Willsh

@willsh.bsky.social

Helps organisations Make Things People Want, rather than Make People Want Things @ Smithery. Designs experimental thinking tools @ artefactshop.com. Accidental speculative gardener. Newsletter - buttondown.com/artefacts

Founder at Smithery Ltd

London Area, United Kingdom🇬🇧

Report

John is the founder of Smithery, an independent Strategic Design Practice established in London in 2011. Smithery helps organisations take an active role in shaping their futures as they look out over an uncertain landscape.

This involves learning to perceive and understand new realities, then acting upon the opportunities revealed to spark appropriate internal innovation.

John’s work is informed by a wide range of experience across different fields, including futures and foresight, innovation, design, economics and market research. He is a highly experienced facilitator and keynote speaker.

Recent projects include working in partnership with Changeist to build a Future Trends and Signals System for UNDP, developing a community engagement strategy in Climate and Health for Wellcome Trust, and creating a new strategic approach for capability building within Unilever.

John also leads the Innovation and Future Thinking summer course at IED Barcelona, which this summer celebrated its tenth anniversary.

----- CORE SKILLS Strategy Leads strategic design initiatives, specialising in identifying key intervention points, creating decision-making models and frameworks, and working across complex systems with a variety of stakeholders.

Futures Possesses a decade of expertise in futures projects and teaching futures methods like signal scanning, scenario creation, and speculative design. Specialises in methods rooted in more inductive, participatory futures.

Research Conducts comprehensive primary and secondary research (qualitative and quantitative), analysing and synthesising results into compelling reports and presentations.

Design Highly experienced in visual and audio-visual design (Illustrator, Photoshop, Premiere, Indesign, Figma, Miro), with a knack for conveying complex ideas effectively.

Facilitation Skilled facilitator for in-person workshops, field trips and signal scanning exercises in variety of different locations (cities, neighbourhoods, facilities). Developer of innovative methods for online workshops with digital whiteboards.

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Career: 10

Founder

Smithery Ltd

Jul 2011 - Present

I founded Smithery in 2011. All of our work is rooted in the idea that it is better to help organisations make things people want, rather than make people want things. This is achieved through a nested collection of creative philosophies, processes and tools forged over the last decade to generate endless inspiration for the imagination and maximise the impact of ideas. We are powerful partners for innovating in any capacity. From multi-year planning for uncertain futures to daily problem solving, designing global programmes to rapid idea generation, shaping the language of key imperatives to building digital platforms for deployment, our breadth of experience is matched only by our enthusiasm for learning new things (See http://smithery.com for more.)

Steward

STEPS Collective

Oct 2023 - Present

We founded The STEPS Collective to 'showing the easy place to start' (aka STEPS) by sharing provocations which get people thinking, feeling, doing and making in the regenerative space. As stewards, we convene opportunities for these things to happen, as online sessions, workshops, field trips and more.

Course Director, Innovation and Future Thinking

IED Barcelona

Barcelona Area, Spain

Jul 2017 - Present

In summer 2017, I had the pleasure and privilege of taking over the Coordinator role on the Innovation and Future Thinking from Scott Smith (Changeist). It's a two week programme for professionals, and helps students improve their ability to detect signals of change, organize insights into understandable models, synthesize new ways of mapping possible futures, identify the potential barriers and opportunities these futures present, and design innovative products, services or ideas that satisfy emerging needs.

Visiting Professor

IED Barcelona

Barcelona Area, Spain

Jul 2015 - Present

Teaching innovation and strategic design methods and tools across various Masters level and Summer School courses courses at IED (Istituto Europeo Di Design).

Associate Lecturer, Design Futures

Royal College of Art

London Area, United Kingdom

Jan 2025 - Jul 2025

After many years as a guest lecturer at the RCA, I am running this one-off Elective for the Design Futures programme on Design Innovation: Venture Creation. The course is building upon many excellent previous iterations, which have always taught students about how to use the modern frameworks, tools to focus their design skills in a business context. For my version of this elective, the students will be asked to layer in the social, environmental and economic dimensions required to build a regenerative business.

