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GCI Academy is the company’s internal professional development program. There is a North American version as well as a Canadian one that we design and deliver to the team here.

For this week’s North American session the topic was “Trendspotting” delivered by Robyn Fried of our NY Consumer Team and she did a great job.

Robyn’s presentation highlighted some interesting observations. The speed of change continues to accelerate. New technologies have made it possible to analyze history (societal changes and cultural evolution) and sales in greater detail than ever before. And up for debate perhaps, that traditional consumer research has its limiitations. Robyn used a quote I loved by American auto inventor Henry Ford, “If I had asked consumers what they wanted, they would have said faster horses”. We sometimes impose our own restrictions on what we believe to be possible.

Very few of us are actual trendmakers like Apple’s Steve Jobs who can see beyond conventions. This means being a “fast follower” is probably the best alternative for most of us. Plus, having the ability to differentiate between a fad like the pet rock and what seems to continue to be a trend such as tattoos.