Insights · October 20th, 2025
This is a repost from Fifth Third Bank.
It’s volatile out there. And Chicago manufacturers need to be ready to take action—or else. “If you just sit there and wait for something to happen to you, it’s going to be very difficult to bounce back quickly,” says Nik Badminton, chief futurist and hope engineer at Futurist.com.
Case in point: climate change. Given the extreme—and often unpredictable—weather shifts, manufacturers might need to rethink their energy consumption or even generate their own power, Badminton says. That’s not the only disruption, of course.
As our Empowering American Cities snapshot for greater Chicagoland predicted, turbulence and other economic headwinds continue to loom large—from inflation to see-sawing tariffs to shifting immigration policies. We get it. It can be overwhelming. So here are three strategies for staying ahead of the curve:
1. Look ahead—every single day.
Manufacturing leaders should be continuously scanning the business horizon—keeping a keen eye out for emerging trends, whether it’s the next big thing in tech or a buzzy, new partnership. That can take different forms, from setting up browser alerts on the issues that matter in your industry or holding team brainstorms to identify possible threats.
“The best thing you can do is to do a little bit of futures work every day,” Badminton says. “It just builds that cognitive muscle.”
“Do what your competitors aren’t doing—looking a little bit over the horizon and wondering, ‘What if?’” — Nik Badminton, chief futurist and hope engineer
2. Plan—don’t panic.
With all the market uncertainty, scenario planning and proper risk management are a must. To ensure these efforts are targeted, Badminton says manufacturers should start by asking questions like: • What does our supply chain look like—and what threats could impact it? • If the U.S. tariffs play out in this scenario, how will they affect the local market—and what can we do to adapt? “Forward-looking organizations have done the cognitive work and maybe even made plans they can start executing when they need to pivot,” Badminton says. “When you do that work and look Continued at the signals of change, the trends that are starting to emerge, you can create that resiliency—and that quick turnaround.”
3. Reimagine what’s possible
Daydreaming on the job isn’t always a bad thing, according to recent research in The Journal of Neuroscience. Empowering team members to let their minds wander can lead to innovative solutions—even before problems arise.
“People who have wild imaginations can be the most valuable people,” Badminton says. “They’ll find a solution in the corner of a problem space that suddenly causes a ripple effect through the company.” Of course, leaders must be willing to allocate time for such efforts. But the payoff is real.
There’s a reason Google’s IPO letter stated the founders encourage employees to spend 20% of their time working on what they think will most benefit the company: “This empowers them to be more creative and innovative.”
Focusing on the future should also help manufacturers avoid panicked reactions when disruption strikes—strengthening resilience and forging quicker, smarter responses. “It’s about vigilance. It’s about preparedness,”
Badminton says. “Do what your competitors aren’t doing—looking a little bit over the horizon and wondering, ‘What if?’”
About Nikolas Badminton
Nikolas Badminton is the Chief Futurist & Hope Engineer at futurist.com. He’s a world-renowned futurist speaker, consultant, author, media producer, and executive advisor that has spoken to, and worked with, over 500 of the world’s most impactful organizations and governments.
Nikolas Badminton’s book Facing Our Futures: How Foresight, Futures Design and Strategy Creates Prosperity and Growth has been selected for 2023 J.P. Morgan Summer Reading List, and featured as the ‘Next Gen Pick’ to inform the next generation of thinkers that lead us into our futures.
Nikolas is currently writing his next book that provides guidance on applying hope theory with futures exploration. Please contact futurist speaker and consultant Nikolas Badminton to discuss your engagement.