Chief Innovation Officer

PHD Media

Jul 2010 - Jul 2011

Leading a small, nimble team of the innovationally minded & creatively gifted at PHD; reframing the notion of what a media agency is and does; helping clients understand just what might be possible for a modern businesses; being excitably Scottish and enthusiastic; doing things and asking forgiveness, rather than talking about things and asking permission...

Head of Innovation

PHD Media

Jan 2007 - Jun 2010

When I started this role, the job description read as follows; "The creation and cultivation of ideas through the study of technological, cultural and social trends and developments". Which, when you think about it, could cover just about anything. Just goes to show what happens when you let people write their own job descriptions...

Communications Insight Manager

PHD Rocket

Aug 2004 - Jan 2007

Mainly coming up with weird analogies to plot proper growth for a wee smoothie company. Ahh, the "Innocent Orchard" brings back memories...

Strategic Planning Manager

Viacom Outdoor

Feb 2001 - Aug 2004

Writing overwrought, beautiful presentations.

Market Research Executive

BJM Research & Consultancy

Feb 2000 - Feb 2001

Graduate role in the Media division.

Education: 2

IPA Excellence Diploma

IPAexDip

2007 - 2008

The University of Stirling

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

1995 - 1999

Projects: 4

UNDP - Future Trends & Signals System

Aug 2023 - Present

Collaborated with the UNDP Executive Office Strategy and Futures Team on the development and design of a new Future Trends and Signals System (FTSS), in partnership with Scott Smith (Changeist). Conducted initial research and stakeholder interviews, crafted visual frameworks to conceptualise the system, created training materials, facilitated training sessions, and played a key role in system design, prototyping, wire-framing, and visual mockups. Worked closely with multiple UNDP teams to develop and refine the social practice supported by the system.

Artefact Cards

shop.smithery.co

Aug 2011 - Present

A new product to help people unpack the ideas in their heads, reorder and reconnect them, find new meaning, and improve their work. Can be used on your own, or in teams. It's increasingly being picked up by people as a vital step before shifting to the screen and finishing ideas.

Wellcome Trust - Community-led Climate & Health strategy

Jun 2023 - Feb 2024

Partnered with the Community Engagement team at Wellcome Trust on the new challenge area at the intersection of Climate and Health. Developed a strategy and implementation plan to ensure that communities most affected by the climate crisis are prioritised in the discovery, research, and campaigning processes.

DSTL - Futures training method

Aug 2018 - Nov 2018

Designed FUTREP (FUTures REPort), a hands-on method and card deck for training groups of colleagues in futures methods. This approach also helped uncover potential future scenarios, and identified necessary actions based on colleagues’ experience.

Publications: 1

Making Things People Want > Making People Want Things

Awards: 1

Cannes Silver Lion - Huffington Post

Jun 2013

I worked with Gravity Road and Atom42 on the multi-award winning work for The Huffington Post, "Conversations Start Here". I was responsible for the the strategy driving the approach, and the tactical Innovation around deployment. And funnily enough, it meant Mark Eaves from Gravity Road and I worked together on another Cannes Silver Lion, after we won at PHD for the Sage/Krypton Factor. Silver again. Always the bridesmaid...

Skills: 55

Other

BloggingBrand CommunicationBrand DevelopmentBusiness DevelopmentBusiness StrategyCommunity OrganizingConveningCopywriting

Corporate CommunicationsCreative StrategyCreativityCreativity SkillsCulture ChangeCustomer InsightDesignDesign ResearchDigital MarketingDigital MediaDigital StrategyFacilitationForesightFutures ThinkingGame DevelopmentIdea GenerationIdeas DevelopmentInnovationInnovation ConsultingInnovative ThinkingIntegrated MarketingManagementMedia StrategyNew MediaPaper PrototypingPresentation DesignProduct DesignProduct DevelopmentProduct InnovationProfessional MentoringRapid PrototypingRegenerationRegenerative DesignService DesignSocial InnovationSocial NetworkingStrategic CommunicationsStrategic DesignStrategic PlanningStrategyStrategy DevelopmentTeam WorkshopsTechnologyUniversity LecturingWorkshop DevelopmentWorkshop FacilitationWorkshops

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Bluesky (@willsh.bsky.social)