 Rafael Ramirez, Programme Director
In Oxford University Rafael is James Martin Senior Fellow in Futures at the Institute for Science, Innovation and Society, and Fellow in Strategy at the Saïd Business School and at Green-Templeton College. Rafael is also co-chairman of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Strategic Foresight.
He holds a PhD from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and Master’s degrees from Oxford and from the Environmental Studies Faculty at York University in Toronto. He has been a full tenured Professor in HEC-Paris, and has held positions in the Wharton School, the Centre de Sociologie des Organisations - CNRS in Paris, SMG, and NormannPartners. He was Visiting Professor of Scenarios and Corporate Strategy at Shell International from 2000 to 2003.
Rafael has carried out pioneering work in the aesthetics (attractiveness or repulsion) of business, work, and organisation; the interactive design of strategy and value creation, and how scenarios work. He has published six books (translated into Japanese, Finnish, Italian, Swedish, and French) and many chapters and papers on these subjects.
As a consultant and/or management educator, Rafael has worked in over 20 countries, with 30 corporations, six governmental organisations, one trade union federation, and two associations of industrialists. These include:
Air Liquide, Alcatel, Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris, AT&T, Axa, BMW, BNP, Canadian Labour Congress, CIDA/Government of St Lucia, Crédit Suisse, Enskilda London, Entreprise & Personnel, the European Patent Office, the European Roundtable of Industrialists, Eurotunnel, Ferrovie dello Stato, Fortum, Hewlett-Packard, JDC, Neste, NYC Department of Juvenile Justice, Nissan Europe, O2, Paribas, RATP, Rockwool, SAS, Schneider, Shell, Sonera/Telecom Finland, Spie, Standard Chartered Bank, Statoil Hydro, Stora, Suez International, Top Denmark, Trenitalia, UNDP/Government of Panama, Unitas, Usinor, Volvo Penta, Wärtsilä, World Economic Forum, and Zurich Insurance.
Rafael speaks English, Spanish, and French fluently.
Recent Articles:
EM audio marea negra Rafael Ramírez
RFI (Radio France International), 2nd June
Rafael Ramirez talks about scenarios and the BP oil leak.
(audio)
Como o paradigma da inovação desafiará os CIOs no futuro da TI
InformationWeek Brazil, 17th May
Rafael Ramirez talks about how CIOs can successfully use scenario planning.
View his full biography here.
 Angela Wilkinson
Dr Angela Wilkinson is Programme Director of the Futures Directorate at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.
Angela was formerly the Director of Scenario Planning and Futures Research at Saïd Business School's Institute for Science, Innovation and Society. She is an experienced business leader, a reflective scholar, an effective coach and teacher and a seasoned futures practitioner.
Angela brings over 20 years of analytical, managerial, consultancy and leadership experience, honed in a range of organisations and international bodies, spanning the public and private sector. Prior to Oxford, Angela spent a decade as a leading member of Shell International’s Global Scenario team. She holds a PhD in Physics.
At Oxford, Angela is leading efforts to establishing an international, intellectual and institutional home for futures practices. She directs search and research activities using scenarios, as well as research into a variety of futures practices. Her aim is clarifying and extending what works, why and how.
Angela's interests lie in building future-mindedness. She is actively engaged in helping a variety of individuals, organisations and institutions to learn from the future. She is keen to clarify how and when invoking alternative futures can help create the uncommon ground required in mobilising collective action on global challenges and in tackling seemingly intractable problems.
Angela has directed several ambitious public-private initiatives including, AIDS in Africa: Three Scenarios for the Future, for UNAIDS, Aspire Australia:2025 for the Business Council of Australia, and, The Future of Water: Navigating a Sustainable Course for the World Business Council on Sustainable Development.
Angela brings over 20 years of analytical, managerial, consultancy and leadership experience, honed in a range of organisations and international bodies, spanning the public and private sector. Prior to Oxford, Angela spent a decade as a leading member of Shell International’s Global Scenario team. She holds a PhD in Physics.
Angela explains “Scenarios help to provide a way of learning from the future. In today’s world, it is the shared exploration of alternative solutions to complex and seemingly persistent global problems, rather than greater precision, that will help us transform such challenges.”
 Kees van der Heijden
Kees has developed the context of scenario planning and pioneered the concept of "strategic conversation" which envelops scenario planning as well as conception and development of the Business Idea. His research focuses on institutional strategic thinking and learning, and on processes for intervention in these areas.
Kees is director of the Centre of Scenario Planning and Future Studies at USGSB. Together with the other Principals of the Centre - George Burt, Professor George Wright, Dr George Cairns and Ron Bradfield - he works with private and public organisations to enable them to negotiate a successful course for their organisation in the face of uncertainty.
His groundbreaking book on how to use scenarios - 'Scenarios: the Art of Strategic Conversation' - reached the last six for the World Business Book Prize and numerous articles on Kees' work in scenario planning and strategy have been published in a range of books and journals world wide.
Prior to his move into academia at Strathclyde in 1991, Kees was head of the Business Environment Division in Group Planning at Royal Dutch/Shell, London.
In this capacity he was responsible for the development and application of Shell's scenario planning, including monitoring and analysing the business environment and communicating with top management on outlook and strategic implications.
Before that, he headed up Shell's Internal Strategy Consultancy Group, assisting management teams in strategy development and implementation.
Kees spent many years with Shell, working in operating companies in Holland, Manila, Singapore and Curacao, mostly in activities concerned with commercial planning, economics, and corporate planning and strategy. |