Techniques
The Prospective Through Scenarios Process, outlined above, formed the overall project
framework, following which a set of specific tasks was established and methods for their
completion chosen appropriately. The various tasks set to complete the project include the
following.
1. A desk-top ‘horizon scanning’ study focusing on the changes, challenges and priority areas
facing spatial planning and development in Ireland.
2. A ‘trend analysis’ study to identify the ‘key drivers of change’ influencing the future of
spatial planning and development in Ireland.
3. Preparation and distribution of ‘futures questionnaires’ to the various stakeholders to
collect primary research data on the future priorities of the gateways.
4. Conducting of ‘strategic conversations’ with the most important players in the sector to
generate qualitative opinion-based data on the perceived areas of strategic significance
across a range of professions concerned with the future development of the gateways.
5. Organisation and facilitation of a series of ‘futures workshops’ to create a set of
alternative future scenarios, a preferred future vision and a range of policy options for
each of the gateway towns and cities in Ireland.
The structure of Futures Workshops was based on the Spatial Prospective process. Such
workshops are the most efficient method for collecting an abundance of rich data in a short
period of time. The process used during workshops, attended by a mixture of people
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